By Marty Basch

Albany's Tom O'Reilly rode his bike a lot as a kid growing up in suburban New Jersey.

"When I was kid you could walk around but if you were riding on the banana seat of a Sting Ray you owned the road," he said. "That is what it was to me. I was a bored kid during the summers in New Jersey and in Maine. But when you got hold of a bicycle you could go somewhere. The bicycle is freedom, freedom to explore."

O'Reilly's childhood bicycle memories as well as what he calls "the spirit of people bicycling in this area" got his inner wheels spinning to write a two-act comedy called Bikers! appearing at the Barnstormers in Tamworth May 28 to 30, June 4 to 6, and June 11 to 13.

Love affair with theater

A long-time self-employed general contractor who owns Fine Carpentry, O'Reilly has a love affair with theater. As a director and producer he founded the Dramatic Art and Stage Company—Dramatica—in 2006. That year the company performed Harold Pinter's The Lover at the Barnstormers. With a theater career spanning more than 30 years, he received a Best Supporting Actor award at he 2007 New Hampshire Theatre Awards.

Bikers! is the first play he's written and produced. It blends pro bicycle racing with motorcycle fanaticism into a Lance Armstrong meets Harley Davidson world. A tribute to life on two wheels, the play's two characters are 37-year-old Peter, a top notch cyclist with winning the Tour de France within reach, and Dean, a free-spirited motorcycle rebel.

"Peter is the kind of guy who could ride his bike faster than anyone in the neighborhood, community and school," says O'Reilly. "He comes to an impasse in his life on what to do next as he nears the end of his age bracket in the bicycle racing scene."

Biked as a kid

As a child, O'Reilly, 52,  went on bicycle camping trips with his buddies. They would just ride somewhere and camp. He remembers riding that big hill to zoom down the other side where, of course, a mean old dog was waiting to take a bite.

"We would go on these incredible journeys on single speed bikes and then English racers," he said. "We would go maybe 20 miles and then figure out how to get back. Those were great adventures when you're a kid."

But life moves along too and it's easy to put the bicycle in the barn. O'Reilly's married to his wife Lauren and has two grown children.

Inspiration follows

Though O'Reilly doesn't ride his bicycle much anymore, he found inspiration from people in the Mount Washington Valley who do. His wife is a ski pro and he was impressed by ski instructors  who had to train and qualify for their PSIA exams. Many were multi-sport athletes who also bike.

"These are people of all ages who have day jobs," he said. "They have to work during the day and then they do these sports for personal fulfillment. There is so much drive and spirit they put into it."

He started attending triathlons and was fascinated by the road bike portion. He talked to the competitors, remembered their conservations and jotted some down. A friend from work would entertain him with tales of his cross-country bicycle trip. That friend had a buddy who was hit by a car and killed during a cross-country bike trip.

Then there are the cyclists he sees around the valley.

"Kids in their teens and twenties might ride to their jobs, but to see people in their 40s, 50s and 60s going out after work for a ride is impressive to me," he says.

Bike speak

The play is peppered with cycling lingo. There are references to the Tour de France. There's a scene where a cyclist loses his brakes. In the beginning, Peter is responsible for a cycling crash that brings him to his personal crisis.

"I think if you have ridden a bike, you'll be able to identify with the play," he said.

As for future productions of Bikers!, O'Reilly is taking a wait and see approach.

"We haven't taken this out for a spin yet," he says. "We've just had rehearsals. "We have to see how it plays out."