The Cycle Shop on Union Street is set to close after its owner, Leslie Wilson, decided to retire and shut up shop.

Mr. Wilson, who has been in the cycle trade all his adult life, opened the store on New Year?s Day in 1960 ? and has been helping keep cycles on the road ever since.

But now poor health has put a spanner in the works ? and he has sold the building and is selling off his remaining equipment and moving on.

?Business has also been falling off recently, probably due a lot to me not being in the best of health,? said Mr. Wilson. ?And I have not been able to put as much time and effort into it.?

Mr. Wilson first became interested in bikes when he was still at school, when he used to go Court Street Cycles during the afternoon. When he finished school he went on to work full time at repairing and selling cycles. He went out on his own in 1959, and the business first started in St. John?s Road, and then Mr. Wilson had the chance to purchase the building on Union Street and moved to town.

And it made its name by selling shiny chrome parts to the proud owners of mobilettes who loved to accessories their bikes. In the past few years the store has been run by Leslie, Jr., his son, but Mr. Wilson said that his son had been working flat out and wanted to take a break before deciding if he wanted to follow in his father?s footsteps.

?We sell a little bit of everything,? said Mr. Wilson, who has now sold the Union Street property. ?At the time when we started we specialised in accessories in the days when everyone wanted chrome-plated spokes and accessories.?