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To watch our YOUTUBE VIDEO with Mandy Laderer, CLICK HERE
To watch our YOUTUBE VIDEO with Aaron Cohen, CLICK HERE
This is quickly becoming my favorite thing to do at ZIZZO. Our love for ZiZZO bikes and the fun we have riding them is a great unifier. No matter where we are from, what age we are, our political affiliation, or economic status, we all can relate to the joy we get from pedaling a bike. Some adventures are just around the block and some may be thousands of miles away. All experiences are just as valid as any other as they are unique to each rider.
We look at our Instagram and Facebook pages closely and find so many interesting people that are a part of the ZiZZO family! This time around we reached out to ZiZZO riders Aaron Cohen - who took his ZiZZO to France, and Mandy Laderer - who owns some beautiful horses at Laderer stables.
It was a pleasure speaking with both of them and we appreciate the time they spent with us.
Mandy Laderer - Owner of Laderer Stables
Oyster Bay, New York
As young as the age of 5 Mandy grew up around horses. Her father would take her down to the tracks and she loved it. Her passion led to owning Laderer Stables and being involved in racing on the east coast. Her horses have done really well over the years and she told us about her rising star, “Lady Milagro” who has made over $100,000 in just 6 races!
Mandy is not only proud of her winning horses but also her stables work with the non-profit organization, “ReRun” www.rerunottb.org . ReRun takes retired race horses and finds them beautiful homes and new lives. Their mission is to rehabilitate, retrain, and adopt. Mandy says, “If you’re going to own a race horse then own up all the way through.”
Their stable recently celebrated the birth of three new Fillies. She says it was a welcome sight after "birthing” so many colts. Follow Laderer Stables on Instagram for some great shots of the beautiful new babies!
If you can’t find Mandy at the stables, she may be showing homes in the New York Area. Yep, Mandy also deals in real estate. How does she find the time?
Working in Real Estate and owning horses are pretty high-level stress jobs.
Enter the ZiZZO!
She didn’t want a bike to put on a rack, and then stumbled upon a YouTube ad. She was immediately drawn to the light weight of the ZiZZO Liberte. She couldn't believe it was only 23 lbs. and that it was ready to ride right out of the box.
Even in the wintertime she manages to fit in a ride. She loves the wind in her hair and the fun she has whipping around. “I'm always getting stopped and asked what type of bike I’m riding. “It’s a ZiZZO,” I tell them!”
She takes her Liberte to the boardwalk and various islands near her homes. During the covid shutdown she says, “I don’t know what I would have done without my ZiZZO! It is my therapy.”
She has had zero maintenance issues with it in the past three (3) years and is looking at buying another! She wants ZiZZO to do a Liberte in yellow to match her jockeys' silks. “Why not match? It's all about the fashionista,” says Mandy.
We are so grateful to have Mandy as a ZiZZO family member! We are honored that ZiZZO is part of her passion along with those beautiful horses.
To watch our chat with Mandy Laderer, Click Here
Aaron Cohen – Retired
Chicago, Illinois
It's not often you get a nice email written in deep detail. We were humbled that Aaron Cohen reached out with an amazing email telling us how much he has enjoyed his ZiZZO. Perfect timing! We were hoping to chat with another of our ZiZZO family members and Aaron's story is a great one to share.
Aaron has always had a love for bikes going back to his days as a child. Aaron shared that he has never driven a car and that the bike has become a big part of his life due to having some visual impairments.
Early on Aaron found that recumbent bikes were perfect for him. He loved how comfortable he was laying back and spinning away the miles with his wife. They went for years doing that and had no plans on ever buying a traditional upright style bike.
In the fall of 2019, they decided to do some riding in France. As they looked into the cost of renting a recumbent in France, they started to think maybe they should take another route. He always knew about folding bikes but just wasn’t sure. After some research and finding ZiZZO he decided to give us a call.
To his surprise, “I actually talked to a live person and the customer support was great!”
Since the cost of the ZiZZO was so affordable, it wasn’t going to be an expensive gamble. He purchased a couple of Urbanos and had them shipped to his home before his trip to Europe. Not sure about the bikes, “l took them out for some rides and really enjoyed myself. The bike just makes me smile” says Aaron.
With little effort, he managed to fit each Urbano into separate checked bags at the airport and they were on their way to Paris. Luckily their hotel in Paris stored the cases for them.
Aaron and his wife had an amazing journey through many parts of France taking in the culture, food, and plenty of miles of smiles riding to each destination! Some days they would go as little as 20 miles, and other days they would ride as many as 50 miles through wine country. There were no hassles and no problems with the bikes the whole trip!
They took their ZiZZOs on buses and trains with ease and shared their whole trip on a touring bicycle site called “Crazy Guy on a Bike/France Unfolded” Click link to view. Aaron has some great pictures so we highly suggest checking it out!
After they took that trip, they came home and decided to go back in a few months. Retired life done right! In March 2020 they were in France watching Italy shutdown from covid and managed to change plans. They were able to get home quickly before things got too crazy.
Aaron still rides his ZiZZO and has travels all around the United States experiencing some closer-to-home adventures. Aaron says, “I really love the philosophy of making something affordable, and of good quality. It brings riders into the fold and makes them happy! Whenever I loan my ZiZZO out to friends they come back with that same smile plastered on their face. It’s just fun and frisky!”
We can’t thank Aaron enough for being a part of the ZiZZO family and for sharing his amazing adventure with us. To watch our chat with Aaron Cohen, Click Here
Would you like to share your story? Contact us at Beau@zizzo.bike or on Instagram or Facebook. Subscribe to our mailing list below to never miss a blog, ZiZZO news, or product features.
