Tim Castleman had a big response to the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.

He felt so sad, disappointed and angry that he changed his life.

He started developing a hemp-based biofuel system and fought for legalization of hemp in Arizona to help end U.S. dependence on fossil fuels. He began a national "Drive 55" campaign to lower Americans' gas consumption and reduce carbon emissions — an effort turned into a documentary. And he organized two "Peace Trains" to Washington, D.C., to promote rail travel.

"My interest in biofuels led me to understand the real problem isn't that we need another source of fuel. We need another source of energy," said Castleman, 51. "The real problem is we don't use what we have appropriately. This led to this whole conservation-minded approach to living."

That approach led him to get into bicycles in a really big way. Two years later, he bought a derelict old Worksman trike for $5 from a neighbor. The trike had been through a fire. Two wheels were missing. Castleman saw only a really useful tool that could get him around. Something he could use to bring home groceries, garden supplies and other cargo.

He found Worksman Cycles still in business, ordered a mess of parts and fixed the trike. He painted it black and slapped on a sticker reading, "One less SUV." He was even happier to discover that Worksman has been making bikes and trikes in this country since 1898.

The former HVAC contractor and his 23-year-old son, Cassidy, are now turning a longtime dream into a reality. They're opening a bike shop that's destined to fill a niche by renting and selling Worksman and electric bikes. They'll also offer repair service and retrofitting to make any bike electric.

Tim Castleman wanted to offer bikes for people who can't or simply don't want to pedal all the time. Once he found Irvine-based Pedego electric bikes, the quality and design were the catalyst that pushed him to open the store.

The bruised and bleeding economy allowed them to take over the well-trafficked Old Sacramento storefront vacated by Discover California, a gift shop open for 17 years.

With a little help from his son, Tim Castleman has brought new life to 114 J St., which is close to the bike trail. The 3,400-square-foot space contains exposed brick walls, 9-foot French windows, 14-foot ceilings, back rooms and a basement on the original city level. They cleaned, painted and repaired light fixtures. They prepared wall space for local art that will debut on Second Saturday Art Walks.

He spent more than five days refinishing the showroom's beat-up, old wooden floor measuring about 2,500 square feet.

The tall black, tan and purple front doors are now open, although the targeted opening isn't until April 1. People wandered into the shop Thursday to ask about the Pedego electric bikes. A shipment of 10 bikes painted apricot, maroon or midnight blue had just arrived that day.

Father and son worked together to pull Pedego cruisers out of shipping boxes and stack them out on the floor. They expect 37 Worksman bikes next week.

Cassidy Castleman is a business student at California State University, Sacramento. He also sells solar electricity for a Rocklin company full-time. His dad got him into solar and other environmentally friendly lifestyle habits, including riding bikes.

"I've gotten a lot of grief for wanting to drive a car instead of ride a bike if it was less than 20 miles," Cassidy said. "It's part of who we are as a family."

Tim Castleman likes his old trike so much that he wanted to sell Worksman products. He loves the sturdy, heavy-duty bikes — which are often used for pizza and ice cream deliveries and other business or "industrial" uses — because they're useful, comfortable and strong, and it doesn't take an athlete to ride them. He also likes the price: Base-model cruisers sell for $299.

"For a made-in-the-U.S.A. bike, that's a bargain," he said. "There ain't nothin' out there that can touch that."

Their store will differ from other bike shops in town because their bikes are geared toward regular folks.

"If you go to a traditional bike store, it tends to be geared toward the racers. Most people aren't racers," Cassidy Castleman said, adding many bike stores have cruisers sitting out in front because that's what's selling.

"There's a definite bike culture here in Sacramento," he said. "Most of the people I see riding around have cool old bikes."

Both will staff the shop. Tim Castleman will service bikes and Cassidy will handle marketing, including building a website. The shop will rent and sell Pedego cruisers, heavy-duty Worksman cruisers called Newsboys and Newsgirls, and Worksman side-by-side trikes, both standard and electric. Single-speed cruisers rent for $5 per hour or $28 per day, and Pedegos for $15 per hour or $80 per day.

"People who come down here — they're looking for fun. They're looking for entertainment. And in this economy, people are hurting," Tim Castleman said. "They can rent a bike for an hour or two for five or 10 bucks — that's affordable."

The shop will also sell Pedego's electric folding bikes and from Worksman, sturdy, industrial-grade standard tandems and trikes, recumbants, folding trikes, hand cycles and two-wheel cargo bikes. Dutch-style Worksman Roadsters will sell for $249, and foldable trikes for $429. An electric foldable trike will sell for $969.

Pedego cruisers will start at $1,595, or $1,775 for an upgrade featuring balloon tires. Those bikes have eight-pound lithium ion batteries and 500-watt motors and weigh about 60 pounds. They can be ridden at speeds up to 20 miles per hour and can go for 15 to 30 miles on a single charge. A 16-inch foldable will go for $1,395. The Castlemans plan to hold an event showing people how to use solar power to charge the batteries.

The store even carries one high-wheeler antique replica that will sell for $1,295 because Castleman is also a dealer for Rideable Bicycle Replicas in Alameda.

"This is the original fixie," he said.

Cassidy Castleman happily admits his dad is the driving passion behind the store. The pair has searched for a store location for four years. But Tim Castleman took the leap to open the shop after surviving radiation therapy for prostate cancer in January.

Ironically, it was a bicycle accident that helped make the store possible. A few years ago, he was riding a bicycle downtown on 15th Street when a restaurant valet suddenly opened a car door in front of him. Castleman flew over the bike and suffered a broken arm. He's using money from the settlement to open the bike shop.

The shop may seem like a small thing to some. But the Castlemans think it can really make a difference. Tim Castleman believes Worksman and Pedego's electric bikes can be "game changers."

"I don't own a car anymore," he said.

Practical Cycle will be open seven days per week from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., with extended hours in the summer. For more information, call 706-0077 or check out PracticalCycle.com.

Photos by Suzanne Hurt, a staff reporter covering business and development for The Sacramento Press.