Pandemic projects: Cycling trek postponed; judge focuses on rebuilding vintage bikes, preparing for classic European event

It certainly didn’t look like much.

But to Fred Corbit’s experienced eyes, the battered, scarred steel frame had beautiful bones. Under his skillful hands, the 50-year-old French Follis bicycle became a turquoise gem, with hammered aluminum fenders and an elegant chain guard.

The bike is one of several he rebuilt and restored during the pandemic.

“The Follis was a surprise for my Francophile wife, Merilee,” he said. “It’s the perfect bike for the Centennial Trail.”

Their Kendall Yards home offers easy trail access for the bankruptcy court judge and his school nurse wife.

“I’ve always been a bike nut,” Corbit said. “Some years I ride close to 5,000 miles.”

While his passion for bicycles is nothing new, having the time to devote to rebuilding them is directly related to the coronavirus .

“Our plans to trek across Iceland in June were put on hold,” Corbit said. “So, I turned to restoring vintage bicycles in my garage and planning bicycle excursions. I think to keep sane we need something to look forward to.”

One of those planned excursions is L’Eroica, an upcoming vintage bicycle ride in Italy’s Tuscany. Corbit found the perfect bike to ride in it. Of course, it wasn’t perfect when he discovered it.

“I found a rusty old Univega frame online from a guy in Colorado,” he said.

The sturdy steel frame is exactly what he was looking for. He straightened it and set to work restoring the racing bike to what it had been in its heyday.

“I built the wheels, everything, from parts, and set up a painting booth in my garage,” Corbit said. “Building a wheel is like knitting a sweater.”

He patted the bike’s leather Brooks saddle.

“I’ve already put 50 miles on it.”

As he worked on the bike, he pictured himself tackling the hilly L’Eroica course in Italy.

Gesturing toward his bicycle-filled garage, Corbit said, “This is my meditation. My Zen comes from getting everything to work.”

The most challenging part of restoring vintage bikes is tracking down the needed parts.

“It takes some sleuthing,” he said. “I’ve sourced parts from New Zealand, Japan, Belgium.”

He also got a chance to revisit his high school years when he restored a 1973 Schwinn Paramount.

“It’s the bike I dreamed about but couldn’t afford when I attended Ferris High School,” he said.

Corbit left Spokane after high school and didn’t return until seven years ago when he received a judicial appointment to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court Eastern District of Washington.

“It’s my dream job,” he said. “But in my job, nothing is really black or white.”

That’s why he derives such satisfaction in restoring vintage rides.

“A bike either works or it doesn’t.”

He’s also built a couple of bikes for his younger son, who plans to do the L’Eroica event with him.

“We drive out to Mt. Spokane High School when he’s in town and ride from there to the tippy top of Mount Spokane. It feels like you’re in Europe,” Corbit said.

The road is where the true satisfaction of hours of painstaking labor pays off.

“When a bike is done, I can be 25 miles into a 50-mile ride, and I just smile because it’s working so well,” he said.

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Cindy Hval can be reached at dchval@juno.com