Travis Jones has been on two wheels as long as he can remember. "I've been a motorcycle head all my life, I started working on them when I was like 6 years old," Travis said. Having first moved to Blacksburg when he was just four, he has "always dreamed about Blacksburg having a real motorcycle shop," but due to town zoning and building codes, that may never happen.

One short visit to Blacksburg was all it took for Travis' parents to fall in love with the place. "We came down to visit [my uncle], and moved down the next week," Travis recalled. His father was an avid dirt bike rider and racer, and he took Travis trail riding every Sunday. "That's where I learned how to ride, was on Brush Mountain," he recalled fondly.

Tinkering with bikes in friends' basements led Travis down a path that took him to motorcycle mechanic's school in Florida, suspension training school in California, all around the country on racing circuits, and to prestigious jobs at motorcycle shops in Wytheville and NOVA.

He never forgot the New River Valley, however; "I came back to Blacksburg because...I wanted to raise my family here," said Travis. He moved with his wife and two young kids to Blacksburg in 2001, going to working at a Christiansburg dealership while starting his own company, Go Race Suspensions, on the side.

Hoping to combine his passion for motorcycles with his love of Blacksburg, Travis began looking for a location for a shop of his own after leaving the dealership in 2006. He figured he could combine his expertise in suspension systems with the retail sales of "high efficiency, high quality scooters" into a successful business.

According to the Virginia DMV, motorcycle registrations rose 51 percent from 2002 to 2006, and scooter use is certainly on the rise due to their high gas mileage, affordability and fun factor. Motorcycle service is certainly in demand, and with regard to the scooters, "I think I can offer the public a green way to go," said Travis.

Travis explored several different Main Street locations, including the old Eat's building, and a space in the Aztec Rental location. In both cases, "I found the owner...settled on a rent price...and applied for a business license," he said. The properties were already zoned as General Business, but it turns out that designation "does not cover any sort of...engine service," according to Travis.

Andrew Warren, Development Administrator with the town Planning and Engineering Department, said, "The town did not officially turn down Mr. Jones for location on North Main," "He was advised as to what he could expect when bringing his case before the town council." A business servicing engines would, according to Warren, require a "special use permit."

"Getting a special use permit in Blacksburg, according to many people that I've talked to, is nearly next to impossible," said Travis As well as costing several hundred dollars in application fees, it would also require a noise wall be erected around the property, too great an expense for Travis to foot. "It does depend on the location," said Warren in regards to what would be required.

Travis has all but given up on his dream of a Blacksburg motorcycle and scooter shop, and his frustration is palpable. "Another side of this is there's so many empty [storefronts] in Blacksburg," said Travis, "Here I am as a small business owner, trying to get into Blacksburg to offer a unique service for the public, and I'm turned down, and it's very frustrating."

Go Race's difficulty offers a unique perspective on the twisted logic wherein a small business providing a needed and beneficial service is shut out, while corporate chains move in and the townspeople must fight tooth and nail to keep a big box store from being built next to an elementary school.

Go Race is currently located on Roanoke Street in Christiansburg, and online at www.go-race.com.