Dave’s BIG Surprise

So there were a couple of things I left out of my update post that I wanted to make a separate post for. One of those things was the BIG surprise I pulled off for Dave for our 4 year anniversary and for his 1st Father’s day.

Ever since I have known Dave he has always complained about being too big to have a bike. He told me that the last time he was able to have a bike was when he was a little kid. Last year Dave was really determined to try to get a bike for himself. When he was going to physical therapy for his back, his therapist mentioned that her husband was in the mountain bike industry and would love to help him piece together a bike that would work for Dave. He drew up detailed and elaborate plans for Dave’s bike. We really appreciated his efforts but were turned off at the price tag. We were looking at close to $3,000 for Dave to have a bike. Needless to say, we did not go that route and put Dave’s bike plans on the back burner.

After moving to AZ, Dave went to Sports Chalet (a local sporting goods store) with a friend and asked the bike specialist if there was a bike that would work for Dave. The specialist talked with Dave for a long time and suggested a bike that he thought would work. Dave came home SO excited that day. He wanted to go right out and buy it. I kept saying, “let’s hold off, let’s hold off.” I said that mainly because I didn’t realize how much he really did want a bike. I thought it was just a temporary obsession that would subside in a few weeks. Over the next few weeks, Dave continued to talk about the bike and how awesome it would be to have one again. I finally realized that this was something that would mean a lot to him.

One day I told Dave that I needed to run a bunch of errands and I left the house with out him. I went straight to Sports Chalet and spent over an hour talking with the bike specialist and special ordering Dave the PERFECT bike. I had to get an extra large frame with 29 inch wheels in order for it to fit Dave’s body. I also did a slight upgrade with the brand of the bike so that it was more reinforced and could handle Dave’s body weight.

A couple of days after ordering it, I got a phone call that it had arrived. I lied to Dave and told him it was the bank calling. I persuaded him to go out with me for a Target run. Sports Chalet is conveniently located next to Target so when we got close I said, “Hey…before we go to Target, lets run into Sports Chalet, I want to look at some stuff.” When we walked in, Dave wandered toward the golf section which allowed me to run to the bike section and slip the sales rep a sign that he taped on Dave’s bike.

I made my way back to Dave and said, “let’s just walk around the store.” We slowly strolled through the clothes, shoes and eventually made our way towards the bikes. He started to veer off and kind of had a mopey look that read “Gee….wish I could have one of these bike.” Just then he walked past his bike that read “Happy 4th Anniversary and 1st Father’s Day.” He stopped talking and did a double take at the sign. He then turned to me and in the cutest voice said, “Is this for me?” I shook my head yes and immediately the biggest smile came over his face. The salesman got the bike down and Dave jumped on it and took it for a quick spin around the store. He loved it! It literally looked like the bike was made for his body. It was a beautiful sight.

 

After he got his bike we went on many bike rides together and it was a blast. He said being on his bike was so freeing and made him feel like a little kid. He takes his bike every day to the park to run and to his agility work. It’s amazing how such a simple gift meant so much to him. He was so thankful and really appreciate of my time and effort.