History of West Islip: Sally's Cycle

Originally opened as Sally’s Toys and Cycles in 1955 at its present location of 213 Higbie Lane, the roots of the store began in Manhattan in the the 1930s when the first owner of the store, Frank Chvatal Sr., began repairing bikes as a boy. In 1940, he opened his own bike shop there.

“During the war in the 1940s my father refurbished old bikes,” said Chvatal’s son, Frank Jr., who ran Sally’s Cycle from 1968 to 2009.  “He would paint them, put on new fenders and then deliver them to rich people on Lexington Avenue. He rode through Central Park to deliver them.

“My parents moved here in 1949 and lived on Malts Avenue,” he continued. “My father still had the store in Manhattan so he commuted. He rented a store where  is now while he had this building built. It was finished in 1955 and it opened as Sally’s Toys and Cycles.”

Chvatal Jr. was born in 1945. He worked in the store while he was growing up along with his brother, Ronald, his mother and a few other employees. Chvatal Jr. attended  and graduated in 1963. Five years later, he and his brother were running the store together.

“My brother and I took over in 1968,” Chvatal Jr. said.  “We expanded the store and changed it to Sally’s Cycle only. But my father was still always here, just semi-retired. He came in every day with a smile on his face. He was a very, very happy person. If you knew him you would love him. He got married in 1973 and moved to East Islip where he and his wife eventually raised a son and a daughter.”

Chvatal Jr. said the best part of owning the store was what it did for people.

“I wanted people to exercise, to have good health and enjoy life,” he said.

After his brother died in 2003, Chvatal Jr. became the sole owner of the business. Six years later, he was ready to retire.

“In January of 2009 I sold the store to Lawrence Becker, who is the current owner. I was getting older and no one else wanted it. My kids did not want it. Larry likes fixing things and working with his hands,” he said.

Becker, who lives in Bay Shore, spent 25 years making sails for sail boats before taking over the store. He likes the idea of keeping a small business alive.

“People need to support their local Main Street or its going to disappear,” he said. “Some people ask me why I didn’t change the name of the store. My answer is ‘why in the world would you do that?’”