‘This is our home, and we’re not leaving’: This community is determined to rebuild its only bike shop after Hurricane Helene

On Saturday mornings, dozens of road cyclists leave the city of Asheville, North Carolina, for the Bakery Ride. They ride 50 kilometres northwest toward the small town of Marshall, which sits in a valley along the French Broad River and is a gateway to the Blue Ridge Mountains. In Marshall, the race-paced group ride takes a break, allowing riders a chance to refuel with coffee and pastries at On Your Bike, a small bike shop and café located on South Main Street.

Marshall is home to approximately 800 full-time residents; its quaint downtown is a thriving tourist destination for visitors to the region and is popular with cyclists. “Marshall has always been sort of stopping point where a lot of rides visit because of the distance [from Asheville] and how you can do loops [around the area],” said Rick Bradham, an Asheville local who frequently rides to Marshall. “Marshall is more of a place for tourists to go [visit] versus people to pass through. It's definitely become more of a destination.”

On Your Bike is a thriving haven for cyclists riding from the Asheville area. “It's this little bottleneck of a lot of cycling activity,” Alex Webber, the co-owner of the bike shop, says. “We're the only bike shop in a 20-mile radius.”

“It was always like this flock of wild, colourful birds that just all of a sudden [showed up]. Boom! There would be 30 people in the place and you're slinging espressos and the pastry cabinets are getting emptied out, and then 10 minutes later, everybody would be gone. It was just this wonderful little rush and buzz of activity every time a group of cyclists came through.”

On Your Bike only opened a little over a year ago and immediately became a community staple.

“To say the shop was welcoming is an understatement. From filling bottles to excellent espresso and sweet treats, the staff was always so happy to see us,” says Evie Edwards, an Asheville local who races with BB Barns Femmes. “On Your Bike was a community spot that made all the difference to a route. [There was] bike parking, mechanical fixes, and everything a cyclist would need to refuel.”

But everything changed in late September 2024 when Hurricane Helene unleashed devastating storms on the southeastern United States, drenching the mountain communities near Asheville with a year’s worth of rainfall in just days.

The destruction was more than anyone could have imagined. Flood waters from the French Broad River surged eight metres, ravaging downtown Marshall, whose main street lies sandwiched precariously between the river and a sheer rock wall.

“They told us a hundred-year flood [meant] the river rising 19 feet, and so we were prepared for 19 feet [of water]. That would been about kneecap high in the shop. We had everything lifted at least four feet off the floors. The bottom of the walls is brick, all our furniture is metal. We were being smart about it,” Webber recalled.

But this flood was beyond anything anyone could have imagined. “This was one of those maybe once in a thousand years type floods, so it didn’t matter how much you prepared for it,” Bradham explains.

On the morning of Saturday, September 28, On Your Bike co-owner Adam Schmitt was in the shop monitoring the storm. The heaviest rain was supposed to have hit Friday night and as Schmitt peered out of his shop windows around 6:45 a.m., he thought they were in the clear.

“All the streets were reasonably dry. We thought we cleared it,” he recalls. “And then at about 8:00 a.m., I looked out, and in about 20 minutes, we had two and a half feet of water in our parking lot. And you realise, ‘shit, I gotta get out of here, I'm gonna be stuck.’”

In a convoy of cars, Schmitt fled to higher ground. Upstream, spillways were clogging and rivers were swelling well beyond their capacities from the previous night’s rainfall. All the Marshall residents could do was move to safety and watch as the town became engulfed in over 13 feet (4 metres) of rushing water.

“From the other side of the bridge, we could see our shop. We could see our little hanging sign over our door and the water was pushing the sign. When we saw that, we knew it was over,” Schmitt says.

This isn’t the first time Webber’s life has been torn apart by a hurricane. Back in 2005, she was living in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina took everything she owned. Seeking refuge and a fresh start, Webber moved to Marshall, North Carolina– a place she believed would be safe from the storms.

Despite a second devastation, Webber is resolved to rebuild instead of running away.

“We took a family vote and all hands got raised for a yay. So we're gonna try to dig deep [and rebuild],” Schmitt says. “We're not starting from ground zero. We're starting about 10 steps below ground zero to build back.”

Rebuilding won’t be easy and Hurricane Helene has left scars across the entire community.

“I'm still clearing away the debris from our carport and in the family room, but that's so minor compared to what [Webber and Schmitt] were doing. I mean, it's like, their windows are shattered. There's three or four feet of mud in the back of the store,” describes Randy Warren, a cycling coach who lives in Asheville and frequently rides to Marshall.

As Warren tells it, entire buildings in Marshall and Asheville have been wiped away.

“It's not like the business closed and the building is still there and someone else can come in and can buy that building. The small towns are almost virtually wiped up. Marshall, where On Your Bike is, is going to be a long [time to] rebuild.”

Schmitt and Webber are just two of thousands of North Carolina residents whose lives have been completely turned around. Beyond the loss of beloved places like On Your Bike—a cherished bike shop and coffee stop for the cycling community—the storm has taken people’s livelihoods and for some, even their lives.

Schmitt and Weber watched their livelihood quite literally be sucked down the river. “The insurance denied all our claims,” Webber says. “We took a loan out through Mountain BizWorks and a loan on our house in order to make the shop happen. Now, the shop is gone. We still have the loans. Those aren’t going away and insurance told us, ‘No, we're not going to help you.’”

Undeterred, Schmitt and Webber have begun sifting through the mud and debris, salvaging whatever they can. Webber’s sister, Joanne Ash, started a GoFundMe campaign, which has raised over $40,000 so far. The funds are a lifeline, covering wages for their four employees while the shop remains closed. Their hope is to rebuild On Your Bike and reopen, providing a space once again for cyclists and community members to gather.

“Our community is strong and I have no doubt we will see it rebuilt. But the loss is undeniable, especially when you consider the amazing space On Your Bike carved out in Marshall for cyclists and community members alike,” Edwards says.

As Weber and Schmitt explain on their website: “This is our home, this is our community and we are staying. What will this look like? We don’t know. We honestly don’t. We are figuring things out day by day. We’re hoping to get together some sort of weekend pop-up for coffee, treats and cycling support when it’s safe to go back. We’re going to add some online retail (which would be so much easier if I only knew what I was doing.) When we are further along, we will sell gift certificates in advance of our reopening. We are working on t-shirts…ummm… yeah - that’s about where we are. If you have any good ideas - let me know alex@oyb-NC.com”

On Your Bike has a long road ahead to get back to where it was, but if cycling teaches anything, it’s that people are resilient, the community is strong and everyone is in this together.