As you might imagine, launching and growing Campfire Cycling over the last two years has not been an calm, relaxing affair. Riding the waves of these times and circumstances has provided a steady supply of challenges to untangle.
This spring the challenges really reached a crescendo. It was time to find a new location all while replacing our bike shop manager, Greg. The hiring went well, and today I get to introduce our new bike shop manager, Toby.
But First, a Farewell for the Incomparable Greg
Before introducing Toby, I want to wish a hearty farewell to Toby’s predecessor, Greg.
Greg made a whole lot happen here at Campfire Cycling during a relatively short but very impactful period. Starting weeks before our grand opening Greg was tasked with getting us operational as an events focused bike shop. Within weeks the repair center was setup, parts were stocked and a repair schedule was published. We were off and running and having a fun time with it. Navigating the sudden and manic shift into Covid was made easier with Greg’s calm and steady perspective. And working through the difficult decision to relocate the business, Greg provided great vision and clarity with his final act here, helping pull together this big move into our next chapter.
Greg showed the way into our new day-to-day of bike shop life. Connecting to our customers in the shop was a powerful spark breathing life into the idea of where Campfire Cycling was headed. Greg brought the wisdom of the explorer, the ingenuity of an engineer and the kindness of a caring bike mechanic.
Greg’s off on his next adventure in Minneapolis, growing his bikepacking bag business Yellow Cat Industries. Check out what Greg is up to and give him a follow.
Meet Toby!
Greg’s final effort at Campfire was to help in finding his replacement. And we found a great one. Its really a thrill to introduce our new bike shop manager, Toby.
Toby is an alchemist of bike love, a wizard of cycling culture and a prophet of adventuring by bicycle. We’re so stoked to have him plying his trade managing our bike shop, building up new bicycles, servicing old ones and fine tuning our showroom in anticipation of the return of cool weather and a functional Toole street in front of our building.
Toby has been living the bike shop life since 2004, getting started at the Sports Basement in San Fransisco before relocating to Ventura. In 2010, Toby co-founded the Ventura Bike Hub an amazing community bike shop. Toby helped build this organization into a thriving and integral part of Ventura’s cycling community and it was a tough and sad parting of ways for him and his partner Benicia to move on to Tucson. But it is also a testament of what they built that they can move along and pass their leadership on to the next generation of HUB leaders.
Beyond bicycle wrenching and riding, Toby’s interests include surfing, restoring old cars and traveling with his family.
Stop on by the shop to meet Toby. When we’re open, Toby is here, Tues to Saturday noon to 5. We’re looking ahead to the fall to plan some bikepacking rides and events, so let Toby know what kinds of rides and events you might be interested in.
Also, starting today Toby is going to start turning up the volume on our Instagram Stories posting lots of fun stuff, from the shop and around the Tucson bike community.
