Christmas comes early for sophomore biker

December, a month that brings up the sweet thoughts of Christmas, was no different for students at Saratoga. Although Christmas spirit is supposed to be about giving, most students would rather receive.

For a few students, like sophomore Eric Ferguson, Christmas presents came early. Ferguson, an avid downhill mountain biker, received a new and improved bike after his old one was stolen.

Unfortunately, Ferguson and his mom left their bikes resting outside their house, and the next day, they were gone. The two were disappointed but also looked to it as a possible.

After having his bike nabbed on Oct. 15, Ferguson and his mom started obsessively searching the web for a good deal on his dream bike, the Yeti RZ One Twenty Three, because it suited both the needs of Ferguson and his mom, a cross country mountain biker. The main setback Ferguson encountered was the hefty price of the top-of-the-line bike, which sells for $5,400 on the official website.

“The bike cost so much at the beginning of our search. It was so crazy,” Ferguson said.

After setting his sights on this replacement bike, Ferguson meticulously searched and scanned the web for a decent deal on the bike because he and his mom were unwilling to spend $5,000.

He checked Craigslist and eBay four times a day, posted multiple finders on Nextag, and even called multiple bike stores hoping to find a deal, but none of it worked.

After four brutal weeks of non-stop searching, Ferguson was close to giving up.

“After not finding a suitable deal for the bike for close to a month, I was really demoralized,” Ferguson said. “My friends were biking and I wasn’t.”

After almost two months of waiting, a miracle happened. Ferguson recalls the day, Nov. 7, that he received the news—he was getting his dream bike.

When he arrived home, his mom surprised him with the news that for Christmas, he would receive the bike of his dreams, the Yeti RZ One Twenty Three, for just $3000, almost 50 percent less than its expected cost, due to a clearance sale.

“I was so happy when my mom told me what I was getting for Christmas. It was like a dream come true,” Ferguson said.

That very day, Ferguson and his family rushed to the store to test ride and purchase the bike, and Ferguson could barely contain his excitement.

“Eric was so happy that day, he just couldn’t believe we got such a good deal on the bike,” said Vicky Ferguson, Eric’s mom.

Although not everyone has special Christmas miracles, in the case of Eric Ferguson, he had the perfect gift for this year’s Christmas.