I don't know which way it is for this one, but I do know it is kind of odd in a few ways.
I started working in a bike shop at an age when most folks either have moved on from being a "shop rat" and have either gone and done something else, gotten further into the industry, or went on to manage or own their own shops. Well, at age 33, I was just getting into it. I guess you could say that I never did anything when you might expect most folks would!
That first gig lasted only a little over three years, and then the shop folded in a bizarre way. I was left scrambling for employment, and ended up working on cars for awhile. Then I was drawn back into my current job, and as of last week, I've been there 8 years doing mechanic work.
8 years isn't a very long time in most vocations. Heck, in some jobs you are just barely getting started 8 years in. However; in a bike shop, 8 years is an eternity. Turnover at a bicycle shop happens at such a fast rate that it makes your head spin. I've seen so many employees go through the shop that I can't really remember them all, and the shop isn't all that big!
How much longer will I be there? Will I see another anniversary? In a job where longevity is as rare as a Yeti C-26, you have to start wondering things like this when you've been around in one place as long as I have.
4 comments:
six years for me seemed like a lifetime. a good lifetime that is. one filled with sweat soaked t shirts, hacky sack evenings, greasy hands, and lots of riding and great friends.
8 years is a good stint. Been at it for 10 years in May this year, 5 years at the current shop and 5 more at another. Wouldn't trade it for anything.
happy trails...
Josh
Heck Ted, you gotta Pizza Ranch next door now. Talk about the benefits of working where you do. :-)
I've got eight years in as of June and I'm still loving it. Friends and relatives ask if I'm "still at the bike shop." At least my parents have gotten used to it.
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