Ben, and Scott, all the rest of y'all:
Oh man, what a fantastic experience. My 14 year old son, Matt, and I took your sunrise tour last Tuesday, 6-26-01, and we're still awed by what a great day we had. It's been 15 years since I first came to Maui, and I've been meaning to go up the volcano and see the sunrise ever since, and only got around to it last week. Such a beautiful sight. And to top it off with an unguided mountain bike ride down, yow! We feel so lucky we hooked up with you guys rather than one of the other companies we saw on the mountainside that day. Make sure our driver, Scott, sees this, he da man. He was great. A personal highlight for me was seeing my kid in front of me,, screaming in delight. Pure joy, ya know? Ah, what a great time. Breakfast at Lynn's was great too, thanks for the heads-up, Ben. You guys run a great operation, we'll be back for sure. (Oh, and Matt especially liked the Dead skull*** patch on his backpack, cool. :-)
Tom Vecchione, Santa Cruz, CA
A very Merry Christmas to Haleakala Bike Co. Staff. My wife and I have just returned home from a great vacation with your sunrise tour and ride far and above the best part of our trip. A very special thanks to Scotty for his caring touch making my wife feel comfortable on her bike and encouraging her to head down the mountain. I can only say your company was the very best way to ride the mountain. We were run off the road by another company as they were traveling way to fast. We would never have been able to enjoy the ride much less make the ride. A great sunrise! A great view! A great ride! A very great Time!! The only way to travel down Haleakala! The Haleakala Bike the ONE.. Sincerely, E. Gibson Hello. My husband and I took your sunrise tour May 12th, and it was truly a highlight of our Maui trip. Scotty took us up the mountain, and he was fun, informative, and takes great photos! (see attached)I liked the independence this tour allowed. We stopped for a great breakfast and were able to take our time with the ride. I am a travel agent, and will highly recommend this tour to those looking for a spectacular sunrise, and a exhilirating bike ride down the mountain! Thanks! Betsy and Jerry Bouchard, Way to Go Travel, Inc.Hampton, VA Just a note to say thank you for providing one of the best experiences my family has ever had! We just took the sunrise express (As I call it now) this past Wednesday (5/31/00) and we thoroughly enjoyed the experience! I whole heartedly agree that a self guided tour down the mountain is the only way to go. Granted, you don't get to bike down from the very top but you also don't have some goober yellin' at you and your party all the way down. It really does look silly when those groups of riders come 'round the bend. My son Nick couldn't stop laughing at that! Thanks and we will certainly see you next time! Chris, Julie, Megan and Nick Ludwig, Lisle, IL Now that, sadly, I'm back on the mainland and at home I wanted todrop you a quick note to let you know how much we enjoyed our"mountaintop" experience last Wed. The expertise of all of you, yourfriendliness and helpfulness, as well as your knowledge of the mountain,are exceptional in my experience. It was a great treat to get away fromthe usual sort of tourist attractions and deal with something a littlemore real. Your honesty in your description of what you offer, your candidwarnings about what others are offering, the beauty of the scenery weexperienced - the whole trip is one we'll remember for the rest of ourlives. Mahalo for all you did for us - you're the tops! Andrew F.Johnson We travelled to Maui for scuba diving, but thought it would be nice to see the drier parts of the island as well. And since we like poetry, we HAD to do the Haleakala bike thing with the bike company that runs out of Haiku. And I know this is stating the obvious, BUT we were so grateful that we weren't being herded down the crater in groups of 12 or more, being told when to stop, when to speed, when to be rude to other cyclists, when to change our gear............ yadda yadda yadda We enjoyed our leisurely cycle downhill!!! (its going to make our treks inthe Rockies this spring seem even that much more difficult), as well as thepatter by Tim the driver/cameraman/videojockey/tour guide/standup comic onour way up at 5 am to see an absolutely spectacular sunrise.Thanks for giving us such a memorable last day for our Maui vacation Kathy & Tim "When I plan a vacation, I always try to check out my options foradventure. And I usually do pretty good. With Haleakala Bike Co. I hitthe jackpot. My friend Jessica and I found that Bobby Zimmerman was awealth of information. He had everybody in his group's name down fromthe start. And was very entertaining in the way he told all the factsabout the volcano and biking info. Thanks again, "I just want to thank you again for the wonderful experience you createdfor Michele and I during our recent visit to Maui. We were in Australiaprior to stopping in Hawaii and spent 6 day in a private cottage on abluff in Kauai, but our experience with Haleakala Bike Co. may just havebeen the highlight of our trip. Bobby was great!...and we haveadvised no less than 100 people to tour Bobby's World during their nextvisit to Maui. In fact, you have several new victims coming your wayover the next few months." Dave and Michele I just wanted to reiterate my friends comments and compliments. Steve G.and I took the ride on 2-17-00 with a couple of other friends who had little to no mountain biking experience. After only a few short minutes, they were both very comfortable with the equipment and so confident that when we reached the bike shop at the end they were surprised that it was over. The breakfast lodge was great with terrific coffee and the best Banana Macadamia NutPancakes in the world. Jessica M., Sacramento, CA * "...the Crash Test Dummy comment was in reference to the competition.Specifically, the groups that do not allow you to ride freely and require stopping as a group, eating as a group and who knows what else as a group." We enjoyed your bike tour; The driver was helpful, informative and pleasant. The bikes are well maintained and your shop is very freindly. Would do it again. The Bournigal Family, Dominican Republic "I would just like to let you know how much our group appreciated doing business with you. All 22 of us traveled to Maui for a basketball tournament. Before we left, it was decided that we would ride down Haleakala the second day of our trip. It's something that we will all never forget. The breathtaking views. The spectacular sights. All in a couple of hours. We took your drivers' suggestion that we eat at the Mexican restaurant in Makawao. The food was fast and delicious! A very good call. Your customer service and friendly employees made our experience, and our week long trip, get off to a great start. We worried that a large group like ours, would overwhelm you. Our worries were put to rest. Thank you for all your help. We all had an awesome time." Reese Goetz, Garden Grove, CA "Just thought we'd drop a note and tell you what a wonderful time we had on the sunrise trip.Y‚ We too are glad we didn't sign up with the other group bikers' and their death van. Bobby Z. was a great tour guide with a great sense of humor and made sure we had all the essentials.. backpack, helmet, a comfortable bike AND a map!Y‚ We stopped at the Kula Lodge for breakfast where the food was good and the scenery was even better.Y‚We were highly recommending your company to other potential bikers while we were still on Maui and will continue to do so here at home. I still can't believe I rode 26 miles!! What a riot!! Thanks again!" Karol & Steve, Mundelein, IL Kim & Shelly Pollock, Thousand Oaks, CA Kristen Bertellotti, Harris Travel Center P.S. I will be sending several clients your way!
