If this article is public then I have officially shut down the “bike shop” version of bike shop girl. I hope I haven’t made a mess of URL redirects too bad, if I did – I’ll fix it soon.
Not many of my customers from the bike shop know that Bike Shop Girl started as a website in 2008 for me to help empower women in cycling. For many years it was THE goto source for women’s cycling info, this was a decade ago! Over the years I even made a living off the website while continuing to work in the bike industry. After opening the bike shop the outlet of a “blog” ended and life was all about work and making my dream a reality. Well now that I don’t need to make a living on this website, I get to pour out my thoughts a bit more unfiltered once again.
As I type this, I’m in the last days of owning a bike shop. That pile pictured above is the last thing I need to cleanout. This time of cleaning has allowed me to reflect on what makes me tick as I box, sell, and donate what is left of my bike shop dream.
Ultimately, I love bikes.
I love the act of riding, seeing the world from a perspective that no other form of travel or excercise provides. I love the feel of being on my bike and being given permission to explore, find adventure, and the freedom of not being confined by a metal box. I can see the flowers grow, smell the scent of laundry in someone’s dryer, and try a new route to get to where I want to go. I love, love, love the community that bikes bring together. Now more than ever, I believe that bikes can solve many problems in the world and that community is going to be vital to it.
I hope to spend the remainder of 2020 unplugged from BSG, focusing on my family, myself, and then my new role with Tern Bicycles. Once I have hit reset, and have a healthier balance in life – including sleeping through the night without checking if the shop alarm has gone off – I’m going to return to these pages with the continued goal of helping you bike more and worry less. Almost as much as I love riding bikes, I love helping get more people on bikes knowing they are sharing the same joy and freedom I experience every day.
If you have a pressing matter you can contact me at arleigh at bikeshopgirl.com. I’ll be checking emails every few days. Thanks for your patience and grace as I close an important chapter of my life and prepare for the next one,
BSG
