This story originally appeared in our sister publication Fresh Water Cleveland; click here for more on Issue Media Group and its work spotlighting what's next in American cities.

Travis Peebles, a tattooed, flannel-wearing 33-year-old, started a bike shop in Detroit Shoreway, an urban neighborhood in gritty, snowy Cleveland. He and his partner James Rychak launched Blazing Saddle Cycles one year ago, fixing up repurposed bikes made of steel, instead of the more common aluminum. Steel frames are tougher and more durable than the carbon or aluminum ones rolling off factory assembly lines in China today.

"Lug steel is desirable for our climate," says Peebles, explaining why the 30-year-old ride he's fixing up is a good choice for the city. "It can weather potholes or motorists that don't watch out for us. It can take the beating of a grown man and withstand the rigors of Cleveland." 

Peebles and Rychak find those sturdy steel frames at yard sales or on Craigslist. 

"It's a dying art form that's coming back among custom builders," says Peebles. "Buying an old steel bike is similar to buying vinyl records instead of CDs. There's a cool factor."

Blazing Saddle is one of many new, bike-based businesses springing up in Cleveland and other major U.S. cities, places gradually shifting gears after years of auto-based development. Thanks to a growing interest in two-wheeled transport, cyclists-turned-entrepreneurs are boosting their local economies.

Cities grow more bike-friendly

Bike shops are just the tip of the iceberg. From bag makers in Philadelphia to custom frame builders in Detroit to a bike-share startup in Tampa, the new bike economy is flourishing. The startup ecosystem also includes tour companies, pedicabs, mountain bike parks, artisan rack welders, bike rental outfits, bike-friendly bars and app developers. Cycling generates $6 billion per year in the U.S. alone, according to the National Bike Dealers Association. 

A recently released report from U.S. PIRG shows that car usage is declining after rising for six decades straight. Meanwhile, bike commuting grew 39 percent on average from 2000 through 2010.    

"Many cities are moving in the direction of trying to make streets more bike-friendly," says Alison Dewey, program manager for the League of American Bicyclists' Bicycle-Friendly Business program, citing the growth of bike lanes, cycle tracks and bike parking. "Studies show that people arriving by bike will spend more money at businesses."

New York City has gotten a lot of well-deserved credit for developing over 250 miles of bikes lanes since 2006 and creating a bike share program (it launched on May 27 with 10,000 bikes at 600 stations). Cities such as Philadelphia, Tampa, Detroit, D.C. and Pittsburgh are also adding more bike infrastructure. 

"Just to keep up with our peer cities, we need to add bike lanes more quickly," says Jacob VanSickle of Bike Cleveland. 

Rust Belt cities shift gears

Even in cities that have historically been known as car havens, entrepreneurs are tapping into the growing momentum of youth-fueled bike culture. There's perhaps no city more closely associated with cars than Detroit -- but that reputation is changing.
 
In addition to a cluster of frame builders, gear makers and urban bike shops, the Motor City now has at least six different bike tours, including the annual Tour de Troit which attracted over 5,000 riders last year. Two bike manufacturers, Detroit Bikes and Detroit Bicycle Company, recently set up shop there, and Shinola now makes bikes in Midtown. 

Kelli Kavanaugh and Karen Gage are the entrepreneurs behind Wheelhouse, a rental, sales and repair shop that opened in 2008. 

"Detroit is absolutely a good place to be a cyclist," says Kavanaugh, who leads tours that expose locals and visitors to Detroit's hidden gems. "It's not very dense, but on a bike you can pretty much get anywhere quickly. The infrastructure we have here was built for more than double the population -- we have wide roads with very little traffic." 

Pittsburgh is another city with a growing bike scene. The city has won the recognition from the League of American Bicyclists, earning a bronze-level bike-friendly community award. The advocacy group Bike Pittsburgh has also paved the way for more bike infrastructure. 

