Eric Attayi, owner of the Urban Bicycle Gallery in Houston, Texas, has watched the pandemic transform his shop in a way most businesses can only dream of.
Bicycles are selling before he has time to assemble them for display. Attayi said he'd matched his 2019 sales by the start of May. He's had to hire new employees to meet demand, and hasn't taken a day off since February. Attayi said now the phone doesn't stop ringing and his guys get overwhelmed. He'd given raises and started buying lunch for his stressed staff.
As unemployment reaches record levels and small businesses scramble to survive, bike shops have been an exception.
They're thriving whether they're in car-dominated cities like Houston or more traditional biking areas like New York. Keeping enough bikes in stock, and finishing repairs in a timely manner, has become a challenge. Customers are being turned away, in some cases.
New customers are looking for ways to be active and outdoors. Bike shop owners say that the closing of gyms and yoga studios during the pandemic has contributed. Others say customers are looking for a commuting alternative to public transportation. Social spacing is easiest on individual modes of transportation, like cars and bikes. In March 2020, US cycling sales increased 39% when compared with March 2019, according to a survey.
"Bikes are like the new toilet paper," Attayi said. "If it's available, buy it."
Robert Keating, owner of the Triathlon Lab outside Los Angeles, said he's never seen anything like the current bicycle boom in the 37 years he's worked in bike shops. He's shifted his shop from a focus on high-end bicycles to affordable bikes people are likely to ride in their neighborhood. Beach cruisers have been especially popular, he said.
Bike shop owners are also wondering how long the current boom will last. Some said customers were more interested in biking because with less car traffic, roads felt safer. Their interest may decrease as traffic returns. But some cities have begun to reallocate street space to bike lanes, which could lead to more biking in the long term.
Phil Koopman, owner of BicycleSpace in Washington DC, compared the current bicycle boom to 1999, when many people bought computers to prepare for Y2K.
"Then those companies didn't sell a lot of computers for a few years because everyone already had one," Koopman said. "That's the big question. Is this a one-time thing or is it something sustainable?"
1.What can we learn from Para l and Para 2?
A.Most businesses have experienced the same development as Attayi's shop.
B.Attayi's 2019 sales were as many as those of the start of May.
C.Bikes are flying off shelves, overwhelming shops.
D.The staff's wages were raised because they had no day off since February.
2.What does the underlined word They in Para 4 refer to?
A.Unemployment levels.
B.Small businesses.
C.Bike shops
D.Stressed staff
3.What is the challenge for bike shops?
A.Jo attract customers when they are not keen on biking.
B.To survive in car-dominated ciles.
C.To promote their sales in traditional biking cities.
D.To prepare enough bikes for sale and do repairs quickly.
4.Which is not the reason why more customers are turning to bikes during the pandemic?
A.They can spend much less on qualified goods.
B.They cannot go to gyms and yoga studios.
C.They prefer biking to public transportation.
D.They are trying to find an active way in the open air.
5.We can infer from para7 and para8 that _______?
A.The current bicycle boom was totally within Keating's expectations.
B.Triathlon Lab used to mainly sell bikes that were unaffordable for most people.
C.Roads feel dangerous when there are more bikers.
D.People lose interest in biking because there is no bike lane.
6.What is Phil Koopman's attitude towards the bike boom?
A.Short-sighted. B.Unconcerned.
C.Skeptical. D.Optimistic
The first time a tortoise walked through my hut at Middle Camp on Aldabra Atoll, I was amazed. I grabbed my camera and carefully positioned myself to take this wildlife encounter. The second time: same thing. The third time: I picked up my phone and took a snapshot. By the fourth or fifth time, I didn't even look when I felt something bump into me. I knew what it was.
I was there to shoot a story about island restoration（修复）in the Seychelles, far off the east coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean. Until roughly the middle of the past century, the small island nation showed signs of real environmental killing—local vegetation（植被）cleared to make way for coconut plantations, foreign rats and mice running uncontrolled, native sea turtles and giant tortoises being exploited. Biodiversity seemed destroyed. But then the country experienced a shift in conservation awareness — and the giant Aldabra tortoises are among its most visible signs.
Every morning when I woke up and walked outside the hut, I had to remind myself that I hadn't traveled back in time. I could see flightless Aldabra rails, coconut crabs the size of dinner plates, and giant tortoises—roughly four feet long and weighing up to 550 pounds—just wandering around. The number of sharks in the bay was crazy. Frigatebirds and boobies（鲣鸟）nested in the mangroves（a kind of tree）. When we left our hut doors open, which we often did to let in air, the tortoises would walk right through.
In the late afternoon or early evening, whenever they'd finished eating, the tortoises would drop themselves down and fall asleep with their heads outstretched. That made nighttime trips to the outhouse perilous. To get there, we'd have to go 200 feet into the mangroves, negotiating what I called the tortoise slalom （之形障碍）trail.
It was a track without a pattern, because of course they picked different places to sleep every night. Avoiding them was important: Falling headfirst over a tortoise onto the sharp coral rock could lead to serious injury on an island far from medical facilities.
Nothing was easy on Aldabra, and much of it was insanely difficult. Yet living among the tortoises in this primordial place, in one of the last spots where reptiles still rule; was one of the happiest times of my life.
1.How did the author feel about his final meeting with the tortoise in his room?
A.Calm B.Excited C.Concerned D.Disturbed
2.What made the wildlife on the island suffer during the last century?
