Letter to the Editor:
Fifteen years ago I opened Absaroka Bicycle in Cody, Wyoming. There was not a bike shop in Cody at the time. I was riding and racing bikes back in the late 90s and early 2000’s and struggling to get work done on my bike. I thought to myself, I can’t be the only one in Cody who had to travel to get good bike service. Having formal training in mechanics in both auto and aviation I figured bicycles couldn’t be that hard! So I rolled the dice, quit my job as a project manager for a construction company, and enrolled at the United Bicycle Institute for their Certified Bicycle Mechanic program. We opened April 7, 2003. The rest is history. Originally my idea was to start a Back Country Mountain Bike Guide Service. What I didn’t know was how hard it was to get a permit to operate on the US Forest. We submitted our first letter of application in April 2002. After eleven years of persistent letter writing, phone calls, meetings, and even the creation of a local task force we where finally issued a temporary special use permit in 2013 which was renewed for the following two years. In the spring of 2016 we where finally awarded our preferred outfitting license. We are now the only fully licensed Mountain Bike/Backpacking Outfitter on the Oldest National Forest in the country: The Shoshone National Forest (established in 1891), where we operate as Absaroka Bikefitters and Back Country Guides.
So much has gone into the business. And the business just keeps growing. Recently our local bike club built a state of the art mountain bike park just behind the bike shop.
The shop needs some new energy. Someone with a passion for adventure, bikes and business. So I have decided to sell my business. But not to just anyone. I am looking for someone that is at home in the hills, rain or shine and can still operate a family owned, family oriented and family run Bike Shop. I hope to find them soon, as I have so many places still to explore. But until then we will be in the shop and in the hills just taking care of customers like we have for all these years.
Rick Roach
2201 17th St #7
