On our way to Larnaca from Nicosia, we stopped at a few shops in an attempt to get my wheelchair tire repaired. The first place we stopped was a bike shop. The man working at the shop informed us he might be able to order the correct tube for the tire but it’d have to wait until after the weekend. We stopped by another shop that told us they couldn’t help but they gave us an address of a mobility aid shop. I stayed in the car but my travel companions were in the mobility aid shop for awhile and I got hopeful. Unfortunately, they got similar news at this shop, they might be able to help but it’d have to wait until they could get ahold of a tire repair guy after the weekend. I’ve noticed, Cypriots are very protective of their off time. After that, we decided to save this problem for Monday.

Monday came and went with no word so one of my classmates called the first bike shop to follow up and we were informed their bike repair guy was not in so we’d have to wait. On Tuesday, we heard from the mobility aid shop, they couldn’t help. On Wednesday, Dr. Stephens, my travel companions, and I, went on an adventure to solve this problem. We started with the first bike shop we’d gone to on our way back from Nicosia. The bike shop employee was not happy to see my companions again. It seemed as if he was hoping we forgot. He was rude and kept asking the same questions. It was clear my accessibility was not an urgent concern too this man and he did not take it seriously. He finally told us there was a shop in Limassol that had tubes that would work and that he could get them ordered. We decided that this was a big priority and decided to drive to Limassol to get the tube, even though we were warned they closed in 2 hours. The address written down by the man at the bike shop was confusing and not entirely accurate so we just drove the street hoping for the best. We finally saw a bike shop with a free parking spot right in front. The man in the shop immediately knew who we were and was ready to repair the tire. He offered me a seat while he put the new tube in. As he worked he informed us that this was not his first time repairing a wheelchair tire as he helps service tires for the Apollon Wheelchair Basketball Team. This man was super helpful and sent use home with an extra tube, a repaired tire, and a free patch kit because he knew how far we drove. Thank you to Biker Bike Shop for the great service and to Audrey, Hannah, and Dr. Stephens for all their wonderful help problem solving.

~ Apollo Blue