About Us
People often ask me how I got into the bicycle business. I hope you enjoy my story.
Childhood Dreams
Bruce's First Bike
As long as I can remember, I have been into bicycles. My love for bicycles started with my first tricycle. By age 10, my life revolved around my bicycle offering me the freedom to go where I wanted to go . Bicycles were different to me than other boys in that by a very young age, I had already decided that I wanted to own a bicycle shop when I grew up.
Bruce's Bike Repair
When I turned 16, I got a job as a bike mechanic in a start up Schwinn shop in town. I absolutely loved working on bikes all day, I couldn't wait to get into work. I was devistated five months later when I was let go so that I wouldn't be a liability to the bike shop during winter.
The following summer, I decided to follow my childhood dreams and start Bruce's Bike Repair. I set up shop in my Mom & Dad's garage getting business by going door to door. This proved to be not only profitable, but a great learning experience. Not many teen agers get the opportunity to run their own business. I operated Bruce's Bike Repair for the next 5 summers, growing the business every year.
The summer of my Junior year in college, I was approached by the Mill Race Inn Restaurant to start a bicycle rental shop from the rear of their offices. I was very excited about the opportunity of bringing Bruce's Bike Repair out of the garage to a retail location on a bike trail. The following spring, I bought out the restaurant's portion of the Mill Race Cyclery and from that point on I was on my own.
Time to Rebuild
Two years after starting Mill Race Cyclery, I purchased my original building securing my location on the Fox River Bike trail. The building, an old gas station of about 2400 sq ft, was filled wall to ceiling with bikes. It was a cramp but an exciting space.
In 1995, I tore down the old bike shop and built the current 7500sq ft bike shop. In the summer, we even have an ice cream shop.
Mill Race Cyclery Today
Current store