February  15, 1991

     Dear Bike Shop Owner/Manager,

     The Kingsport Bicycle Association is the only Touring Club in
     the Tri-Cities Area.  For over thirteen years we have tried
     to promote bicycling and represent the interest of all local
     bicyclist and are constantly trying to find new ways to
     strengthen not only our organization but the bicycling
     community as a whole.  The more involved a person is in
     bicycling, the more likely he is to support his local Bike
     Shop-  and everybody benefits.

     A promotion used in another area has recently come to our
     attention through our Club Newsletter exchange and we thought
     it should be at least suggested to the local shop managers.

     In short:
     Any adult buying a bicycle (say over $500 or so) at your
     store, not already in a local bicycle club, you would offer
     to pay a years membership fee to the local club of their
     choice.

     Since local club dues run from about $10-15, it's a pretty
     cheap way to get new bicyclist involved . . . not to mention
     buying all those accessories . . . and eventually another
     bike . . . .   It would be up to you to determine the cyclist
     interest and steer them to the right club.  Everybody wins.

     Other promotions used in the past have been to offer
     discounts (5-10%) off to club members who identify
     themselves.  This would help keep more of the sales local
     that often go to the mail order outfits.

     Whatever you decide to do about the above suggestions, we
     hope you will continue to support all the local clubs.


                                     Thanks,
     


                                     Rick Heppert
                                     Kingsport Bicycle Association