As fuel prices rise, so do bicycle sales

David Heath grimaced Saturday afternoon as he watched the total price of his gas purchase eclipse the $60 mark. At $3.79 per gallon, he'd barely bought half a tank for his 2004 GMC Yukon.

Half a tank, he said, will get him to work and home five times.

Meanwhile, a few blocks away from the Vernon Avenue Kangaroo gas station where Heath pumped, Bert Statum proudly looked over his store counter at the inventory of transportation machines that cost virtually nothing to drive.

Statum - with the help of his wife and son - owns and operates Riverside Bicycles and Outdoor Sports at 210 West Gordon St., where bicycle sales have increased by more than 25 percent over the last six months.

"Some people have come looking for a new bike because of gas," Statum said. "But most of (the new customers) are people who brought their bikes in for repair so they can ride them again.

"Many haven't ridden them for 10 to 15 years, but they want to start again."

While he cites physical fitness as one cause of customers rekindling their love for their two-wheeled friends, the main reason, he said, is the rising cost of gas.

The most popular model Statum is selling these days is the sport comfort bike - a solid, comfortable model with wide tires that combines stability, speed and practicality. The shop specializes in Schwinn Select bikes - which are made in America and of higher quality than the Chinese-made Schwinn counterparts sold at Target and Wal-Mart.

Statum said many people will buy bags that cover a rack over the rear wheel so they can carry groceries and run errands.

"They want to be able to ride around town and do their daily business on them," Statum said.  

Statum's son, Jay, works in the service section of the store, where all kinds of bikes can be repaired, tuned-up or brought back to life after a decade-long stay in a dusty garage. He noticed much more of an interest in the store - and bicycles in general - once gas prices started going up.

Most of the bikes at Riverside - the only shop in Kinston of its kind - are engineered to require an annual checkup as maintenance. But as long as a rider isn't careless, Statum said the $29.95 service is the only cost riders should have to pay after they buy a bike - a far cry from the $4,000 government statistics predict most Americans spent on gas in 2007 to power their vehicles.

And that was when gas was roughly a dollar less per gallon.

But according to Statum, the money-saving power of a bicycle isn't all that's good about trading four wheels for two.

"I've known people who say when they ride a bike, they think a lot more," he said. "Of course they're looking (for cars), but they have time to think about what they're going to do during the day.

"When you're in a car, you're listening to the radio, drinking coffee you've got your cell phone - you can't do all that on a bicycle, so you have time to think to yourself."

Lisa Shaw, who was at Statum's shop on Saturday to pick up her sport comfort bicycle after repairs, said she's been a customer since the store opened in September 2006. Shaw, the Lenoir Community College tutoring lab coordinator, is in the process of moving to New Bern and will drive to work every day.

Her bicycle will be her regular mode of transportation around New Bern.

"That's what bikes are all about," Shaw said. "It's about getting out and moving on your own."

However, not everyone shares Statum and Shaw's enthusiasm for cycling. Rodney Whittaker filled up the gas tank of his Dodge Ram at Fuel Warehouse Saturday, and laughed at the idea of riding a bike...

"I haven't thought about riding a bike since I was 10," he said. "It ain't that bad yet."

His fuel purchase came to $73.

Justin Schoenberger can be reached at (252) 559-1075 or jschoenberger@freedomenc.com.