SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO : Huge Flag Stolen From Bicycle Store

Local businessman Jim Curwood’s attempt at some All-American patriotism has put him in a bind.

Since the day the Gulf War started, Curwood, 34, has hoisted an American flag each day outside his downtown bicycle shop, South County Cyclery. This was not just any flag, but a family heirloom: a hand-sewn, 6-by-12-foot version of the Stars and Stripes with only 48 stars.

On Tuesday morning, however, Curwood discovered that the flag was missing. The one time he neglected to bring the flag in for the night it was stolen.

Losing the flag is bad enough, but it gets worse, Curwood said. He’s not looking forward to breaking the news to his wife, whose family considers the flag a treasure.

“I don’t like anything about all this,” Curwood said. “To be honest, I didn’t think anyone would steal a flag. It’s kind of like stealing safety equipment, I thought. And I know I’ll never hear the end of this.”

Each day Curwood’s wife, Carol, reminded him not to forget the flag, and each day he insisted he wouldn’t. Then the first time Carol Curwood goes on vacation, the flag winds up missing in action.

With his wife expected home from vacation this week, Curwood spent Tuesday morning frantically calling his in-laws for guidance. As it turns out, no one is sure who passed the flag down to whom, but it may have been the flag from his wife’s grandfather’s casket, Curwood said. He was a World War I veteran.

Carol Curwood inherited the flag from her father, who died in 1984.

“All anyone knows for sure is that it has always been here,” Curwood said. “We bring it out every Fourth of July.”

Several customers have remarked that the flag is valued by collectors, Curwood said. But nothing like its value to his wife.

“It doesn’t really matter what it’s worth, because we wouldn’t be selling it anyway,” Curwood said.

In hopes of putting an end to the mystery, Curwood is offering a $150 reward for the return of the flag.

“No questions asked at all, seriously. I just want the flag back,” Curwood said.