All great things come to an end: Closing Stevie's Happy Bikes

For those of you who know me or live in the Albuquerque, Coralles and Rio Rancho area probably have either heard or seen that Stevies Happy Bike Shop has closed down.  For nearly 35 years Steve has worked on servicing and building bicycles in both his hometown of Belen, and Coralles, NM.  Being one of the last bike shops that truly catered to the utilitarian cyclist: primarily repairing, consigning and upgrading commuter oriented vintage bikes, Stevie's was indeed a gem of a shop that had one of the most down to earth feelings of any bike shop in Albuquerque.  Before working for nearly two years with Steve I would ride in from downtown Albuquerque into Coralles and spend time digging through the seemingly endless array of "boneyard" bins, racks and bikes/frames.  From hubs and derailleurs to bars and tires, Stevie had decades worth of second hand accumulation.  Old take offs salvaged from trashed bikes, discarded parts for upgrades, boxes of stuff given away and the occasional bulk purchase of used bits gave the shop a healthy supply of gear to keep the wheels spinning for both the unsuspecting commuter and avid tinkerer alike.

When Steve brought me on he had heard about my love for primarily Retro/Vintage style bikes via one of his employees.  Unknown at the time to me, Stevie became aware of my knack for servicing peoples bikes in the area and having an overall fondness for breathing live back into otherwise unloved or forgotten bicycles.  Eventually as I came into the shop more frequently we would have discussions about our mutual love for serviceable, long lasting bike and component design, our disgruntled feelings about the bike industry's trajectory as a whole and the joy of simply getting out and riding.  It was only a matter of time before I was working 30 hour weeks turning the wrench, doing sales, placing orders and getting an overall feel of what life in a small, locally owned bike shop was really like.  Of all the shops in the greater Albuquerque Stevie's always felt the most at home, and it seemed inevitable that I would end up working with him in some capacity.

This post is half expression of gratitude for having had the ability to work so closely with such a humble and down to earth bike shop owner, and half homage to what was considered by many, as well as myself, to be the last bike shop of its kind here in NM.  I have come across many who after having heard the news have been massively bummed out that one of the last good resources for used bikes and parts is now a thing of the past.  

Thank you Stevie for giving me the opportunity to grow along side you as the shop days closed to an end.  Though there were many ups and down throughout the journey, the overall takeaway in experience was incredible fun, tons of hands on experience with both very modern and very old bicycles, and the forging of some great relationships in the wake of it all.

a photo of Stevie that someone took before the wall was brought down and
we expanded the shop twofold in space.

Stevie will be continuing bike repairs on the side as a solo, home workshop based repair service.  He will operate with a semi-mobile model doing basic on site fixes as well as picking up bikes to take back to his shop for work.  Stevie's Happy Bikes officially closed at the end of July, 2017.  Thanks to everyone in the community who helped make this place a great little hub for all parties considered.