joel reflects on bike bike

Once again Joel saved his best material for Smile Politely! (Just kidding, kinda!).  Over there, he wrote up a "Bike Dispatch from the Great White North", about his trek with Carl into an alien land where you have to show your papers just to get in and out.

Actually, it's just the condensed version of his blog posts here.  Call it "rarefied."

On another note, tonight some TBP volunteers will be building bikes to sell in concert with the annual Dump-and-Run sale coming up on Saturday.  If you'd like to help, send us an email and let us know and we'll tell you the when, where, and how.

The Bike Project's looking for an Americorps volunteer

The Bike Project's hiring for an Americorps position.  Current Volunteer Coordinator Emma is off to school in Oregon and so we're looking for a new Volunteer Coordinator, based at the U-C IMC.  Here's a link to our pdf announcement.  The pdf includes everything you need to know to apply, but if you have any questions, please feel free to email us. 

The deadline's July 5, so act fast!

the bike project in the news, again!

Joel and I appeared on page B3 of the local paper this past Saturday.  A photographer made our picture Friday afternoon at the campus shop, as we conferred about a bent brake on an old BSA mountain bike:

(photo credit to John Dixon/The News-Gazette)

(I replaced the brake and the BSA's now for sale at the Campus Bike Project!)

Campus Bike Project Update - June 7

Some of you reading this may not realize that The Bike Project recently opened a second location, known as the Campus Bike Project. It's located at 608 E. Pennsylvania in Champaign, which is bordered by the Law Building to the west, the Natural Resources Building to the north, the Stock Pavilion to the east, and that huge cemetery to the south. Hopefullly, that'll be easier to get to for some of you. Anyhow, I'll be chiming in each Monday on this here blog to let you know what's new at the CBP. Today was a big day, so I'd better get started:

THANKS

I'll try to start each week with a big thank-you to someone who's helped the Campus Bike Project. This week I'd like to thank Don Rudder and Tina Demoss and the rest of the employees of the U of I's Parking department. Don and Tina have the thankless task of cutting off the locks and collecting all the abandoned bikes after classes end in the summer (as well as impounding illegally-parked bikes throughout the year). Don and Tina get a lot of grief from people just in the course of doing their job, and that would make a lot of people grouchy, but they're always very friendly and helpful. In fact, last week they noticed that their pile of cut locks was getting pretty tall, and they contacted me to pick the locks up and take them to the scrap yard before someone else grabbed them.

As you may or may not know, in 2008 the U of I decided to discontinue their bike auction and donate all the impounded/abandoned bikes to The Bike Project after students and staff have a chance to claim them. That's been a huge benefit to our organization, and we greatly appreciate the help. The legwork to make that happen on the University's side falls on Parking, and they have been great to work with. Don and Tina are who we deal with face-to-face, but working behind the scenes are: Michelle Winters, Tom Skaggs, Stacey Rudolph, Mike Fitzgerald, Gary Williamson, Anita Gardner, and several others.

So, the next time you get a parking ticket or hear about someone getting towed, remember that they're just doing their job. Thanks guys, for all your help!

ON THE TEE-VEE

I see that Kelly already mentioned it, but the fine folks at WCIA Channel 3's The Morning Show (Nichole and her cameraman Scott) interviewed Emma and I this morning about all things Bike Project, at the Campus Bike Project:


Part 1 (3 minutes): http://illinoishomepage.net/fulltext/?nxd_id=153265

Part 2 (4 minutes): http://illinoishomepage.net/fulltext/?nxd_id=153275

Hey, it could have gone more smoothly, but at least no one got hurt. We've been getting some great media coverage lately, as a News-Gazette photog showed up later in the morning (I'll post a link when and if anything comes of that), and Tom Cyrs wrote this nice article about recycling bikes in Smile Politely last week.


BIKES FOR SALE

I intended to take some pictures, but descriptions will have to suffice for this week. We have several ready-to-ride used bicycles for sale, all of which come with a one-year membership to TBP and CBP (and if you're already a member, then it'll be extended for a year). Sizing is approximate, and stock changes on a daily basis.

