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Quirky tale #3:
Bashing a bicycle, Balch-style
In the 1970s, zany Dick Balch was a mind trip. In ever-present TV ads, the hippie-ish huckster with a high-pitched giggle wielded a sledgehammer to clobber cars at his Federal Way dealership. The man drew attention! Promoter Ben Laigo understood this. So when he launched the first official Seafair Bicycle Rally & Picnic in 1972, he persuaded Seafair Queen Lynn Garcia to pose in Balch’s lot to “smash” a 10-speed with a sledge. Ever the ham, Balch joined in the scene with a giant grin.
Indeed, Beauty and the Balch did promote the first Seafair Bicycle Rally & Picnic. The day-long affair treated cyclists of all ages to a lunch after they rode from the Stan Sayres Pits around Seward Park. Down the road, beset by drug and sex scandals, the Tacoma-based Balch went bankrupt and closed his dealership in 1980. Thereafter, he faded from public prominence.
