Brian Brewer, manager and “chief fun officer” of Pedego Troy, showcases a step-through electric bicycle — one of many offered by the store he operates with his mother and store owner, Linda Brewer.
Blythe Alspaugh | Miami Valley Today
By Blythe Alspaugh
TROY — A local business is bringing out the inner child in customers across the county with something as simple as a bicycle.
“There’s a kid in all of us that’s just waiting to get out, and we need to let that kid out every now and again, and bikes are one way to do it,” Brian Brewer said.
Pegedo Electric Bikes Troy — known in shorter form as Pedego Troy — opened their doors to the community at the end of July after Manager and “Chief Fun Officer” Brian worked with a Pedego retailer and told his mother and shop owner, Linda Brewer, they needed a store in the area.
“(Brian has) always expressed an interest in getting back to Troy, he’s been gone for 20 years, since he went to college. He started working at a Pedego store in Toledo, and within a day or two said, ‘mom, this is so cool, I would love to open a store in Troy’. We’re happy to be back in Troy,” Linda said.
For Brian, he realized the potential and what it could do for people in the area.
“I’m recovering from an injury, and I know from my past that the best way to get back to exercising is going swimming, or riding a bike, and I don’t make the time to go swimming,” Brian said. “Cycling is the best exercise out there, and these bikes, when I first got them, and I looked at it, and felt the quality of it, I was blown away. I was sold immediately by the time I put my hands on it for the first time.”
Out of the seven Pedego stores in Ohio, the Troy retailer is the only one in Miami County and the surrounding areas, with the next closest store in Cincinatti.
“It’s an exciting, growing thing that’s gathering interest,” Linda said. “There are lots of different models of bike, so you can kind of fit the person to the right bike and have an enjoyable, comfortable experience.”
For Linda and Brian, they’re no stranger to locally owned business in Troy. Linda’s grandfather, John Shanesy Jr., opened Rike’s Appliance Store in 1934 on South Market Street and was the first business in the area to introduce the electric refrigerator. Her father, Tom Shanesy, continued the family business — renamed Shaughnessey TV Appliance in 1980 — until his retirement. Both Linda and Brian worked in the family business before Tom retired. Returning to the Troy community with a local business that’s bringing electric bikes into the area has been something of a full circle moment for Linda.
“It’s wonderful. I was born and raised in Troy, and I raised my family in Troy. I moved away about 8 years ago (…) but I always knew I’d be back in Troy eventually,” Linda said. “It’s really interesting, because my grandfather introduced that new technology, and this is kind of new technology, also. It’s all been quite interesting and a good learning experience.”
Pedego Electric Bikes have all the features of a traditional pedal bicycle, such as gears, with the advancements of electric bikes, including pedal assist mode and throttle. Pedal assist provides power from the motor to help the cyclist pedal easier and move faster by providing a certain level of power output as the cyclist pedals. Throttle mode on electric bikes provides power and propels the bike forward when engaged, giving full power on-demand with no automatic pedal assistance needed. The bikes can go up to 20 miles per hour and a full battery charge can typically take a cyclist 60 to 70 miles.
“The nice thing is, you don’t have to make a decision as far as, do I want a bike that I can pedal most of the time? Do I want a bike where that’s not really a thing and I should use pedal assist, or a bike where I just want to use a throttle. These bikes, all of them, have all three of those features. You can pedal all the way if you want to, but if you get tired or approach a hill, pedal assist will help you along,” Linda said.
Additionally, Pedego Troy offers a five-year warranty with every bike, a five-year warranty program on the battery, a five-year anti-theft program, a lifetime frame warranty full-service repairs and maintenance to bikes and various bike accessories such as helmets, bags and bike racks. Bike rentals are also offered at a cost of anywhere from $49 to $69 for a half-day rental and $79 to $99 for a full day rental, in addition to multi-day rentals — all of which can be booked online. There is also a dealer-support network, where cyclists can get their Pedego bike repaired at any Pedego retailer.
Part of the process of buying or renting a Pedego bike includes a free one-hour demo ride, lead by Brian. Prior to the demo ride, customers will have a bike specially fitted to their needs and will be taken through all the settings and specs of the bike so that they’re more acclimated to it once they hit the trails around Troy.
Pedego Troy is located at 225 E. Main St. in Troy and is open Tuesday through Friday from noon to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. To schedule a rental or a demo ride, visit https://pedegoelectricbikes.com/dealers/troy. For more information, call 937-552-9060.
Reach the writer at 937-538-4825
