Real-Life Decision Making -- Solution
You tell him that you designed that bike and you would like to know
where he thinks he gets off.
The only way to get better as a designer is to listen to criticism, even
if you don't agree with it. "My goal is to design the coolest, fastest
bike, so that anyone will walk into a store and go 'wow,'" explains
Brady O'Hare. "But sometimes that doesn't happen and it's back
to the drawing board. Someone will say, 'Oh, that thing, it's too
heavy.' You just have to say, 'Oh, well.' Sometimes
the feedback is not what you expect."
With custom bike designers, feedback usually comes before the bike is built,
so they don't encounter this trouble. "I explain all the pros and cons
of each design before building. I also let them test ride each type. By the
time the customers' bikes are built, they should know what they are getting
into," explains Steve Robson. He is a custom designer.
California bike designer Tony Ellsworth says his designs don't get
too much criticism once on the dealer's floor. "I think that comes from
the trials we put designs through before we sell them to the public. The bikes
are pretty tried and proven by the time they get offered to the public," says
Ellsworth.