Bornhere,
My local thrift shops don't seem to be stocking bikes anymore. Used to be that when I stopped at the Salvation Army, they had two racks full of bikes to chose from, and there were always a handful at Goodwill and St. Vincent's. Now none!
I loved your description of the pile o' bikes and the full van on vacation. Years back we were on vacation when we happened upon a rummage sale run by a flea-marketer who was going out of the business. No bikes, but the prices were too good to pass up. My children have fond(?) memories of riding home in the car perched on top of boxes of old dishes, between some old chairs.
In our town that pile o' bikes shows up at the local junkyard, especially in the spring when people are moving or cleaning their garage. On another post I have a photo of the pile on the weekend after Memorial Day. That's been my go-to source this summer. Picked up an American Arrow 10-speed (well-made, but in Belgium), a Bottechia mixte, both from the 70's, and a 60's or earlier BSA 3-speed. Then in July I found a Panasonic DX-5000, like new, in the same junkyard. What people will throw away! The junkyard owner has become a friend, so we have this arrangement where he tells me to just take the bike, and then I give him $10 or $20, which is a lot more than he can get for the scrap.
I love the adventure and love everyone's posts about their latest finds.