By Karen Kefauver - Sentinel correspondent
Posted: 12/10/2010 01:30:42 AM PST
Link to Sentinel article
Not everyone would be thrilled to receive a big box
packed with used bicycle tubes and tires, but for Lauren Junker, it was
as if Christmas had arrived early.
"I think my business was mentioned on a recycling
website," she said. Then with a laugh, "I got a big box from Washington
D.C. filled with about 20 tubes and tires."
For the founder and creative force behind Totally
Tubular Design, a small company that makes purses and wallets out of
bicycle inner tubes and tires, old rubber is an ideal gift.
When Junker and her husband Scott Junker moved from
Thousand Oaks to Santa Cruz almost a year ago for his job in the cycling
industry, Lauren decided to leave her career as a full-time teacher.
After they relocated, she was determined to continue
feeding her passions for racing triathlon and creatively using recycled
materials.
"It went from being a hobby to a business," said
Junker, who currently operates the business out of the garage of her
Seabright home.
In 2006, after she broke her grandmother's sewing
machine trying to stitch through rubber, Junker realized she needed more
powerful tools.
She met her husband at a bike shop.
"He saved old tires for me," she said, and Junker
soon followed his business advice. "I began to work more efficiently.
The products have evolved and the style has changed. The focus is on
recycling and making something cool."
Custom bags are popular, said Junker, adding that her
best-selling item is a "large tire case that is about 7 inches by 5
inches tall. It has inner tube and tire and it's great for both girls
and guys."
For her creations, which include wallets and
bracelets made from recycled bicycle rubber, she relies on a variety of
suppliers. Among them are local bike shops such as Family Cycling Center
and Sprockets.
Her products are for sale locally at the Spokesman,
Artisans Gallery, the Craft Gallery Annex in Capitola and Childish Santa
Cruz in Live Oak.
When she's not sewing rubber with a machine used for
industrial car upholstery, Junker, 28, is busy training for her first
Ironman triathlon in Idaho this June. Even with a few marathons and
half-Ironman distance races under her belt, the nine-year veteran of
triathlon expects the longer distance race will be a challenge. She has
signed up for group triathlon workouts with coach Terri Schneider.
"I met my husband through cycling -- we have that in
common. Swimming keeps me balanced and running is my passion. It's all
good."
Spin City Cycling Updates: Cross, Dojo and Kids
When Santa Cruz weather turns rainy and thoughts turn
to holiday feasting instead of everyday training, plenty of cyclists
stay busy working on causes important to them.
Santa Cruz resident Winona Hubbard and a corps of
dedicated volunteers hosted the second annual CXing Barriers at the USA
Cycling Cyclocross National Championships in Bend, Ore., on Wednesday.
The event's mission is to provide a venue for older women racers to mix
and mingle.
"It's actually selfish," said Hubbard, a competitive
cyclist and a frequent volunteer with Santa Cruz County Cycling Club.
"My goal is to have fun, but I also want to keep women in the sport so,
when I am 70 years old, I will have people to compete against."
Meredith, the top American finisher in the Cyclocross
World Championships, was the featured speaker of the event. The USA
Cycling Cyclocross National Championships continue through Sunday. Check
for results at www.usacycling.org.
Closer to home, it's a busy time for Rob Mylls,
founder of the Bike Dojo, which he launched in June 2009. The locally
owned business has a new location in downtown Santa Cruz at 1101 Pacific
Ave., Suite G.
The entrance is from Cathcart Street at the University Town Center.
The Bike Dojo is a gym with spin classes and virtual
reality bikes, and which hosts a community of cyclists, which go on
organized rides, according to Mylls.
Safe cycling and happy New Year.
Karen Kefauver is a freelance sports and travel
journalist based in Santa Cruz and an avid cyclist. She blogs about
cycling for the Sentinel at www.santacruzlive.com/blogs/outside.
