Garry Sronce and his mentee, Shymein move around a lot! Just check out the ol’ log book. 47 miles hiking and an impressive 83 miles biking various trails. That’s 130 miles in 4 years.

83 miles is tough on one’s bike. Recently Garry and Shyein visited The ReCYCLEry NC in Carrboro. Dave, a ReCYCLEry volunteer, and Shymein looked over dozens of bikes until Shymein found “the one” that would replace his old 1 speed green bike. The new one would be a shiny silver, 21 speed.

In one afternoon, Shymein became a bike mechanic. He and Dave replaced brake cables, fixed the derailer, replaced the handle grips, seat and tire tube. They even trued up a tire rim that was not perfectly round. Next, they checked the gears to make sure they were working, then cleaned it up. And just like that, Shymein was the proud owner of a new bike.

When asked if this was the highlight of the match, Garry said “I learned a lot. I totally enjoyed our Saturday outing. Now Shymein thinks he is an expert bike mechanic.” Garry reflected on the many activities he and Shymein participated in. “My greatest moment of joy with Shymein was when he said that he never knew how to skip rocks until he met me. It brought back so many fond memories of raising my two sons.”

The ReCYCLEry NC is a non-profit located in Carrboro, North Carolina that teaches bicycle repair and maintenance and allows community members to earn their own bikes.