A W Cycles (Walklings) of Abbey Parade, Merton High Street is shortly closing down. The business, originally under the name of Dales Cycles, was established before 1900. Alfred Walkling bought the business in about 1910 and retired in 1954, and sold out to the present owners father, whose son Ted Foster has run the shop since, assisted by Richard Smith. This must be one of the longest continuously running shops in the area.
Pictured are Ted and Richard in the time-warp workshop at the back of the shop. Also pictured is the Walkling trophy - awarded to the long defunct Merton Wheelers Cycle Club's clubman of the year at their annual dinner. The trophy is made out of a small slab of marble , and expertly cut - did the maker work at the local John Knox's funeral directors as a stone carver? (sorry about the workshop picture quality?)
(PK addition: Local legend has it that Richard started as a Saturday boy while a kiddlet, and is still there long after retirement age...
Don't know what they are doing with the workshop contents, but must be worth a rummage for anyone with Heritage bikes....)
PK
5 comments:
The only time I visited AW Cycles was to buy a very loud Chinese bike bell for my young daughter!
However LCC Merton were keen to chart the history of this old bike shop, and in 2012 began gathering information. (A request appeared on the Wayfarers blog on the 12th May 2012).
'A Day in the Life of AW Cycles' was subsequently published by Hugh Morgan from Merton Cycling Campaign, and according to the LCC web site in 2014 can be obtained from Hughmorgan100@hotmail.com.
It's a beautifully produced book, well worth a look for anyone interested in the history of local cycling. Hugh probably still has a few copies, but if you want to borrow my copy please let me know.
Yes a lovely tribute to them. I ll pop my copy on the library blog. I often call in when passing as my husband and I have bought stuff there off and on for the last 30 + years . Always so friendly with time to chat and were able to braze on lugs where there weren't any and adapt brakes for different wheel sizes ...stuff the likes of Evans just wouldn't know how to do.
A very interesting story I suppose, I have never used the shop but passed by many times. It is sad to see such History disappear. Same thing happened in Chesterfield some years ago when my great Granddad Stacey owned a similar cycle shop in the early 1900's.
As for Evan's well while I agree with your sentiment Steph. it is the way of the world, some of us shop online for all sorts of things. On black Sunday I called into Evans Crawley on the way back from from the SCA lunch and got a 50% reduction on a TT racing Helmet. I also used my CTC membership card to get a further 10% reduction and was told by the young assistant that it was acceptable but when he tried to put the transaction through it was blocked by the system as the helmet was already heavily discounted. CTC point to note and re-negotiate!
Stephanie yes I would like to borrow your book and read the account so praised by David V. Will try and make it to Bradbury for 11's.
used to work there years ago. random things i remember: selling valve rubber by the inch; working out vat in my head; tall clive special ordering a 68t stronglight chainring; ted's love for vauxhalls, his AJS scrambler; melting out seized ally seatposts, selling paraffin from big tanks; their general resistance to selling cheap foreign bikes (they pushed dawes and cov/british eagle hard)
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