New bike shop wheels its way into Leechburg

Market Street in Leechburg continues to grow, as a new shop has wheeled its way along the street.

Allegheny Township resident Tim Carson opened his new bike shop, Spokes, in February.

Customers can browse a range of bikes, from trail, mountain, women’s, kid’s and e-bikes. Bike repairs and accessories are available. Servicing is available for all bikes except ones that are powered by gasoline.

Donations of bikes are accepted.

“This has been a lifelong goal of mine,” Carson said. “I have always loved bikes.”

A grand opening is set for April 30.

Opening a bike shop was natural for Carson, who grew up to be an avid bike rider. He has been racing competitively on mountain bikes for 40 years.

The freedom of bike riding is what drew him to the hobby.

“No one can stop you, and it’s all you powering it,” he said. “I think, without bikes, I wouldn’t be here.”

Before finding a storefront, Carson ran a mobile bike shop out of his sprinter van, selling and delivering bikes to people for eight years. The mobile shop temporarily came to a halt around the time the pandemic began.

To continue selling bikes, Carson thought about opening a shop by his house, but the logistics behind doing that proved to be too cumbersome.

Instead, an opportunity opened up when Twisted Thistle’s event space became available. Jamie McCluske, Carson’s wife, said her mother, who owns Twisted Thistle, asked them about taking over the space to open the bike shop.

Carson jumped on the chance in March last year to get going with renovations, bringing Spokes to life. He chose the name because he has worked on bike wheels, and spokes are the main connection on the bike.

Since opening the shop, it has been an overwhelming time for Carson, who said he has been busy with lots of customers coming in to buy bikes or get their bikes repaired. Five to 20 people come in a day, he said.

He is working on hiring a couple more employees to help alleviate some of his responsibilities. Despite the busy days, it’s all worth it to him.

“I feel great. I am super excited about everything,” he said.

McCluske is happy to see her husband living his dream. She said the community has received the shop with open arms.

“The nicest part is anytime you tell someone about the shop, they get excited. Everyone is pumped,” she said.

Carson has plans to expand the shop.

He is slowly working on renovating the courtyard area to be a spot for a stage for live music and for people to sit and drink. Group rides, a bar for drinking and a rack for bikes to park are on his radar as well.