by Mary Runser
Do you remember your first bike ride? Maybe at least, the first time you rode without training wheels, or were allowed to ride down the street or around the block by yourself? Perhaps you remember your first ten-speed, and riding down the big hill with the wind in your face and in your hair.

Remember the feeling of absolute freedom it gave you? “All those things,” says Dewight Plotner, owner of Wheels in Motion, “are the things that people remember when they get back to riding.”

There are a number of reasons that people tend to ride or get back to riding. For some it’s the health or exercise aspect. “Ask any physician, the two best forms of exercise are cycling and swimming because they are non-weight bearing exercises. You’re not destroying your joints with impact.” Dewight explains. “It’s also a great form of relieving stress, especially when riding off-road in the country, the rails to trails. It’s a way of getting back to nature. I think that people are thinking about ecology, the green effect, and they want to do the right thing, cut back on emissions by using alternative forms of commuting.” And, of course, there are those who just enjoy the sport of cycling and racing.

Wheels in Motion has been serving the riders of Ann Arbor since 1933, when Dewight’s uncle opened the store under the name of Campus Bike and Toy, located on William Street in downtown Ann Arbor. Both of his parents worked in the shop along with his uncle, and eventually took over the business, as did Dewight when his father’s health began to fail. “I grew up in the business,” he says, “and I overhauled my first bike at the age of nine. In the years since opening, the store has gone through several transformations in name, location and expansion. It hasn’t always been easy.

Eventually, to keep the business vibrant, in the late 1990s they decided to close a number of their other stores and to re-evaluate their business plan “We’ve had to hone our focus back down to the basics of cycling.” Dewight explains, “and that’s okay because I am completely committed to cycling.”

Dewight is also completely committed to his family, as is obvious when he talks about his son’s birth. Travis was born with a rare condition in which all of his internal organs developed but then rotated to the wrong side of his body.

“Before he was born, the doctor did an ultrasound,” he explained, “and his statement to my wife and I afterward was that if you want to have a perfect child, you should abort. As parents, that’s a really devastating thing to hear. We just couldn’t do that, and I give my wife so much credit because for months, even until after he was born, we didn’t know how things would turn out. And amazingly, today he is a perfectly healthy young man who has never had a single health issue since he was born.” Hopefully one day, in the future, Travis will take over the reins of the family business.

“I’ve got great kids.” Dewight says of Travis and Travis sister Chelsie, “They’re good kids, and really, really bright. I only want the best for them.”

The store has been in business for 76 years, with the same family operating it, “If I do my job as well as my parents did, maybe we’ll be in this business for another 76 years.” Dewight says. If you’re interested in biking again, stop in and talk to the staff at Wheels In Motion to see how they can set you up to enjoy the ride again.

If you found this story interesting, informative, or inspiring, please let Dewight know! Wheels In Motion Cycle and Fitness, 3400 Washtenaw Avenue, 734-971-2121, www.wheelsinmotion.us.

Wheels In Motion Cycle and Fitness
Dewight Plotner
3400 Washtenaw Ave.
Phone: 734-971-2121
Website: www.wheelsinmotion.us