The Cycle Center of Oak Cliff
Written By: Grant Klembara · Photography By: Doug Klembara
Jorge doesn’t care what kind of bike you have; he wants you to love cycling as much as he does. And like most anything else, this love of cycling takes time and commitment. “The appreciation that people have for their bikes, especially when they have owned those bikes for quite some time, is something special,” he said.
This was evident during the pandemic. While demand for bikes skyrocketed and parts were limited due to supply chain issues, prices went up. Many people desperate to get back in the saddle opted for cheaper, more available bikes. This, in turn, led to regular repairs, frustration, and even abandonment altogether.
Jorge worked with customers to think ‘long-term’ and see the value of buying a good bike and maintaining it over time. And as for the supply chain shortage? He began got creative and began harvesting parts from many used or donated bikes. As a result, Oak Cliff Bike Synergy has gained a reputation for using anything at their disposal to get you the best, most cost-effective fix.
Today, Jorge and his team service anywhere between 60-80+ bicycles a month. And nearly all of them are neighbors eager to get around Oak Cliff. “More than anything, we’re a community oriented service that always takes into consideration any kind of bike in whatever condition,” he says.
Jorge’s resourcefulness and love of cycling stretches all the way back to his childhood. His father was an engineer who enjoyed the logic of machinery, repairing everything from cars to bikes. Perhaps it was this time his dad–where he got hands-on “shop” experience with tools and an opportunity to search for solutions and fix problems–that set him on his course.
“Jorge eventually traveled to Mexico City to federate the sport with the Mexican government so he could begin organizing licensed races. ”
After completing his studies in Architecture, Jorge worked with developers and construction companies in his hometown of Juarez and the bordering Texas town of El Paso. But when he wasn’t at his full-time job or his family’s restaurant, he was competing in cycling races. “I had the joy of getting to know that I was in the pack of the strongest or the fastest 10 to 15 people of 200 or more,” he remembered with a smile. “It only happened a few times, but for me, it was good enough.”
In the 1980s, Jorge and his friends caught wind of a new trend coming out of California and Colorado called Mountain Biking. Using pictures from trendy cycling magazines as inspiration, they custom built their own mountain bikes with normal bike parts. As the movement continued south, they helped usher in Mountain Biking as a sport in Mexico. Jorge eventually traveled to Mexico City to federate the sport with the Mexican government so he could begin organizing licensed races. One of those races named “Chupacabras” still happens every year.
Eventually Jorge’s dreams of adventure and cycling led him away from home. In 1986, he packed his bag and moved to London to study art. “When the plane landed, I just said ‘oh my God, I’m coming home.” This was his first step into the Cycling Capital of the World, the birthplace of so many famous European races and cycling brands. He had only seen this side of the world in magazines.
““I had to accept being humbled and waking up knowing I was going to learn something new everyday,”
Jorge traveled to many different countries in Europe. He would visit bike shops whenever he could. “I would watch what they did and how they did it,” he said. And to his surprise, despite the differences in culture, he found that he could always relate and speak the same cycling language.
But back in London, things weren’t always easy. His art school closed only a few months into the program. Then a recession hit. He had to alter course. After losing his part-time job at the Intercontinental Hotel, He climbed his way up from cleaning staff at a Pizza restaurant to Manager in just six months. He was forced to adapt and learn new things. “I had to accept being humbled and waking up knowing I was going to learn something new everyday,” he said. And while his love of cycling was still there, his connection was fading.
Then until one day when he noticed an old Schwinn bike outside of his apartment. It needed some work, sure, but he could fix it. He asked the property owner who owned it. “They didn’t know whose it was, so they let me use it,” he said. “But if the owner came back and wanted it, they said I’d have to give it back. So I said ‘okay.’”
He didn’t have his tools with him, so he had to borrow tools to use from friends. He spent time tinkering with the old bike, getting his parts little by little when he could afford it. Despite not having his tools, or even his own bike, he was back to his first love. Slowly but surely, he was returning to his roots.
Jorge flew home for good when he found out his father was in poor health. His family needed help with the restaurant, and things were getting difficult, so he jumped in to help. “I cooked, cleaned, took care of customers, and as time went on, I handled the business administration side of things,” he said. When his father later passed, Jorge took over the business. But again, as he was planning to expand the restaurant, the Mexican economy stalled. The peso was devalued dramatically and Jorge was forced to adjust.
All of this time, Jorge’s return home had also marked his return to regular cycling. He participated in a cycling club known as, “Las Águilas,” or the Eagles, which was full of riders from all paths of life. As they rode through the mountains of Mexico, he naturally became the group mechanic. He could bring very few tools in his small bike box, especially as they cycled through the rugged mountain terrain. Here he was able to really sharpen his skills as a mechanic. “We changed the name to the “Los Ponchados,” he said laughing, “because we were constantly getting flats.”
Years later, Jorge was in the Dallas area working as a manager and fixing bikes on the side. He rarely had time to ride anymore since he would come home from work and begin his repairs. “Sometimes from seven or eight or o'clock I would begin working on bikes, and be up until midnight or one or two o’ clock. So, well, I kept on going,” he said. “In my mind, I had to open my bicycle shop.”
Jorge decided to drop by Bishop Arts on Bastille Day and that’s where he met Amanda Pumpkins. She stopped him and asked for his opinion about options for cyclists in Oak Cliff for a survey she was conducting. She also said he could park his bike for free at the shop where she was working, AJ Vagabonds . As he thanked her, she asked what he did for work. To his own surprise, he said, “I’m a bike mechanic.” Her eyes lit and said that there was someone he needed to meet.
Amanda introduced Jorge to Cali, and Cali and Jorge had breakfast at Cafe Brazil the next morning. Before the check came, they were business partners. Ever since then, Oak Cliff Bike Synergy has grown and evolved at Tyler Station where it calls home. At first, the storefront occupied around 700 sq. ft. – today, it occupies nearly 6,000 sq. ft.
Though Cali is no longer there (she received a grant to study and become a bike technician in Colorado), you can still expect to find Jorge. Walk into Oak Cliff Bike Synergy’s shop and you’re likely to be greeted by his big smile and firm handshake–that is, unless he’s tightening a bolt or reattaching a chain.
On one side of the shop you’ll find bike parts and cycling supplies ready for purchase. Turn the other way, and you’ll encounter a sea of bicycles. Every make, model, and kind that you can imagine flows from one end of the store to the other, ranging from high end and vintage models to Walmart and Target brand bikes.
Bring your bike by with any sort of question or need and they can help. And if you’ve got a few extra minutes, ask Jorge about his cycling days in Juarez.
Oak Cliff Bike Synergy is located at 1300 S. Polk St. St. #152.
Stop by during shop hours
Tues – Sun, 10 AM – 6 PM
