One year after fire, BikeTown ready to put the pedal to the metal

One year after a fire that damaged his business at 1789 Industrial Blvd., Jim MacDonald is "itching" to occupy a slightly revamped version of his original BikeTown location soon.

“We want to be next door and  in our real store,” said MacDonald, whose business temporarily moved to an adjacent building to the west. “We were hoping to be in there earlier this year.”

But supply chain issues, as well as the impending Tour de Gap, scheduled this weekend, is prompting the business to put on the brakes, he said, though the time is coming soon with a pending certificate of occupancy for its new, old home.

The yearly Tour de Gap benefits Big Brothers Big Sisters Abilene.

Between two worlds

Harris Acoustics built the almost 5,000-square-foot BikeTown building and manages the shopping complex it resides in.

The company made BikeTown an offer for a temporary location after the fire.

It has been a challenge, MacDonald said, living between two worlds − the familiar store next door and its temporary digs.

Crammed with bikes of all types and for all ages, from traditional pedal-pushers to electrical options, the alternate spot was busy Monday afternoon with riders looking for repairs, or perhaps, a new set of two wheels.

Ironically, some customers who don't know about the fire perceive there's something different about the present location, but they aren't always exactly sure what, MacDonald said.

"'Did you paint in here, it looks different?'" he said in imitation of some. "Even though we're in it every day, there are still people that don't realize that (the fire) happened. And in a way, that's good."

Rather than dwelling on the past, MacDonald said he and his employees are "blessed," and that's what he wants to focus on.

"It's not 'Woe is me,'" he said. "We still have a business. We still get to operate, as chaotic as it is."

Bits and bobs

Among casualties of the fire not readily apparent to some is a collection of wire framing, tiny parts, small springs, ball bearings, cable ends and more the shop used for daily projects, carefully cataloged by number, MacDonald said.

"All of that stuff is gone," he said, and right now, there's not enough physical space to recreate it.

"It was 20 years to create that amount of organization," MacDonald said.

There are a few small changes being made to the new space for efficiency, he said, everything from better insulation to improved layout.

"In one respect, it's been nice to be able to visit and watch things go up and decide, 'Hey, I didn't like where that wall switch was, can we move it over there and remove this light over here?' and so on," he said. "Those have been some nice things. Being here has helped that. It's like being practically on the building site."

Harris has been particularly easy to work with, he said, in allowing the business to operate out of the nearby space.

But the future is tantalizingly close, MacDonald said.

"We hope to be over there sometime in the next couple of weeks," he said. "We plan to just start migrating over there as soon as we can. ... We're just kind of waiting on those final inspections to come in."

A changing industry

While growing up in New England, MacDonald said he enjoyed bike riding.

During his high school years, he found his calling in a bike shop looking for hired help.

"I fell in love with it," he said. "It's just a lot of fun. You can relax. I can wear shorts every day to work. I can bring my dog to work. It's an enjoyable industry, usually."

The past 10 years have been staggering in terms of changes, MacDonald said.

Even a decade ago, there was a good amount of standardization, something that isn't the case anymore, he said.

A customer may come in and ask for what would, for example, seem to be a standard-sized tire.

"But there are 87 standards," MacDonald said. "So, which one?"

The business wants to meet customers' expectations, including taking care of them in the same day, he said.

"The last several years have made it very difficult," he said, simply because of the sheer variety of what's available.

"It's enormous," he said, whether one is looking at traditional analog-style bikes or e-bikes, types of tires, drop bars and seating positions.

The good thing about the diversity, MacDonald said, is that it means there's a bike pretty much suited to every lifestyle, from former Olympians to those who last pushed a pedal in junior high.

The store's customer base ranges from kids to octogenarians, he said.

"It's all over the board," he said. "There are endurance bikes and race bikes, triathlon bikes, gravel bikes, fitness bikes. ... It's hard tails and dual suspension, and on and on and on."

And now, most bikes have an electrical option.

"So, it's not just analog bikes, it's digital bikes as well," he said.

The store usually carries a couple of hundred bikes at a time, drawn from two major brands, Trek and Specialized, two of the largest in the world, MacDonald said.

Tricked out

Accessories also are now more a part of the industry than ever before, he said, with even bicycle helmets not being a known item when MacDonald first started.

"There was no such thing as a Camelbak," he said, referring to a portable hydration pack. "Sunglasses were not a category. And nowadays, the clothing category is huge. There's no niche that's excluded. You can't just have a wall of bikes and three tires and tubes like it used to be. It's a fully-categorized industry."

It's challenging, but satisfying, he said, to meet all of the demand, which has translated to a loyal customer base.

When the fire happened, MacDonald said he was allowed to feel "sorry for myself for a few hours."

"But then, once the initial shock of it wore off, it's like, 'You know what? We're going to be OK,'" he said. "I still had four healthy kids. We have our health. My wife still loves me. Our church family is still there."

And the business itself, he said, has been "crazy" in the lead up to the Tour de Gap races, MacDonald said.

"The spring was windier than it typically is, and it got hotter earlier than it normally does," he said. "And so, I think it just delayed and reduced some of the riding."

That's a lot of pent-up kinetic energy, and as of Monday, about 200 people had signed up for the event, MacDonald said, "pretty common" for the week before.

Even if you're not a cyclist yourself, MacDonald encouraged those interested to come watch.

"It's going to be a good, fun year, and we're going to raise a bunch of money," he said.

If You Go

What: Tour de Gap, benefitting Big Brothers-Big Sisters Abilene-Lone Star.

Where: Old Settlers Ground, Buffalo Gap, 15 miles south of Abilene.

Registration: tourdegap.com

Cost: $80 for an 11-mile, 50K or 100K ride Saturday, with opportunities for those 14 and younger to ride for free in the 11-mile and 50K routes. Those who pay to ride Saturday can participate in the Sunday time trial for $60. Those riding only the time trial pay $70.

This article originally appeared on Abilene Reporter-News: One year after fire, BikeTown ready to put the pedal to the metal