Exercise bike removal across the Golden Isles.

Exercise bikes are the items most likely to be sitting in garages because the owner planned to use them and never did. We see the same scenario across Brunswick, St. Simons, Sea Island, and Kingsland — the bike was used hard for the first three months after purchase, then less and less, and now it’s been four years since it last moved. The customer doesn’t need a sales pitch about how this could have gone differently. The bike just needs to leave.

The most common call is the garage cleanout where the exercise bike is one of several pieces of unused fitness equipment. Estate cleanouts produce exercise bikes from basements, spare bedrooms, and converted offices. Failed equipment calls are common too — motors fail, displays go bad, belts wear out, the unit becomes unusable rather than just unused. Smart bikes (Peloton, Echelon, NordicTrack) are an increasing share of the call volume since the pandemic-era purchase wave; some are still working, others have failed boards or unsupported software.

Operationally, exercise bikes split into four weight bands. Standard upright exercise bikes are the lightest — 30 to 80 pounds, single-person carry usually, easy two-person move. Spin bikes are heavier (60-100 pounds) because of the heavy flywheel that gives them their feel. Recumbent bikes are 80-120 pounds and awkwardly shaped — the seat-back-and-stretched-frame layout doesn’t carry well on a standard dolly. Smart bikes (Peloton in particular) push 130-150 pounds and combine the bike with a touchscreen and electronics; the screen sometimes detaches for the carry-out, sometimes stays attached.

We don’t make jokes about the unused-equipment scenario. We just take the bike. Working bikes route to local donation partners — sometimes a YMCA, sometimes a community rec center, sometimes a school looking for student fitness equipment. Damaged units go to scrap-metal recycling for the steel and aluminum. The customer doesn’t have to pretend they were going to use it again.