LIHU’E — John Tanner is busy these days.
In fact, it seems the higher gas prices climb, the busier he gets, which is just fine with him.
Tanner owns Bicycle John on Kuhio Highway in Lihu’e. He said that, over the past three weeks, or since the state gas-cap law went into effect, business has been booming.
Since the cap was went into effect Thursday, Sept. 1, gas prices have jumped 72 cents.
Tanner said sales of bicycles are up about 10 percent to 15 percent from the same time a year ago, but repairs are also really going strong.
“More people are using the price of gas to get that old bike out of the garage and get all the dust off it,” said Tanner, who has run his own bike store for 20 years, the last six on the side of the Two Frogs Hugging building on Kuhio Highway.
“Gas has gone up quite a bit, but will be going down again. I wonder if people will be so happy to pay ‘only’ $3.29 (per gallon) that they will put their bikes back in the garage. We haven’t seen the last of high gas prices. I hope people will find a way around it.”
As for people who are pulling out their bicycles ready to save gas and get in shape he said, “they still have to get out there and pedal.”
Tanner got into the bicycle business after he was laid off from a lumber mill in Northern California about 30 years ago. He caught on with a sporting goods store in California, learned the trade, and then worked for a store on Kaua’i before striking out on his own.
Tanner is a “spokesman” for the spokes set.
“Bikes are just so cool. They’re an engineering marvel,” he said. “They conquered the problem of the village idiot,” he said, referring to the mobility gained by villagers who could get out and see the world and widen the gene pool.
Asked about the relative safety of bike riders on Kaua’i, Tanner said, “Yeah, it’s safe, as long as you take all the cars off the road.”
He called the stretch between Lihu’e and Kapa’a “maybe the most dangerous road anywhere for cyclists.
“It would be nice if the contra-flow was for cyclists,” he said.
Jason Barth, owner of Kauai Cycle, said a lot of people have been coming into his store and talking about buying bikes. He said he hoped that talk turned into sales.
John Sargent, owner and manager of the Bike Doktor in Hanalei, said he hadn’t noticed any increased business due to gas prices. “I think it’s more seasonal than anything else. Maybe when gas hits $5 a gallon.”
