For Stacey Mahoney, riding bikes was a release. Now she quit her job to open a bike shop.

Stacey Mahoney would rather be called by her nickname, “The Stacer.”

That’s how the cycling world knows her. It’s emblazoned on her biking attire. And it’s how she identifies when she hops on the seat.

“It’s my alter ego for when I’m riding,” Mahoney says.

Despite the personalized jersey, she has never ridden bicycles professionally. In fact, she hadn’t ridden a mountain bike until the pandemic. Her husband, Charlie, convinced Mahoney to take a ride. Now she bikes regularly with Charlie and their children, Ellie, 12, and Khloe, 5.

But beyond an activity with her family, Mahoney found something else while riding – therapeutic release. She is the daughter of an addict and once faced homelessness in her life. And other life issues popped up. Riding became an escape, a gateway to a more stable model.

Now that sense is enshrined in a bike shop Mahoney has opened in Marina. Not yet finished, the shop is still being assembled on the inside, panel by panel and tool by tool. But that isn’t stopping her.

Weekly: What was that first bike ride like for you?

Mahoney: It was hard. I rode all the way to Lovers Point and back.

I’d never had such a workout before. But I felt so amazing after – so accomplished, so refreshed and so encouraged.

So what encouraged you to keep at it?

I would ride occasionally between Covid [in 2020] and 2023. I would just go out and meander and explore – nothing real serious. And my husband convinced me to sign up for the 2022 Sea Otter Classic downhill race. I was like, “Yeah, sure. I can do that.” So I did it. I did the beginner class. I was terrified. I went to the back of the line, but all the girls up there were such an amazing support.

That made me feel better. It was really that community that pulled me in. [That year] was the worst year of my life. I was diagnosed with melanoma skin cancer and had to have surgery. Then my father had to be brought home on hospice care. I later found out that my youngest daughter was in an abusive teacher’s class, and she’s been diagnosed with PTSD. The only time I felt good was when I would go mountain biking.

Why open a bike shop?

I was on my own by the time I was 14 and I learned basic survival. I worked. I’ve been a professional employee for 27 years. I got to a point where, after working my way up to the accounting department at Scudder Roofing, I was making more money than I ever had – but realized that I was working for someone else’s dream. Then I thought, “Why can’t I do it for my dream?”

You’re doing this with no business training?

I utilized AI. I’m an elder-millennial growing up in the age of computers and phones, so I used ChatGPT to start my business. You can use Google but you get 7 million search results and you don’t know which is the legal one or the right one. Using ChatGPT was life-changing.

I came up with the idea on Feb. 16 of this year, and by the 28th, I had my LLC formed. From there, I just kept following AI’s instructions on how to start a business. I found this place and signed the lease on March 7, 2025.

I’ve never worked harder in my life. I learned at a young age from my uncle who owned Sunset Patio Supply for years; he reels me into the reality of how much things cost. So I utilized AI again to find different income streams when incidents happen. But now that I’ve started and I’m going through it, I realize, “I can do hard things.”

Bikes are subject to tariffs – how is that affecting your business?

So far, not bad. I only have a rental fleet of bikes right now. For the most part, my reps and dealers are splitting the tariff charge with me, but I’ve also gotten a gazillion emails from vendors saying that prices are going up in June. It is what it is, but I don’t focus too much on it because I’m not in this to make a million bucks.

What are you in this for?

To do something I love. To pay the bills, obviously, but to spend my time working to do something I love. It’s the price of business – I know things are going to go up and down. Our sales and service will debut on the Fourth of July week.

CYCLE HOUSE BIKES is located at 224 Reindollar Ave., Marina. 649-9394, cyclehousebikes.com.