Traveling Bike Repair Shop Comes to Somerville

Cyclists stranded on pot-hole-pitted Beacon Street after busting a tire no longer have to walk their bike home or to a shop for repairs. 

For just over two weeks, Tim Ennis, 33, has crisscrossed Somerville on a clunky, old bicycle, undoubtedly drawing attention to his new business: Rolling Wrench, a bike repair shop on a bike. The green, plywood trailer of tools he pulls weighs more than 100 lbs. Far from weighing him down, the set-up lets him quickly get to cyclists who need anything from a brake adjustment to an overhaul.

The Rolling Wrench website shows a map of Ennis’ location and his cell phone number so that customers know his whereabouts. He also uses Twitter to tell followers when he’ll be stationed on the Minuteman Bikeway or other popular bike routes. 

The first clear Sunday after he started the venture, he parked on the part of Memorial Drive blocked off to cars. He set out a sign advertising free bike checks, and soon a line of cyclists stood before him.

“At one point,” he said, "I looked up, and there was a swarm of people around me. It was so cool.”

Several customers have told their co-workers about the businesses, Ennis said, and he’s set up shop in office parking lots to replace bearings and brake cables, listening to 1970s dance hits to pass the time.

“It’s exciting to watch [the business] go from nothing to at least a little bit of something,” he said.

From bike enthusiast to business owner
When Ennis moved to Somerville in 2004, he took his car with him. But he soon accumulated more than $800 in parking tickets. So he sold the car and started commuting by bike.

The idea for Rolling Wrench came to him a few years ago while he was stuck working more than 60 hours a week in a downtown Boston bike shop, where customers would wait weeks to get their bike repaired, he said. He thought he could turn over orders faster on his own by going to customers’ homes and workplaces. It would also be a way for him to get outside.

Ennis, who now sports a chiaroscuro farmer’s tan, said self-employment suits him well.

“It’s been fantastic,” he said. “I’m the best boss I’ve ever had.”