Joy as Coseley man’s vintage bike restored by same Wolverhampton shop that sold it to him 43 years ago

A Coseley man has told of his joy at getting his vintage bicycle repaired by the same family business that sold it to him back in the 80s when he was a paperboy delivering the Express & Star.

Tony Ghale hadn’t ridden his prized red TI Raleigh Team racing bike, a replica of that ridden by Dutch cyclist Joop Zoetemelk when he won the Tour de France in 1980, since his school days.

Now, aged 58, Tony decided it was time to dust off his beloved Raleigh and get back on his bike and ride it to work. However, it needed a repair.

Tony said he started looking for somewhere to take it and to his surprise and delight he discovered Fred Williams Cycles in Wolverhampton, which sold him the bike in 1983, was still open and run by the original family.

Tony said: “Being 43-years-old the bike needed some TLC. The back wheel was buckled and needed some new spokes. So I took it to the local Halfords store, however they were unable to work on it as it required a special tool from the period of manufacture to remove the gears.

“I then searched online for local bike shops and to my surprise found that Fred Williams was still going and was still family-owned - managed by Fred’s grandson Jonathan Williams.

“Jon was really helpful and managed to find the tool required to fix the wheel and get my old bike back to a roadworthy condition.

“I’ve since given the bike a good cleanup and I’m loving riding it again after so many years.”

Tony, a procurement leader for a steel company, said he fell in love with the racing bike when he first saw it - with its bright red paintwork and striking contrasting yellow and white decals, 10 speed gears and quick release alloy wheels.

He recalled saving up his pocket money to buy the bike - with cash earned from a paper round delivering the Express & Star.

His mum and dad also chipped in to help him buy the bike which he described as a “passage to freedom” in the 1980s before the era of gaming and smart phones - and he used to enjoy rides out to Halfpenny Green Airport and Bridgnorth during school holidays and weekends but he stopped riding the bike when he left school.

However, now it has been restored to its former glory, he is enjoying cycling to work along the canal.

He said: “I really enjoy the journey and it’s much better than being stuck in the morning traffic rush hour if I drive to work.”

He thanked bike shop manager Jon Williams, of Fred Williams Cycles in Snow Hill, for getting his bike back into a roadworthy condition after all these years and he said: “Unfortunately, over the years all the local bike shops have closed.

“It’s great to see Fred Williams Cycles still going after 76 years.”

Jon Williams said: “We do a lot of servicing and repair work. It’s great to have customers coming back 30 to 40 years later with a bike they purchased from us originally. It’s nice.”

He added: “I feel really privileged that I’ve had the opportunity to carry on running the business and it’s my passion so it’s a perfect fit.”

The independent family business, specialising in custom-built lightweight road/gravel bicycles, was established in 1950 by Donald Frederick Williams and has passed down through the generations to Fred's grandson Jonathan Williams.