A.Introducing foreign species. B.Killing too many rats and mice.
C.Planting lots of coconut trees. D.Repairing the building on the island.
3.What does the author intend to do in paragraph 3?
A.To stress the importance of their work.
B.To introduce how large the tortoises are.
C.To present his daily routine on the island.
D.To show how the wildlife is diverse on the island.
4.Which can best replace the underlined word "perilous" in the 4th paragraph?
A.risky . B.competitive C.successful D.interesting
5.What might be the suitable title for this passage?
A.Island fills with curious tourists.
B.Tortoises rule on this isolated island.
C.Efforts are made to protect the environment.
D.Aldabra is heaven for wild animals.
Face Painting Academy Diploma
Subject Art & Design, Craft & Creative, Beauty
Delivery method Online
Study level Professional development, Short, Accredited
Ref FACE-GUARD
Price £30, was £299, use code: GUARD90
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Module 1 Your Introduction to Becoming a Face Painter
Module 2 The Equipment and Materials You Will Need for Face Painting
Module 3 Health & Safety and Risk Assessments
Module 4 Starting / Running Your Own Business
Module 5 Pricing and Costs
Module 6 Marketing Your Business & Social Media
Module 7 1'he Do's and Don'ts and What to Do If Your Business Doesn't Go Well
Module 8 How to do a Dog / Cat Face Paint Design
Module 9 How to do a Butterfly / Dolphin Face Paint Design
Module 10 How to do a Monkey / Frog Face Paint Design
Module 11 How to do a Rabbit / Swan Face Paint Design
Module 12 How to do a Tiger / Dinosaur Face Paint Design
Module 13 How to do a Spiderman / Batman Face Paint Design
Module 14 How to do a Minnie Mouse / Princess Face Paint Design
1.The course is intended mainly for those _______.
A.keen on showing off new skills
B.eager to get an academy diploma
C.equipped with a unique taste for art
D.interested in learning face painting
2.You can save £ _______ if signing up for the course now.
A.30 B.269 C.299 D.329
3.Which of the following statements is TRUE about the course?
A.It is presented both online and offline.
B.The diploma can be obtained in one day.
C.It provides not only many face paint designs but also lessons on business.
D.Some clients will be invited to examine your qualification.
4.In which module are you likely to learn how to advertise your business?
A.Module 4. B.Module 6. C.Module 7. D.Module 10
For years, I thought a present and a gift as the same thing.
I grew up in a household where presents marked special ________ There was always a box for each of us under the tree at Christmas. _________, Dad always gave Mom something each Valentine’s Day and anniversary. He would carefully plan his shopping trips to find just the _______ thing. His joy in the hunt was proof of the _______of giving and of his love for her. I saw these presents as the _______ of a husband's devotion.
So when I married a man who did not give presents on a regular basis, it was an _______
I wrestled with my expectation. Gary did hot _______ avoid gift-giving. Gary would return from sea armed with a brown paper bag inside of which was something that _______ him of me. But mostly, he ignored holidays, _______ to shop for a thing to present to me as a sign of love.
I tried to change him ________. I prepared gifts for Christmas and for his birthdays ________. He appreciated the caring, but refused to do the same thing for me. I dropped hints, they ________ deaf ears.
I began to tell him what I wanted, giving ________ instructions. When Gary left for the market one Saturday, I asked him to find me diamond earrings as a birthday present. Yet he came home with a road scraper （刮路机）.
________when the snowstorm stopped later that year and he was at sea, I used the road scraper to plow （犁）out both our driveway and our neighbor's, thinking how ________ earrings would have been and it was then that I realized he had been giving me gifts all along. The gestures, large and small, born of his caring and concern were the ________that he gave daily.
We ________ to teach others how to love us. In that struggle, we often forget how to ________ the love they already give us as only they can give it.
I finally began to understand the ________ between a present and a gift. A present is a thing. But a gift is a small act of kindness, the willingness to ________ another's needs, the sacrifice of time and effort.
1.A.locations B.situations C.occasions D.conditions
2.A.Additionally B.Originally C.Fortunately D.Consequently
3.A.cheap B.astonishing C.splendid D.right
4.A.pleasure B.ambition C.intention, D.addiction
5.A.example B.emphasis C.experiment D.expression
6.A.improvement B.adjustment C.excitement D.enjoyment
7.A.actively B.willingly C.patiently D.wholly
8.A.warned B.reminded C.convinced D.informed
9.A.refusing B.announcing C.demanding D.rushing
10.A.by tradition B.by force C.by example D.by accident
11.A.on purpose B.in order C.at random D.on time
12.A.absorbed in B.cared for C.fell on D.broke down
13.A.some B.specific C.brief D.unusual
14.A.And B.So C.Though D.But
15.A.precious B.practical C.useless D.ugly
16.A.promises B.gifts C.blessings D.instructions
17.A.struggle B.fail C.attempt D.decide
18.A.express B.appreciate C.return D.share
19.A.distance B.similarity C.difference D.conflict
20.A.fight against B.laugh at C.turn down D.bend to
—I can't remember his name clearly.Is it Brain Johnson?
－Yes,____________.
A.you name it B.that's the point C.that's it D.you deserve it
—I am going to the library. Do you have any books_______?
—No, but thank you all the same.
A.to return B.returned C.to be returned D.returning
