As you’ll know, we don’t sell cheap bikes. We sell decent bikes (and accessories) at decent prices. Why? Because good quality kit will get you further, easier, more comfortably and for longer. We don’t give you the hard sell, we won’t upsell you a bike or piece of kit that you don’t need or can’t afford. Don’t believe us? Well Eugene Windsor recently got in touch with us with a story we’d like to share:
Eugene has been cycling his entire life, well almost. Here he is on his bike propped up against a fence as a young chap, not quite able to ride it yet.
Fast forward to 1996 and Eugene came to us to buy a new bike (a Marin San Rafael to be exact, the RRP being around £395 at the time) and a few accessories including a seat bag to carry his lock, spare tube and some tools.
Eugene’s bike and seat bag
Near Pitlochry, 1997.
Near Ceres, 2006
John Muir Way, 2015
The Great Glen Cycleway, 1996
Northumberland, 1998
Tentsmuir Forest, 2011
EBC Bag
Sadly, the little seat bag has finally given up the ghost after 22 years…. However, even if he zipped the bag just once a week, that’s 1,144 times that bag has been opened and closed. And that’s not mentioning how many bumpy, wet and windy miles it clung onto the bike for.
His bike is still going strong! It’s had replacement tyres and tubes, tyre levers and bottle holder. But that’s it! Amazing, right? Divide the cost of the bike over the years and it works at £17.95/year. Even with the few replacements that it’s needed, we still reckon that’s pretty good value for money! Especially considering how many adventures it’s been on.
Do YOU have any old school bike coop purchases that are still going strong? Let us know! We like to spot our Bike Coop bags out and about…