{"id":65193,"date":"2026-04-24T21:51:28","date_gmt":"2026-04-25T01:51:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/?p=65193"},"modified":"2026-04-24T21:51:34","modified_gmt":"2026-04-25T01:51:34","slug":"the-opening-of-lakeland-bicycle-co-is-a-heartfelt-nod-to-the-citys-cycling-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/2026\/04\/24\/the-opening-of-lakeland-bicycle-co-is-a-heartfelt-nod-to-the-citys-cycling-history\/","title":{"rendered":"The opening of Lakeland Bicycle Co. is a heartfelt nod to the city’s cycling history"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The opening of Lakeland Bicycle Co.<\/strong> is a heartfelt nod to the city’s cycling history. After more than 60 years of service, the iconic Bent\u2019s Cycling<\/strong> closed its doors in March 2026, but its legacy remains firmly in the Dixieland neighborhood.<\/p>\n\n\n

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A New Chapter in Dixieland<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Zachary Kulp<\/strong>, a 24-year-old former professional mountain biker, has taken the handlebars of this new venture. Kulp\u2019s connection to the tradition runs deep: he began working for Steve Bent at 14 and was mentored by him for a decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Kulp originally hoped to take over the existing Bent’s location, insurance challenges on the historic building led him to open a fresh space just a quarter-mile north.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Shop Details & Services<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The new shop held its grand opening on April 4, 2026<\/strong>, and focuses on maintaining the community-oriented feel that made its predecessor a local staple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • Location:<\/strong> 923 Florida Ave. S., Lakeland, FL (the former home of an antique shop).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Hours:<\/strong> Monday \u2013 Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Closed Sundays).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Inventory:<\/strong> A wide range of bikes including electric (E-bikes), hybrid, mountain, road, BMX, and kids’ bikes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Service Packages:<\/strong>\n
      \n
    • Level 1 ($79.99):<\/strong> Standard maintenance to get a bike “up and rolling.”<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Level 2 ($149.99):<\/strong> Comprehensive maintenance and more extensive repairs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Honoring the Past<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

      Kulp has filled the shop with memorabilia from Bent\u2019s, including newspaper clippings and a planned 17-foot Schwinn display. Steve Bent<\/strong> himself has even expressed his support, noting that Kulp is “four years ahead” of where he was when he first bought the shop from his own father.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      It\u2019s a great addition to the South Florida Avenue corridor, ensuring that residents still have a local spot for gear and repairs right in the heart of the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      The opening of Lakeland Bicycle Co. is a heartfelt nod to the city’s cycling history. After more than 60 years of service, the iconic Bent\u2019s Cycling closed its doors in… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":65195,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"dois","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":true,"token":"eyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvaTAud3AuY29tXC9sYWtlbGFuZGdhemV0dGUuaW5mb1wvbmV3c1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyNlwvMDRcL2Rvd25sb2FkLTMtNy53ZWJwP2ZpdD0yNDMlMkMyMDgmc3NsPTEiLCJ0eHQiOiJUaGUgb3BlbmluZyBvZiBMYWtlbGFuZCBCaWN5Y2xlIENvLiBpcyBhIGhlYXJ0ZmVsdCBub2QgdG8gdGhlIGNpdHkmIzgyMTc7cyBjeWNsaW5nIGhpc3RvcnkiLCJ0ZW1wbGF0ZSI6ImRvaXMiLCJmb250IjoiIiwiYmxvZ19pZCI6MTYzMDQwNjYxfQ.T6yucknzkFzbo4UFXW41U54rytBJK5nbdz7TO5O0-CwMQ"},"version":2,"media_source":"sig","attached_media":[{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/jetpack.com\/redirect\/?source=sigenerate&query=t%3DeyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvbGFrZWxhbmRnYXpldHRlLmluZm9cL25ld3NcL3dwLWNvbnRlbnRcL3VwbG9hZHNcLzIwMjZcLzA0XC9kb3dubG9hZC0zLTcud2VicCIsInR4dCI6IlRoZSBvcGVuaW5nIG9mIExha2VsYW5kIEJpY3ljbGUgQ28uIGlzIGEgaGVhcnRmZWx0IG5vZCB0byB0aGUgY2l0eSdzIGN5Y2xpbmcgaGlzdG9yeSIsInRlbXBsYXRlIjoiZG9pcyIsImZvbnQiOiIiLCJibG9nX2lkIjoxNjMwNDA2NjF9.RrfBD-yHNqsDoYgKT1JxHWxsdIyV8Mo0n24lCbk8gDYMQ","type":"image\/jpeg"}]},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[14473],"class_list":["post-65193","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-the-opening-of-lakeland-bicycle-co-is-a-heartfelt-nod-to-the-citys-cycling-history"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65193","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=65193"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65193\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":65196,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65193\/revisions\/65196"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/65195"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65193"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=65193"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=65193"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}