FITCHBURG, Mass. (AP) - Bicycling is one of John R. Sulin's favorite pastimes. Now his pastime has become the source of an invention and a sideline business.
Sulin often drives to Rhode Island and New York to ride their long, off-road bicycle trails. During these trips, however, he always worried about the lack of security for his bicycle whenever he stopped at a restaurant to eat.
Cyclists stopping along the drive at recreation spots often have to remove their bicycles from their automobile racks and take them into a restaurant in order to obtain maximum security against theft.
Three years ago, Sulin, a tool and die maker, had an idea for a bicycle security mount and decided to develop it. He experimented for a year with several prototypes before he found a model he liked. Then he spent another year obtaining a patent for it.
In September, he exhibited his Tender I bicycle security mount at the Interbike Trade Show in Las Vegas. Next fall, he plans to attend the Chicago Area Bicycle Dealers Association convention with his invention.
The Tender I is designed to be mounted on a flat surface and can be attached to the wall or floor of a garage or shed or to the bed of a pickup truck, van or boat deck. It can also be modified to fit on a car bicycle rack.
The mount fits most mountain and road bicycles and a modified version will fit other size bikes, Sulin said.
The base and end caps are made of cast aluminum and clear-coated so the metal won't oxidize. Recessed steel bolts are designed so they cannot be removed, except with a special wrench. There are steel-threaded inserts in the aluminum base so the bolts won't wear out the aluminum. The end caps, which fit over the bolts, provide a second level of security.
Sulin said he believes the two levels of security were crucial to his obtaining a patent on his invention.
The mount does not have a quick-release mechanism, Sulin said, because he designed it for security.
"Since I've gotten a patent, I'm classified as an inventor. It's amazing how much correspondence I've gotten from all over the world," Sulin said.
Open Road, a British bicycle magazine, asked him to send one of his devices to them for testing, and Bicycling Magazine, a U.S. publication, is interested in publishing an article about the product, Sulin said.
The device sells for $60 retail. It can be purchased at Gamache Cyclery Inc. in Fitchburg or from Sulin by e-mail. The address is Tender@net1plus.com.
Tender I "is superior to anything that's out there. He really did his homework when he made this," said George E. Gamache, owner of Gamache's Cyclery, in Fitchburg. "It locks the bike in place so it doesn't rock back and forth or fall over."
Sulin said he has other ideas for inventions, but he wants to market his Tender I before developing them. Since he works full time in the die division at Hitchiner Manufacturing Co. in Milford, N.H., he has to work on his inventions in his spare time.
He has been a tool and die maker for 30 years and worked 18 years for General Electric Co. in Fitchburg, but left seven years ago for his present job.
His roots in Fitchburg go back three generations. His grandfather, Werner Sulin, came from Finland and operated Sulin's Orchard.
Sulin's ingenuity reflects a family aptitude for mechanics. His father, S. John Sulin, was a co-founder of Sulin Brothers Inc. and taught auto mechanics at the former Fitchburg High School Vocational School.
"Most of my life I've made things for myself whenever I couldn't find something I needed," Sulin said.