At Sacha, in Montpellier, the old bikes have a story to tell

Sacha et Pablo posent avec le grand bi et le vélo qui a fui le bombardement de Montpellier, devant leur boutique. ML – GR

Rafistoler les (très) vieux vélos, une passion à laquelle s’adonne avec passion Sacha Soultanian dans sa boutique du coeur de Montpellier.

At the corner of Candolle and University streets, Chez Sacha Bikes & Old Bikes Addict gives pride of place to all bikes, from all eras and all styles. It must be said that Sacha Soultanian, who brings the place to life with Pablo Quenum, is passionate about old bikes.

"I have around forty of them at home, 80% of which date from before 1920. It’s through my collection that I got into cycling and that I’ ;rsquo;I started working in a cycle store, before opening Chez Sacha two years ago."

This bike which allowed us to escape the bombing of Montpellier

On July 5, 1944, American planes bombed the railway infrastructure of Languedoc, killing a thousand Germans and many civilians. The Prés-d’Arène marshalling yard, where two German military trains were stationed carrying soldiers, ammunition and gasoline, was one of the main targeted sites.

"Every time there were sirens, the whole family evacuated by bike, explains Suzanne Blanc, who collected the testimony of her big sister, then aged 15, who lived nearby with her parents and grandparents. That day, it was total panic. My father had fallen off his bike while fleeing, my grandmother was no longer following. My mother spoke of strings of bombs falling from the sky. They had taken refuge in a ditch. When they got up, there were dead people on the other side of the road. My family was scattered, but they were unharmed."

As a child, Suzanne remembers that her father took her to the beach on his bike, “in a basket cut in two, as a seat placed on the luggage rack.& ;quot;

"When my parents left to live in Lattes, which was a very small village in 1946, they took over the café opposite the town hall, to which they added a grocery store, continues the retiree. The bicycle was their only mode of transportation. They went to Vauvert to see their cousins, to Marsillargues to my father's mother, to Baillargues to party…"

Under the saddle, a fixation testifies that a two-wheeled cart was often attached behind the bicycle. "My parents went to the market in Montpellier, Place de la Préfecture. They put ice in the burlap to preserve the freshness of the products they brought back for themselves and for their customers."

Today aged 78, Suzanne took the bike out of the garden shed where it had been sleeping for a long time. She gave it to Corentin Le Bris and Alice Hermet, who run the Cycle & Re-cycle, opposite the Albert 1er tram station. They immediately entrusted him to the care of Sacha Soultanian. Aged 118, the little queen is about to experience a second youth.

Sacha admires the bike that belonged to Suzannn's father. "It is in good condition, he notes. Bicycles of this era were very durable, with a steel frame and a thicker tube than today." 

He lists the period parts: "the hubs with grease nipples at the front and rear which allowed the bearings to be directly lubricated, the closed fork characteristic of earlier bikes 1910, the stays bolted directly to the seat post, which was done until the 1920s."

"I'm going to completely disassemble it, clean the parts, check everything, re-grease the rubbing parts (bottom bracket, wheel axles, headset), redo the wheel spokes. To rediscover the spirit of the bicycle of yesteryear, it will also be necessary to remove the parts added over time (the headlight in the 1940s, the saddle, the dynamo, the pedals which had been repaired with wire). iron, the handlebars, the pump…). Just scrape off the rust on the surface to make it roll. That represents twenty to twenty-five hours of work."

"The saddle is 1.45 m high"

In the front, it is impossible to miss the large bi which is admired by passers-by. Appeared in the 1870s, it made it possible to cover a long distance with a single turn pedal, thanks to its big wheel.

"This one is one of the largest, since’it has a wheel of 1.35 m in diameter. The saddle is 1.45 m high. It’s very annoying to climb on it, especially since at the time, there were no well-paved roads. This one is all the more valuable as it is equipped with original parts, such as the spoon brake or the pants protector."

"The mechanics and history attract me"

The large bi was gradually replaced by traditional bicycles from 1890. Like these two Peugeot Valentigneys (named after a town in Doubs where the Peugeot family originated) which sit in the shop.

"The first one, I found on LeBonCoin, explains Sacha. It is a 1902 single gooseneck frame bicycle, with three gears at the hub, a Christie saddle patented in 1896, a pad brake and an original bell."& nbsp;In short, a mechanical marvel.

Its neighbor is a men's bicycle from 1906 with all the original parts including an acetylene lamp (a process invented in 1892). "There was a green lens on the right and a red lens on the left to know which way the cyclist was traveling", marvels the Montpellier resident.

"It’s the mechanics but also the history of these bikes that attracts me,” explains Sacha, showing a tax plate on another biclou. He is registered "pharmacist in Carpentras" with the date 1922. But it’is most often the serial number which allows us to date the cycle.

“Montpellier Automobile”, from bike to… plane!

On Suzanne's bike, dating from 1906, it's impossible to miss the plate “Montpellier Automobile” which appears on the frame. It was a garage located at 56 avenue de Toulouse and which has disappeared for a long time. Bicycles were repaired there, but also motorcycles and cars. Two branches were located in Montpellier (rue Maguelone) and Nîmes.

But it is above all the identity of its owners, Joseph Faulquier and Gaston Jamme, which has remained in history. With Gaston Tabar, they created the Southern Aviation Company.

In a letter addressed to the mayor of Villeneuve-les-Maguelone, in June 1911, they had requested authorization to rent communal land of 100 ha in Thôt, on the edge of the river. Arnel pond, to install an airfield there. Which was achieved in November of the same year!

But if the Great War seemed to open a golden path for the pioneers of aviation, the aerodrome, which was the only one around Montpellier, closed in 1927. “Montpellier Automobile” disappeared some time later.

"I don’have a car but a utility bike"

A little further on is a tandem from the 1940s, the thermal engine of which he is restoring attached to the rear road. "It had a plate riveted to the mudguard giving it authorization to travel under the Occupation."

A great admirer of the Saint-Etienne factory, Sacha will go to the Velocipedia at the beginning of May, a large gathering of vintage bicycles organized near Bourges. "For three days, we exchange advice and parts with lots of other enthusiasts."

But the Montpellier resident also satisfies his passion in his daily life. "I don’I don’have a car but a utility bike with which I do everything, he explains. Cycling has enormous potential and continues to develop."

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