Dan and Judy Nigro
Martha Gibson sets record for the oldest person to have rented a bike from Haleakala Bike Company and completed the ride down the mountain on October 31, 2000. Martha is 82 years young; she will celebrate her 83rd birthday on January 17, 2001. Mountain biking is just one of the exciting activities Martha enjoys. She has done white water rafting and snow skiing. Thanks to the folks at the Haleakala bike company for making Martha's trek so enjoyable and thanks for the complimentary senior's Haleakala tee-shirt.
I"d just like to thank your staff, especially Jay for the warm welcome and wonderful hospitality that was shown to us. Jay really did a good job with the tour and was a veritable fountain of information.Consider us outside salesmen for the Haleakala Bike Co. It's actually a very easy sell!
The sunrise was so intense. We're still in awe. Scott(one of yourother guides) also had lots of info on the volcano crater, as well as alittle gear support. (My error, not yours) Please thank him for us.
Your Gary Fisher mountain bikes were a dream. And the freedom to go atour own pace allowed us to stop at a wonderful breakfast lodge that Bobbyrecommended. The food and the views were awesome.
On a scale of 1 to 10, Haleakala Bike Co. is a 10++."
Steve G. and Jessica M., Sacramento, CA
Others from our group informed us that they were taking the Crash TestDummy Ride* and I felt sorry for them. The experience we had was incredible andI will recommend it to anyone and everyone I know that will be in your neckof the woods.
Thanks again for making our visit to Maui so wonderful.
Pacifica High School - Boy's Varsity Basketball
"My wife and I took the ride up and back down Haleakala with your outfit last week during our one week stay in Maui. Words are going to be difficult to describe the experience we had - everything from the van ride up with a very animated and knowledgeable driver (Bobby), a spectacular lightning storm (arranged by you, I'm sure), a breathtaking sunrise, bitter cold with 40+ mile an hour winds at the summit, and the unforgettable ride down the summit. We stopped for a breakfast at the Kula Lodge and enjoyed watching the other "Jamaican Bobsled" bike tours zip by while we were able to proceed down at our own speed.
Your staff was very helpful from our first contact through final check in and helped make the trip down Haleakala one of the major highlights of our vacation. Thanks!"
"I just wanted to send you a note to say that I took the bike ride last week and it was great! We really enjoyed the entire program and the guides on the way up were very informative. I would like to thank you and the entire staff for giving us a wonderful memory! Mahalo
Giovanni Caproni Di Taliedo, President, John and Kris, Lancaster, Ca. "Great views-we loved the Jackaranda trees so much we bought a paintingof them on the way down the mountain." Chris and Linda, Seattle, WA Downhill Bike Tour dangerous for bachelors- "Best bike trip we ever took in our lives! Wonderful tour guide,fantastic scenery and tons of fun. And to top it off, we got engaged onthe way down the mountain. Thanks for everything!" Lorijo & Robert Jones, Seattle, Wa. "The bike trip was the most memorable experience on Maui. The weatherwas beautiful and there was a perfect romantic spot where we stopped andgot engaged. Truly a great experience. Haleakala Bike Company is theonly way to go!!!" Tammy & Rene Truan, Austin, Texas and then... Mr. & Mrs. Robert and Lorijo Jones
"I send you some pictures of our visit in Maui and thank you for your kindness!...
You gave us two wonderful bikes and we enjoyed very much the tour from the volcano. I hope to meet you again in the future and thank you again!
Ciao!"
Mtn. Bike Club Italiano
Milan, Italy
"Fantastic Trip! Something everyone should do. It was Excellent, We'll be back!"
As the first couple to get engaged on your wonderful bike tour,(see customercomments), we thought you might like to know that we were married on Nov 8,1997 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Thanks to everyone at Haleakala Bike Company forthe inspiration that made it all possible. You guys are the best!
Seattle, Washington
