Local pair has established a reputation at Sunshine Bicycles
Norman Currie and Steve Warner gave themselves two years, profit or loss, to try selling bicycles in Gilroy. Now, 31 years after they opened their doors, the pair of avid cyclists has entrenched itself into local life with an expanded shop, donations to the community and a hands-on customer service approach that has earned it a loyal following.
With the founding duo now in their 50s and the showroom haunted by an old-fashioned penny-farthing bike – with a huge front wheel and tiny back wheel – hanging from the ceiling, it is far from obvious that Sunshine Bicycles on First Street was once merely the whim of two 20-year olds.
The store was originally a daydream of Warner and Gilroy-native Currie as they took long bike rides in the hills of Spain while stationed with their Naval unit in Rota, in the coastal province of Cadiz.
As their tenure with the Navy neared its end, pursuing that dream became more of a given. By the time they returned to America as civilians, starting the shop was only a matter of getting from Indianapolis – where Warner grew up – to Gilroy.
“We were 20-something at the time and he had a VW bus and we just trucked on out here,” Currie said.
When they arrived in Gilroy, they purchased a storefront, loaded it up with bikes and hoped for a warm reception from the community.
Like Gilroy, Like Sun
The story of Sunshine Bicycles mirrors that of Gilroy’s in the past three decades – steady growth and diversification.
“We kind of grew and expanded with the community,” Currie said.
Back in its first year in 1976, his and Warner’s shop was half the size it is today, with new bikes, riding gear and repair facilities all slammed into one tight space.
Likewise, the community’s demand for bicycles was tight, said Warner.
“Road bikes at the time was all there was,” he said.
Yet, soon after the store opened, BMX – bicycle motor-cross – racing started gaining popularity, especially with kids. Responding to the hype, Sunshine Bicycles started selling the wide-wheeled, heavy-tread off-road bikes used for this type of racing.
“(BMX) was a Northern California phenomenon, so we were into it pretty early on,” Currie said.
Besides answering a shift in the market, selling bikes to kids represented a new turn for Sunshine Bicycles, which had previously catered primarily to road-riding adults.
In the years since, as new bikes, such as cruisers – which boast large banana seats of all patterns, hibiscus flowers to flames, and y-shaped handlebars colored matching shades of pink or red – have come on to the market and road bikes have gotten lighter and less expensive, Currie and Warner’s shop has become a standard for families looking for bicycles.
To keep up with the larger role they play and the burgeoning demand for bikes – American interest in cycling has mushroomed in the past decade thanks to the success of Texas-native, seven-time Tour de France-winner Lance Armstrong – Sunshine Bicycles is now twice its size, offers hundreds of bikes and has a separate area for fixing and maintaining bikes.
Stewards, Not Salesmen
Currie and Warner see themselves not as selling a product, but as providing a service.
“We both had a passion and a vision for cycling as something we wanted to do, something we wanted to share with the community as a way of life,” Currie said.
Warner gave practical proof that their commitment was not driven by greed.
“It was tough the first few years,” he said. “We couldn’t take any money out of the business. This isn’t a get-rich business anyway. This is something you do because you love it.”
As Sunshine Bicycles ages, it is finding that the community, and particularly the older contingent, is also falling in love with cycling as a way to stay fit.
“The aging baby boomers are finding out their knees aren’t working so well any more,” said Currie. “There are certain exercises you can do all your life and cycling is one of them.”
He and Warner recognize how important riding can be for people and have an interest in helping them continue to enjoy the sport.
The staff at Sunshine Bicycles is quick to warn buyers about the danger of goathead thorns in the area – which can quickly ruin a day’s plans with a flat tire – and do not charge labor for fixing flat tires on bikes purchased within 30 days of the blowout.
Likewise, the store also offers a free tune up after 30 days, which has proven popular with customers.
“I would say at least 60 or 70 percent of the people come back,” Currie said.
