The pioneering partnership of Jennifer Gardner and Dave Hargreaves is the driving force behind the bustling Cerberus Moto DIY motorcycle shop in San Diego.
It was news to me that the do-it-yourself service shop phenomenon has roots going back at least to World War II. I had never heard of the niche before my son-in-law was in flight training for the Air Force several years back. The then young Lieutenant Lander told me that he had done a brake job on his car at the base?s DIY service facility. The Air Force Auto Hobby Program has lifts, specialty tools, manuals and even military mechanics on duty to give advice or assist on projects.
It turns out that every base on which Lander has served since flight training has had a variation on that same DIY shop theme, each of which is run by the military?s Morale, Welfare and Readiness (MWR) organization. He says that you often see a mix of officers, enlisted and retired military personnel working on their motorcycles and cars in the bays of the shops. Lander, now a major, still wrenches in the DIY service facility, which he says brings him a sense of personal accomplishment and provides a form of decompression from the stresses of military life. As of late, the civilian motorcycling community is catching on to the logic and appeal of DIY service facilities. Drop-in, membership and cooperative style shops are popping up nationwide. Facilities from New York to Seattle are amassing loyal customers who appreciate the independence, satis...