• Trek 820 Single Track Men's Mountain Bike, dark green, probably would fit someone in the 5'8" to 6'0" range -- $140
• Randor Women's Mountain Bike from the '80s, white and blue, for someone 5'4" to 5'8", $80
• Schwinn "Women Inspired" Mountain Bike, nearly new, pink and black, for someone 5'4" to 5'8", $120
• Schwinn Frontier Women's Mountain Bike, burgundy and white, for someone 4'10" to 5'2", $100
• Huffy Women's Cruiser Bike, nearly new, neon green and black, for someone 5'2" to 5'6", $60

BUILD-A-BIKES

Summer's a great time to work on a build-a-bike project. Come in and check out what we have in the back and get started on an inexpensive bike that you can call your own. You can repair a bike yourself and purchase it for just half the price of what it would be for an already-repaired bike. Including a student membership, that's usually around $50.

VOLUNTEER

People are starting to find out about CBP, and we are getting busier all the time. We have several fantastic volunteers that have helped to get the Campus shop off the ground (thanks a bunch Carl, Gillian, Hasib, Jen, and Kelly! As well as the core volunteers at the Urbana location), but we could always use more help. Here are some areas where volunteers could provide assistance:

• Assisting members and walk-ins with repairs during open hours. This is our biggest area of need, especially heading into fall. Your mechanical skills don't need to be that advanced - the main thing is that you want to help people learn how to fix their own bikes.
• Greeting visitors during open hours. Don't feel comfortable working with bikes but want to help out when the shop is open? This is super-valuable, and something that anyone can do with a friendly attitude and a little training. Especially when the shop's busy, having a greeter (or even two) is invaluable. You'll help visitors and members sign in, give a little spiel to first-time visitors about what we do, and sell used bikes and new parts.
• Scrap old bikes for parts. Some bikes are too far gone to be repaired, or they have frame damage that makes them unsafe. So, we strip off what's usable and take the rest to the scrap yard. Need a break from intense mental work? Patching tubes, scavenging spokes and nipples off old wheels, or just tearing down crummy bikes can be a great way to relax and blow off some steam.
• Publicity. Want to visit residence halls and hand out fliers about CBP or give a presentation to campus groups? We get a lot of requests for this kind of thing, and it's a great way to share your enthusiasm for The Bike Project.
• Art projects. One of the coolest things about bike collectives (and one of the great things about the IMC location) is that they often are able to combine the practical with the beautiful, with a bike-centric theme. Gillian is off to a great start with our sandwich-board sign and some other signage for around the shop, but there's room for others to help, too. What about a coat tree welded out of old scrap frames, or a table made from old chainrings? Let your imagination run wild, and let us know what you have in mind.

If you're interested in any of these volunteer opportunities (or just want to help in general), email Joel at campusbikeproject@gmail.com.

next monday: the bike project's volunteer mixer

Have you been staffing at The Bike Project?  Are you interested in starting?  Then you should come out to The Bike Project's volunteer mixer next Monday, 17 May at 7:30pm at The Bike Project's shop at the U-C IMC in Urbana.

There will be food and great folks to chat with about volunteering. If you're interested in starting to volunteer, or if you want to continue volunteering this summer, come prepared to let us know when you'll be available. We'll also be redoing some staffing hours and volunteer schedules, so if you'd like or need to switch days, this will be a good chance to do so.

Please let us know if you plan to attend so that we can get a head count on food.

Hope to see you there!

congratulations to the bike project's half-marathoners!

Congratulations to The Bike Project volunteers Emma, Barry, Emily, and Todd for completing yesterday's Illinois Half-Marathon!  Thanks, too, to volunteers Carl and Phil for volunteering with the marathon's bike patrol!

campus bike project open house!

One day late and with our sincerest apologies to Mother Earth, the Campus Bike Project will be hosting an Earth Day Open House on Friday, 23 April, from noon to 5pm. Every hour on the hour, Campus Bike Project manager Joel will give tours of the shop and also answer any questions you might have about The Bike Project.

Here's the text of our press release:

CAMPUS BIKE PROJECT NOW OPEN

In case you weren't aware, The Bike Project of Urbana-Champaign now has a second location: it's called the Campus Bike Project, and it's located at 608 E. Pennsylvania Ave. in Champaign. Google maps still thinks that address is in Urbana, but click this link to see a correct map of the CBP location. We're behind overhead doors 8 through 13 on the west side of the Natural Resources garage, just east of the law building and just west of the Stock Pavilion; just south of the Natural Resources building and just north of the cemetery.

We opened at the end of March, and we're ready to help with your bike repair needs. The CBP works pretty much like the IMC location does, and your membership is reciprocal, so feel free to use whichever location is more convenient.