This care is what generates business for Sunshine Bicycles despite increasing pressure from large retailers just down the road, he said.
“The thing that sets us apart from the other places you buy bikes from is we can maintain and repair the bikes we sell'” Currie said.
All in the Family
Sunshine Bicycles is in a way a child of Gilroy, nurtured by the dedication of its residents – both customers and employees.
“We’ve always tried to hire employees that have a passion for cycling,” Currie said. “They make the best employees. I mean, I can hire people and teach them what they need to know but unless people are into it and have that passion, they really can’t take it to the next level.”
Sunshine Bicycles has no shortage of people who can take bike care to the next level.
Pete Vona, an employee off and on since the 1990s when he was a teenager, sees bikes as not only a source of fun and exercise, but also liberation. For him, riding is a display of “personal power” and a chance to escape society for a bit of solitude.
Likewise, 3-year employee Bob Eltgroth sees biking as a primary means of transportation. While he does take the bus and ride in cars with friends, he has not driven since 1998 and uses his bicycle for the majority of his trips, including running errands and getting to work.
A self-proclaimed bicycle advocate, the 60-year old’s dedication to riding goes far beyond the shop in Gilroy. He spends much of his free time working with pro-cycling organizations teaching in area schools and organizing rides for students.
As large as the Sunshine Bicycle family has grown – with about 12 employees including Warner’s teenage son – it has not forgotten its roots. Nearly every week, Sunshine Bicycles donates supplies or services to local organizations.
“We pretty much don’t turn anybody away,” Currie said.
Most of the time, the store gives away helmets because, through this gift, the philanthropic effort is doubled, he said. Not only does someone get something they need, they get something that can save their life and raise awareness of safety in society.
Currie, who bears the yellow band around his wrist showing his support of the Livestrong Society – Armstrong’s foundation for cancer research – and volunteers as a merit badge counselor for the Boy Scouts of America, feels that donations just come with being part of something larger.
“We’re part of the community,” he said, “and we realized a long time ago you have to give back.”
Staff Picks: Favorite Bike Rides in the Area
Cañada Loop
This 26-mile ride, a favorite of Sunshine Bicycles owner Norm Currie, starts out heading northeast on Leavesley Road in downtown Gilroy. However, within a few flat miles, with a left onto the old Leavesley Road and a right onto Roop Road, the ride leaves level ground behind.
“Just as you take the right into the hills, it goes from really easy to really hard,” Currie said.
The path takes off, following a meandering stream northeast up to its headwaters via numerous switchbacks. The taxing trip up is long but affords views over Coyote Reservoir.
Also, once out of South Valley, the tree cover becomes ample and temperatures generally drop a few degrees.
About a half a dozen miles in, the road becomes a series of ups and downs, surfing the crests and troughs of the Diablo range. Here, the scenery is dominated by rolling, grassy peaks, with ranches and animal enclosures nestled at their base.
At the end of this stretch, the road splits at a California Department of Forestry station. Straight ahead on Roop Road lie the Gilroy Hot Springs and Henry W. Coe State Park, while on Cañada Road to the right is the Cañada Valley and a path that will loop back to Gilroy.
Going to the right, heading southeast, will also allow riders to get to the highest point on this ride. From the top of this relative peak, it is possible to see out across Hollister to the south and San Jose to the northeast.
“Even though it’s just 10 or 15 miles from Gilroy, you feel like it’s a whole ” ‘nother place,” Currie said.
Besides offering a beautiful vista, the peak also represents a new turn in the ride.
“You start this long, sweeping downhill,” he said. “All that suffering you did to get up there is paid off.”
The winding downhill curves south and then southwest over a new set of hills and meets up with the Pacheco Pass Highway.
To avoid staying on this busy road, riders can turn right after just a quarter mile onto Ferguson Road, which will eventually turn into Leavesly Road and take them back into Gilroy.
