In early 2012 I took a rode trip to Asheville NC with my wife Barbara. We love Asheville and cruising the Blue Ridge Parkway in our convertible.
While there we visited one of our favorite antique stores. As we were walking in we noticed people holding various antiques in a line. Once we entered the store we discovered it was set up like the antique road show with people waiting to have their goods appraised.
There was a table set up with computers, books and other literature and sitting behind the table were 3-4 appraiser’s. Right about that time 2 older black women entered with a bicycle I’d never seen before in person, it had wagon wheels as rims, wooden fenders and a wooden partial frame w/ hard rubber for tires. I listened intently as the appraisers reviewed the bicycle and assessed the value at $1,200, the ladies were" dinged" for an incorrect seat.
As they were leaving I approached them outside with my business card and asked if I could buy it for the $1,200. Unfortunately I was driving an MX5 Miata convertible with Barbara in the front seat and had no room... We asked how they acquired the bicycle, the daughter told me her brother had a bicycle store in Brooklyn NY, they’d moved to Asheville about 20-25 years prior and the "old bicycle was just in the basement". I had no way to get it home but we exchanged phone numbers with the hopes I could return for it. Needless to say I never heard from them again, but would always remember the bike with wagon wheels and an incorrect seat, I told that story many times over the years, if only I was there solo!
Fast forward 6 years later to about a 2 months ago when I had an opportunity to purchase a bike with a wagon wheel, wooden fenders etc. this time the bicycle was in the Statesville NC area in a collection of a bicycle collector. After getting the bike home I researched the bike and discovered the seat was incorrect and missing the chain guard.
About a month ago while organizing my garage it dawned on me the seat on my Elliott Hickory was maybe the same seat that was on that wagon wheel bike I discovered years ago in Asheville but couldn’t score, could that be?
That Monday while at work I started searching photos on my office computer, after about an hour I found the pictures from Asheville, I’ll be damned it’s the same bike!!! I got chills when I discovered the pictures and realized it was the same bike, that bike was meant to be mine! Was this karma,? My business partner called it full circle, hell I don’t know, I was floored!!
I snapped these pictures off my computer screen so quality isn’t great. Same seat, missing chainguard, same bike! How about that, it was meant to be mine but not at the time I discovered it originally.
Mike
