Reading passage
When Tom Mills visited his grandfather last spring, he did not expect to find a new hobby. While he was looking for a football in the shed, he saw something behind the old boxes. It was a bicycle, covered in dust and spider webs. The frame was green, but much of the paint had fallen off. Tom pulled it out into the daylight and smiled. He had always wanted a bicycle of his own, and this one looked special.
The bicycle was old but strong. It had a metal bell on the handlebars and a basket on the front. The tyres were flat, and the chain was covered in rust. One of the pedals was loose, and the brakes did not work at all. Still, the wheels turned when Tom pushed the bike across the yard. His grandfather watched from the kitchen door with a surprised look on his face. He had forgotten the bicycle was there.
That evening, Grandfather told the story of the bicycle. He bought it in 1958, when he was seventeen years old. He saved money for six months by working in a bread shop after school. For many years, he rode the bicycle to work every day, in sunshine and in rain. Later, when he bought a car, the bicycle went into the shed. It stayed there for almost forty years without moving an inch.
Tom asked if he could take the bicycle home, and his grandfather agreed at once. The first job was cleaning. Tom spent a whole weekend washing the frame and brushing the rust off the chain. He used an old toothbrush for the small parts. Slowly, the green paint began to shine again. Under the dust, he found the maker's name, a small company from Birmingham that stopped making bicycles in the 1970s.
Next came the repairs. Tom watched videos on the internet and borrowed tools from his neighbour. He bought two new tyres, a new chain, and new brake cables from a shop in town. The work was harder than he expected, but he did not give up. After three weeks, the bicycle was ready. Tom pushed it out of the garage, climbed on, and rode down the street. Everything worked perfectly.
While he worked, Tom also read about the history of bicycles. He learned that early bicycles from the 1860s had a huge front wheel and were dangerous to ride. Falling from one could cause serious injuries. In the 1880s, a new design appeared with two wheels of the same size and a chain between them. People called it the safety bicycle because it was much safer and more comfortable. Tom's bicycle followed that same design, almost unchanged after one hundred years.
Soon Tom joined a local cycling club. Every Saturday morning, the members meet in the park and ride together for two hours. Many of them ride modern racing bicycles that cost thousands of pounds. When they saw Tom's old green bicycle for the first time, they were full of questions. They could not believe he had restored it himself, and some of them asked him for advice about their own repairs.
The best moment came in the summer. Tom rode the bicycle to his grandfather's house and rang the bell at the gate. His grandfather came out, looked at the bicycle, and did not say a word for a long time. Then he climbed on and rode slowly around the garden, just as he had done as a young man. He said the bicycle felt exactly the same as it did in 1958.
Tom's story is not unusual. Old bicycles have become popular again in many countries. People like them because they are simple, strong, and easy to repair. A well-made bicycle can last for fifty years or more with a little care. Tom now plans to restore a second bicycle that he found at a market. He says every old bicycle has a story, and bringing one back to life is the best hobby he knows.