Alternatively, once on Leavesley Road, riders can take a left turn onto Dunlap Avenue, another left onto Holsclaw Road and a quick right onto Gilman Road – which turns into 6th Street – bringing the cyclist back into the downtown through quieter back roads.
It’s “25 to 26 miles of just a beautiful ride, a good cardio workout and an exhilarating finish,” said Currie.
Henry W. Coe State Park
This park is ideal for riders with no particular destination or trail in mind, said Pete Vona, a mechanic at Sunshine Bicycles.
With a plethora of paths crisscrossing through the park, the options are endless – and the day could be endless too if riders do not pick up a map at the visitor’s center.
Vona likes to enter the park on East Dunne Avenue, pass the main parking lot and follow Manzanita Point Road until it dead ends at a bridge. There, a steep but wide and smooth gravel and dirt fire road with few major obstacles climbs into the heart of the park.
Once he gets up this initial incline, he takes different trails – which vary in width, terrain and altitude gain – depending on his mood.
One constant, however, is the likelihood of seeing animals in the park, Vona said.
“You’ll see pigs very regular,” he said. He also has seen tons of birds, many deer and, on occasion, bobcats.
The only time Vona tries to avoid biking in the park is during summer. The trails he takes have little tree cover, so the temperature is routinely hotter than Gilroy. Also, this causes the dirt trails to dry out, meaning that riding on them churns up lots of dust.
When it isn’t so hot out, the park represents a great place for riders of all abilities, Vona said.
The paths, even when steep, are easy to navigate and allow for a relaxing ride.
The ride is a “keep it in the middle of the road-type thing,” Vona said. The only thing a rider needs to do is “keep pedaling.”
Reservoir Loop
For those cyclists who like to keep their tires on level pavement, the loop of more than 20 miles around Calero, Uvas and Chesbro reservoirs is a good option, said Bob Eltgroth, a mechanic at Sunshine Bicycles and a self-proclaimed bicycle advocate.
For Eltgorth, the smooth, rolling ride starts out on Bailey Avenue – accessible from U. S. Highway 101 just south of San Jose – heading southwest towards McKean Road. A left onto McKean takes riders snaking south around Calero Reservoir and through the county park of the same name before turning into to Uvas Road.
Uvas Road then skirts past Chesbro Reservoir and meanders alongside Uvas Reservoir before meeting up with Watsonville Road.
A left on Watsonville Road could take riders on a straight shot into Morgan Hill. But before getting there, after about a mile and a half, riders can hang a left onto Oak Glen Avenue. This road will roll back up north, reconnecting with Uvas Road just after passing the Chesbro Reservoir from the east.
From there, riders can retrace their path, heading north to Bailey Avenue.
Besides views of the reservoirs, on which there are often boaters and fishermen out enjoying the waters, the moderately trafficked country roads that make up this loop are sandwiched by small farms and ranches.
The ride, because its flat paths can be taken at any speed, is great for both casual riders and those looking to get a strenuous workout, Eltgorth said.
Resources for Riders
Local groups for budding and avid cyclists alike
Romp Mountain Cyclist
Weekend morning mountain bike rides and social events about once a week in the South Bay area
(408) 420-7342
www.romp.org
Almaden Cycle Touring Club
Daily rides in the region ranging from 12 to more than 125 miles and at all paces
www.actc.org
San Jose Bicycle Club
Several weekly and sporadic rides in the South Bay area
www.teamsanjose.org
Velogirls
Frequent rides for women across the state
www.velogirls.com
Sunshine Bicycles
Gilroy Store:
311 First St.
(408) 842-4889
Mon.-Fri. 10am-6pm
Sat. 10am-5pm
Sun. 12-4pm
Morgan Hill Store:
16825 Monterey Rd.
(408) 779-4015
Sun. 12-4pm
Mon. 11am-7pm
Tues. 12-6pm
Wed.-Fri. 11am-7pm
Sat. 10am-5pm
