In the third grade, we were given an opportunity to design and submit a news paper advertisement for a local business. This submission would be judged and entered in a competition to be printed in the paper. I ended up with the Bike Stop Cycling and Fitness. I ran home to show my parents and little did I know that the Bike Stop was only a block away, almost on the way home from school! The next day I walked over to the store to check the place out and see what I needed to do for the ad. I saw all kinds of shinny new bikes and strange workout equipment that I had never seen before. That evening, I grabbed some scrap paper and I drew up a little picture with a bicycle and a pair of dumb bells and drew my best copy of their logo at the top. I submitted my advertisement in class and waited.

After school, my brother and I would always ride our bikes down to the neighbor's house and hang out with them. It was far enough from home that biking saved us precious time we needed for playing baseball, football, or capturing lightning bugs, which if we had more baseball bats than mason jars, we would take swinging practice on the bugs instead of capturing them. We also seemed to find our way back on the bikes too. We would have races down Marquette street hill, ramp up and over the curbs in front of the Cousin's house, or ride down to Larkin's ponds to check if the fish were biting. Bikes were ever present. We always compared features on bikes, made claims of awesomeness about different brands, and set up races to prove who's bike was actually faster. Heck, we would see who cold have the longest skid. Dad didn't like that competition, changing tires and tubes can be expensive. The bikes were more than just a talking point between us kids, however. They gave us the proverbial freedom that bike ownership always claims. Its popular because its true. The Kirks, Bryans, Watkins, the Cousins; we all would not be able to get out and see new parts of our neighborhood without the mobility of the bicycle. We found trails at the neighboring park, trails in local wooded areas, or we would ride in forbidden places like closed factories and abandoned properties. Maybe this what kids do? But that was the basis of my childhood and how I explored the world. The bike made friendships, caused debate, competition, innovation, created injury, taught us compassion, and made us laugh. Its more than a hunk of steel, plastic, and rubber tires, it was a front seat in the class of childhood.

I won the news paper's advertisement competition. What a cool time in my life! My crudely sketched advertisement was chosen to be in the paper! After school that day, I detoured my way over to the store to share how I won the competition for their store. I don't think the mechanic was as excited for me as I was. Maybe if the owner was in the store at that time I would have gotten a rise out of him. Either way, the advertisement must have done great in the paper, because the business is still open, 25 years later! I wonder if they would thank me now? That's not what I'm after, however. What I took from this was an introduction in advanced cycling equipment at very early age. Since that first day I walked into that shop with the black and white checkered tiled floor and dwarfed by the enormity of the bike racks, I became comfortable with being in a bike shop. And maybe this is where I owe them thanks. I became one of their biggest fans. I took numerous trips into that store just to look around and bug the mechanics with riveting discussion topics like "What's this for", and "What's a BigKahuna?" I must have been very annoying back then. But hey, I eventually bought a bike from them. I introduced the shop to one of my friends who bought also a mountain bike from them. I actually brought business to them, an ambassador so to speak. As I now recall, my Dad bought a bike from them too! So we may be even.

If we fast forward a bit, poverty played a roll in my cycling life as well. I could not be given a car when I turned 15-1/2 or whatever age it is that kids these days start driving. I actually didn't apply for my driver's license until I was 17. I waited until i was literally an adult, on my 18th birthday to get take my driver's test. I did it by myself too. Because, when you're an adult you can sign your own papers. All throughout high school, I had my bike and I rode everywhere.

To be Continued!