The CBP is open during times when the Urbana location isn't, so between the two locations, we now have almost 30 hours per week of staffed hours where you can get help fixing your bike. Here are the hours at the Campus location:

Sunday: 5 to 9 p.m.
Monday: 8 a.m. to 12 noon
Tuesday: 6 to 9 p.m.
Friday: 12 noon to 5 p.m.

OPEN HOUSE TOMORROW AFTERNOON

To celebrate Earth Day one day late, the Campus Bike Project will be holding an Open House on Friday, April 23 from 12 noon to 5 p.m. Every hour on the hour, you can get a tour of the shop and ask any questions you might have.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

The CBP is still in that cute baby-animal stage when it's almost able to walk on its own, but still stumbles from time to time. Aw, precious, huh? Don't you just want to give us a helping hand? Here's are some ways you can help:
Forward this email to people you know who you think would get some good out of our shop
Hang up some fliers around campus. We have plenty at the shop; stop by and pick some up. Post them on bulletin boards, staple them around bike handlebars, hand them out to random people on the quad or at a residence hall, etc.
Volunteer during open hours. Have a couple hours a week to spare? Want to learn more about bike repair or help others repair their bikes? Or maybe you have organizational skillz you'd like to share? Or perhaps you'd just like to greet people at the door? We have a bunch of volunteer opportunities available, so stop in and inquire, or reply to this email.
Donate something on our wish list. We have several things we could use that we'd prefer not to have to purchase. Scan through this list and see if you have anything you can spare:
Bookshelf stereo or computer speakers: my little transistor radio isn't getting it done
Couches or chairs: we'd like to get a lounge area going in the back of the shop; end of the school year is coming, and this kind of thing should be opening up
Small refrigerator: Just a little dorm-sized guy would do the job.
Microwave: Same here; we get hungry too, you know?
Digital camera: Doesn't have to be anything special, just so we can upload photos to the web
Bikes and bike parts: Don't abandon your bike on the rack for the summer, and don't let your friend do it either. Drop it by the shop and we'll put it to use.

report from the first "bike stroll"

Sunday, we went out for an aimless slow ride, ostensibly a) to check the gearing on my new Sturmey-Archer 5 speed internally geared hub and b) to see, in person, some murals we'd seen in pictures last Friday night at C-U's Pecha Kucha night (which was a great success!).

Well, the hub's working great but we never made it to the murals. We got sidetracked watching some UIUC dance students perform an improvisational piece -- while dressed to look sort of like zombies -- in a barn on the south side of campus. Bike Project volunteer Tony wrote about the experience for Smile Politely:

There was a large troupe of dancers in dark coveralls moving about, shuffling, sliding, writhing, and plunging in a mixture of zombie-like and playful ways. Almost as interesting as the dancers was the space. The basement of the barn was a dairy operation with eerie metal cages and milking stations set up in a circular array. Upstairs in the humongous domed hay loft a silo formed the center and the curvature of the roof drew the eye upward.... A spare musical accompaniment complemented the improvisational dancers as they were drawn into the hay loft. The audience was mixed in with the performers and they were clearly engrossed in the piece.

And so we're making Bike Stroll a weekly event. More details soon, but we'll be having very slow, very relaxed aimless rides around town on Sunday evenings departing at 5:30pm from The Bike Project shop. Check the blog again soon for more details!

want to volunteer at the bike project?

March will be the coolest month: spring equinox looms and The Bike Project will open a new shop on campus soon.* 

This means more open hours -- in both shops -- during which members of The Bike Project can come use the shop's tools to repair or build a bike.  Open hours are a great way to learn about bikes and bike repair, from little things like fixing flats to bigger projects like bottom brackets.  We've got great volunteers eager to help you learn how to work on bikes.

We'd love to have more volunteers... and you can help!  Are you a member of The Bike Project interested in volunteering?  Or not-yet-a-member who'd like to get involved with our co-op as you learn a lot about bikes?  Then email us at thebikeproject@gmail.com and let us know.  Or stop by the shop during open hours and talk to us! 

(No prior experience working on bikes necessary, just a willingness to get your hands dirty, an eagerness to learn, and a desire to help others learn about bikes.  Our current volunteers will help you get accustomed and in no time you'll be teaching others about bikes.)

* Official announcement coming very soon!