Classic Cycle -April 2009

MONTHLY FEATURES BIKER OF THE MONTH After graduating from college, Casey decided she wanted to strike off on her own for a while and worked for Target, but eventually she decided to go back to her deep roots in the tire industry. She started out as any entry-level employee would as a customer service representative, worked up to international sales, and finally into her present position. Casey's moving mission today at Coker Tire is multidimensional and involves a lot of customer contact, travel, and of course, tires, lots and lots of them. The Coker story itself goes back over 58 years, so let's take a look at the beginning. There's something for everyone at the Coker Tire museum. Check out the virtual tour on line at the site listed in this article for a panoramic 360-degree tour of a lots of neat old iron on two wheels and four. "It was kind of awkward at first," she said. "You have to find your core, where your balance is." "You don't lean over like a bike," Casey continued. "With a unicycle you have to have better posture and sit up straight. You use your shoulders and your arms more for turning than leaning." Casey has been leaning on tires for a long time and grew up in the family tire business that created many other fond memories. "When I was young we only had 15 or 20 people working in the business and we held our company Christmas party on the loading dock," Casey recalled. "When we had the party or when I was out of school, I would make sure to wear pants so I could climb on all the tires. It was like a huge rubber jungle gym." Now 27, Casey still stays very active and enjoys running, hiking, backpacking, snow boarding and road rallies in her 1961 Austin Healey Bug Eye Sprite. She especially appreciates her work because it allows her many opportunities and doesn't tie her to a desk all day. "I have to stay moving," she said. "I don't even have cable TV." WALNECKS.COM Coker Tire Coker Tire has a long history that stretches back to 1958 when Harold Coker, Casey's grandfather, opened his tire business in Athens, Tenn. by using a loan from his father, Casey's great grandfather. Mr. Coker moved the business to Chattanooga in 1961 and Coker Tire is still in the same city although at much larger and different locations. Today, the company maintains a separate 100,000 square foot warehouse and company offices are in a historic four-story building. Casey said when she first started, only the ground floor was used for office space, but a recent renovation created more office space on three more floors to accommodate the growing business. In the early days, Coker Tire was a traditional tire store. Coker sold new tires and made tire repairs, but Mr. Coker also had an affinity for antique vehicles. This brought in many customers seeking obsolete tires and these were frequently recapped as was the tradition back in the day when bias ply tires were the industry standard. WALNECK’S CLASSIC CYCLE TRADER® | April 2009 35 I http://www.WALNECKS.COM

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