Warmer months are chock full of cycling events such as the "Keg Ride" -- participants parade across Pittsburgh to a secret destination where a keg of East End Brewing Company's Pedal Pale Ale is tapped -- as well as the Dirty Dozen hill climb. This year, riders are gearing up for the opening of the Great Allegheny Passage trail through downtown. 

"I've seen a big change in the last four to five years," says Gene Nacey of Cycling Fusion, an indoor cycling studio in Oakmont, a suburb of Pittsburgh. Nacey caters to cyclists who want to ride year-round, and has developed an innovative "virtual cycling" approach using video footage. He has also developed a fitness app for cycling instructors. 

"It used to be that I could take my own secret shortcuts and never see a soul," adds Seth Gernot of Events Unlimited, an event and trip planner who will lead excursions along the new trail between Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C. "Now I take my shortcuts and there's two-to-three people in front of me. There are more and more cyclists on the streets."

Uphill climb in a flat market

Despite these bright spots, bike sales have remained flat for years, and so has overall ridership. Despite the renewed interest in cycling as transportation, less than one million Americans cycle to work. With the market saturated, competition for bike sales is fierce -- in fact, the overall number of bike shops is actually declining as consolidation occurs. 

Though Wheelhouse Detroit has grown each year, Kavanaugh says operating a bike-based business is not for the faint of heart. "Every retailer has to have a niche," she says. "We also have to deal with competition from the internet and big box stores." 

Yet despite the razor-thin margins, bike-based businesses are expanding by catering to the commuter market and offering well-designed products. In D.C., for instance, cyclist Philip Ankney started building bamboo bikes out of his home studio a few years ago. He's since launched his company, District Bamboo Bikes. 

"It's such a mature market. There's not a huge difference in innovation -- the bicycle now versus 100 years ago is pretty much the same," says Ankney, who has revived a style that was first patented in the late 1800s; bamboo is more resilient than aluminum or carbon fiber. "To maintain your business, you have to do evolutionary innovation." 

"This is a bootstrap business," he adds. "I have a workshop in my house, and I sell bikes at farmers' markets and pop-up venues. We're growing slowly, mostly by word of mouth."

When you make a great product, the consumers will follow. R.E. Load bags, a 15-year-old messenger bag company based in Philadelphia, continues to grow as the city's blossoming bike scene fuels interest in its products. Founder Roland Burns has diversified the company's offerings and they now ship their products to more countries than ever. 

"People have filled in the gaps around us," he says of the increasingly diverse bike ecosystem in Philadelphia. "There's now a pretty good range of stuff that's made here -- panniers, rack bags, clothing, cycling gear. All these little companies."

Growing the bike-economy pie

There are signs that cycling's economic impact could expand exponentially. Bike-sharing systems have the potential to reach a whole new audience. There are currently about 30 U.S. systems; D.C.'s Capital Bikeshare is the largest. Tampa is launching a program later this year. 

"More cities are seeing the value of bike sharing in generating economic activity," says Andrew Blikken of Tampa Bay Bike Share, which recently contracted with Miami Beach's Cycle Hop to install a 30-rack, 300-bike system.

Tampa Bay Bike Share will operate on a privately-financed model in which advertising revenues help pay for the cost of the system. The rest will be paid for by riders who will be charged $5 per trip, $25 per month or $80 per year to access the vehicles. The bikes have GPS tracking systems and can be locked up pretty much anywhere in the city. 

"Once bike sharing begins to generate returns for investors, it will explode," argues Blikken. 

For entrepreneurs like Burns, however, size really doesn't matter. Although he enjoys seeing the growth of bike lanes and other cycling infrastructure in Philly and acknowledges that it's good for business, he's completely fine with his modest, three-person shop. He enjoys the art of making bags and working directly with customers. 

"We have a small showroom, and you can see us making stuff in full view," he says. "We like making bags that actually mean something."

LEE CHILCOTE, a Cleveland-based journalist, serves as editorial director for Issue Media Group and writes about the redevelopment of cities for Fresh Water Cleveland and other publications.