About a month ago, one of our customers, Shan, came in to let us know that his favorite bike had been stolen the night before, shortly after undergoing a major frame repair. The red, yellow, and green Schwinn would be easy enough to spot, and the fresh welds on the chain stay would really give this bike away. The very next day, I arrived early to work and was leaning against the window when I spotted someone riding the bike down 21st! I hopped on my bike and tailed him for a few blocks before noticing the telltale frame fix.
“Hey man, where’d you get that bike?”
“Oh, I found it downtown last night…why?”
“I know the guy that was just stolen from.”
I didn’t get the impression that the gentleman riding the stolen bike was the original thief, and after another couple of minutes he simply handed the bike to me. I walked my bike and the formerly stolen one back to the shop. Unfortunately, we didn’t have a way to contact Shan to share the good news, so I hung the bike in back with our repairs to wait until he came back by the shop. This old mountain bike was not the fanciest or most expensive ride even in its day, but it was Shan’s and he had that attachment that so many of us share with our own bikes. I was looking forward to handing this bike back to its rightful owner.
Reunited at last!
Fast forward to last weekend, when Tim P. espied Shan riding another of his bikes down the block. He chased after him, and the two came through the door as I pulled the Schwinn down from the back. Shan shouted his excitement, startling a few customers in the store. It’s rare enough to recover a stolen bike, and the reward of seeing it reunited with its rightful owner is a real treat. We stored Shan’s other bike (that he was riding) so he could take his favorite ride with him to play basketball in the park.
Our story ends today with Shan coming back for his other bike and to leave us 6 tokens of his gratitude. Thanks, Shan!
