Paul DeCouto’s first job in Bermuda’s mechanics industry proper was at Yamaha. After leaving Northlands High School in the late 80s, Mr. DeCouto secured a job with the auxiliary cycle giants almost immediately. Indeed, by this time, he could dismantle and reassemble a Yamaha V50 blindfolded and with one hand tied behind his back, so hiring him was a no-brainer. Keeping him would be much harder.

After four years at Yamaha, a strong desire to expand his horizons and pressure to pursue a higher education from his family led Mr. DeCouto to the American Mechanics Institute in Daytona Beach, Florida; a decidedly cheeky compromise. He graduated from AMI after eight months, with a degree in Mechanics Repair and Management; his vision was ready to start manifesting.

Mr. DeCouto returned to Bermuda and immediately began seeking locations where he could service his already enormous clientele. Mr. DeCouto secured a workshop directly behind Muffler Express, on Cemetery Road, in Pembroke, and before long, even Muffler Express was benefiting from Mr. DeCouto’s solid gold reputation. He didn’t work at Muffler Express, but the proximity made it such that folks would have to mention that shop when they described where Mr. DeCouto worked. I am one of the (I’m sure) many who just assumed that Mr. DeCouto worked at Muffler Express, and held that shop in higher esteem because of that incorrect assumption. His legend was that strong!

Soon after establishing his own legitimate cycle repair shop, Mr. DeCouto sought to expand into sales (like he once did in high school). By now his younger brother Steven, his sister Sharon, and even his reluctant dad, had become entangled in Mr. DeCouto’s vision, and decided to get involved.

The family secured a small shop on Woodlands road and began stocking it with the most wonderful cycle parts and safety equipment the Island had ever seen. Cycle Care was born.

Mr. DeCouto has described his first shop, which specialised in accessories and safety equipment, as a “Mom and Pop” type operation; somewhat of a first step toward the heady dream of owning his very own retail motorcycle shop.

Well, before long, Cycle Care became the place to go for the best in high quality helmets, stylish handle bar grips, durable rims and tires, reliable brake plates and pads, and various other trinkets for the beautification of the apple of every motorcycle enthusiast’s eye.

The steady success of that shop, along with the development of a strong family business unit over those ten auspicious years at Woodlands Road, led the DeCoutos directly to Serpentine Road, where they have opened perhaps the most impressive one stop motor cycle shop this Island has ever seen. From sales, to service, to repairs; the new Cycle Care has the entire motor cycle universe covered. They can even build custom parts in their fully equipped machine shop! With the abundance of skills and resources that are available at the new Cycle Care complex at their disposal, the future for motor cycle enthusiasts in Bermuda is brighter than the most buffed, dazzling, spectacular chrome rim imaginable.