by Charles Eyster
Did you know that biking in the Wildwoods comes with the added security and reliance on ties between other Bike Rental families and businesses?
Riding along the Wildwoods’ World’s Finest Boardwalk on bicycles and surreys has become a favorite pastime and tradition for tourists over countless decades. The behind-the-scenes story behind the once dozens of bike rentals is a fascinating one that has likely never been told.
Amongst the (13) remaining bike rentals, deep friendships have become as interwoven as the crisscrossed spokes on the wheels of the bikes that they rent. At the center of it all is the commonality of strong family ties through generations, with even stronger business relationships than meets the eye!
Looking at the chart of the bike rentals across the island, it becomes obvious that they are diverse family owned and operated businesses. There are countless back stories behind how each came about, one with a father moving to the island and starting out with only 15 bikes, charging only 25¢ per hour (Green’s). Another involves two enterprising families combining new bike orders that were eventually delivered in a boxcar by rail (Surf & Bradley Bikes).
The best comradery between the rentals is shown through their cooperation to ensure that the customers always have a great ride! This happens completely behind the scenes when inevitable mechanical breakdowns such as a flat tire occurs. When riders contact their rental location to report the problem, the rental will direct you to the closest rental to exchange out the bike or surrey! In some cases, the replacement bike/surrey will be brought right to your location, with the broken equipment being evacuated back to the cooperating rental. Behind the scenes, we will eventually exchange our equipment (many rentals have pick-up trucks for this) later in the day.
This cooperation keeps the riders on their ride, all the while preventing additional damage to the equipment, such as riding on a flat tire and destroying the tire completely. Most of the rentals have been operating for many decades and across family generations, cooperating in this manner for the benefit of all!
Our shared purpose is to provide each rider with the best and safest means of travel to enjoy those Wildwood by the sea sights even more!