Angry Merchants

We like supporting small merchants, especially when they carry items that we are most interested in. Instead of falling back on the internet or big box stores. We seek out small merchants. We want to encourage real downhome people to continue their pursuit and we milk them for their expertise. Face to face, human to human. honesty and sincerity can be seen in their eyes...felt in our handshake. This is how we conduct our business. Lately we have felt their stress and disappointment..."Even our friends don't shop with us first. They buy something through their computer and then come in to show us how clever they were. And we often stock the same item." We often visit bicycle shops when we travel. We started writing, publishing, promoting and selling bicycle guides over forty years ago and therefore sold them door to door at bicycle shops throughout the Western U.S. Shop owners have evolved from excited purveyors of outdoor tools and exploration into sad or even disgusted prisoners of their quiet stores. Most bicycle shops in America do not own the building out of which they conduct their business. Their leases were agreed to back when times were good...five, ten even twenty years ago. Ebikes have accentuated the difficulties between merchants and potential customers. At least 90% of electric assist bicycles are sold online. The buyers are often surprised with the realities of their purchase..."The damn thing arrived in a box." Most of these are produced in China, Malaysia or Vietnam...which results in cheap components and disappointing performance, possibly even dangerous electronics. So, bicycle shop owners are hearing all of the retorts and anger (even though the customer didn't ask for advice or try to support their local business). I walked into the GoGreen Bicycle shop in Burbank, California last month only to hear an angry merchant hollering, "Retail Sucks!"

From Scratch

A friend recently commented, "Chuck, you should be real proud. You built a business from scratch that lasted thirty years." This person did not know that I also built a house 'from scratch' that has been home for well over thirty years. In fact, my whole life could fit under the 'from scratch' theme. As a five year old my mother told me that my father had "flown away" and "flew the coup." No further explanation. On the playground at Woodrow Wilson Elementary school, my kindergarten teacher...Mrs. Dixon, asked me why I waved at airplanes that flew over our school ocassionally. I'm waving to my father, I answered. "Is he a pilot?" she asked. I didn't know and... probably didn't answer. When it came to fathers I had to start from scratch. I had four uncles that helped fill the void. Obtaining a College degree was a goal when I graduated from high school. Neither of my parents had finished high school. We built a community college from scratch...I and eleven other students from Kalamazoo area high schools comprised the academic affairs commitee responsible for formulating a curriculum and design for KVCC. I cut the ribbon that launched Kalamazoo Valley Community College. We started it from scratch and now 55 years later, KVCC is a pillar of the community. Starting and nurturing a business in small town America has become ridiculously more difficult...loyalty, customer loyalty is a thing of the past. Big Box enticements, Internet enticements and online shopping has eliminated the 'little guy' and crushed Village Shopping in America. However, I do appreciate your patronage.

A Friend Asked. "Have you always been so political.?"

I don't think I paid much attention to politics before the 1960 Nixon/Kennedy TV debate. I was only ten years old. I was impressed with John F. Kennedy, war hero and I loved the movie "PT 109". The assasination of JFK sixty years ago this month was a real gut punch...even for a thirteen year old. The move for Civil Rights got my attention, why not? It was only fair that all Americans enjoyed equal rights. Barry Goldwater and Gov. George Wallace got my attention, how could these people and their followers be so narrow-minded and mean? I started talking and writing about these issues and found very little sympathy with my newly-formed preferences. There were no liberals in my extended family and my best friend aligned with Republicans. I became a newspaper editor in my 16th year...The Outpost. a 12 page weekly sponsored by Sally Mitchell, journalism teacher at Portage Northern H.S. Within limits, I was allowed to express my opinions in my 'From The Editor' column. This is where I first experienced "backlash" from the readers of The Outpost. Martin Luther King was assasinated in April of 1968 and I volunteered to become part of the RFK for President campaign. I manned an information table in Bronson Park when he campaigned in Kalamazoo on June 1st, 1968. RFK was an adventurous outdoorsman and a humanist (or so I thought) making him an excellent candidate for President of the USA...especially against the likes of Richard M Nixon. A few days later RFK was assasinated by Sirhan Sirhan in Los Angeles and I graduated from PNHS. So, yes, I guess you could say that I've always been quite politically aware. I didn't believe in the Vietnam escapade so I resolved that I would invest in four years of college...college deferments were a thing. When The Draft Lottery was instituted in 1969 the college deferment strategy was in question...the morning after this Lottery (late September 1969) I discovered that I was the last ball out of the big bowl...number 366. I remained in college for most of the first half of the 70's, living in "college towns" assured that I remained interested in politics.

The Excessive Heat Problem

Climate Weirding...the oceans are heating up...records are being shattered on land temperatures...those who measure such events are in total agreemment, human behavoir must change. Will it? Not likely...we love our cars and trucks, we depend on heating and air conditioning...mostly the old fashioned way. We want to Jet around the country, we want to Jet around the globe. We are not changing this behavior until...we are forced to. And we will be forced to because we didn't change our behavior. A conundrum for sure. A favorite saying around here...CYCLING IS CLIMATE ACTION.

Depression Stalks Us

Life looks very different when, in the space of three years, you see that you could lose everything. When, the earth under you twists and shakes and rattles everything around you. When, your best friend is told that she has lung cancer, surgery will be necessary. When, a million-acre fire blows into your town and you are evacuated for seven weeks. When, your loved-ones struggle with a deadly virus. When, you are told you have a large tumor in your colon and it'll have to be surgically removed (your doctor says, "You could die on the operating table."). When, you realize that a formidable percentage of your neighbors are politically willing to "throw-it-all-away" by shucking the rules we live by out the nearest window, held open by an abberation called "The Tea Party"...and when, that neighbor's window has encroached 100 yards closer to your own. Life looks very different now...each moment, each day is still a precious gift. Attitudes are adjustable, outlooks are changable..."it could be worse" comes to mind. People are suffering around the world...and even in our own villages, to degrees unimaginable to someone who has been as fortunate as I have been these last 73 years.

The Getaway...Van Life.

Gassed and loaded with everything you'd need for a one week getaway. Like magic, load the wife, load the dog and there we go, up the road...522 miles until empty. Definitely not the "busy season" at the store so, put a sign on the door. We'll return in a week, or more. Not sure what we are going to do if we can't find insurance to cover us while we run a business. A real possibility exists that after thirty years of being open year-around we will have to close for the Winter season. A guy could get used to this version of semi-retirement. I have a backlog of fix-it jobs and "honey do" projects at home. It may be time to catch-up with these. Mid-seventies might be an excellent age to allow and afford more time for freedom to wander. Not an age thing, really. Using a healthy body for hiking, cycling and swimming is a precious gift...you've got to use it while you can.