TheThinkTank January 2008

thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org

43 participants
28 discussions

Piles of freewheels?
by plan_9＠riseup.net 14 Jan '08

14 Jan '08

Hey, I thought that having piles of old freewheels might be a problem common to bike collectives and wanted to see what folks did with them, or any other non-standard uses for bike parts. We have just "discovered" that you can pull apart a freewheel with two chain whips, one on the outer cog and the other on the third (the second is sometimes also threaded like the outermost) and apply opposite force. This usually involves two people lots of grunting and yelling, then the outer most ring will thread off (sometimes the second and third are also threaded) then the rest just slide off. The lowest three cogs are between 14-20 tooth which is perfect single speed range. So... we have built up a couple bikes using a single chainring in front and a 14t and a 18 or 20t threaded back onto the freewheel to make what I believe are called "dinglespeeds" which is basically a singlespeed setup with the option of loosening the rear axle, moving the chain over to the other cog and re-tensioning the chain in the dropouts (have to be horizontal). This allows us to build up really basic, low maintenance bikes that have both a "winter gear" and a "summer gear" (since we are in the brutal north) or I suppose if we actually had hills or trails, "on-road gear" and an "off-road gear". I know the concept of a dinglespeed has been kicked around a bit in the SS world, but usually it's done with respacing a cassette w/ two cogs, which are a rare commodity in our shop. Have other folks experimented with this setup? Good results? We have only built up a few, and thus far it has worked out pretty well on the bikes we are testing it on. Also, what kinds of other projects have folks done with either re purposing bike parts in a creative way or modifying them to breath new life into shop excess? Thanks, Andrew FM Community Bicycle Workshop

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Bike Computer Geeks of the World Unite!
by Edward France 10 Jan '08

10 Jan '08

Bike Rockstars, Following up on discussion from BikeBike 07, our shop would love to share bike collective open source-ish software for tracking volunteer and user hours (Nathan from Austin Yellow Bike), tracking inventory and interfacing with website (Rich from Boulder), and bad-ass register check-out software (joshua from LA). Our Bici Centro shop is potentially moving into a new (and bigger!) space and is ready to set up books and go paperless for tracking stuff. Who knew but we also happen to have some genius computer software peeps working in the crew and they have interest to spend time synthesizing most applicable elements of these different programs and putting that program back out to the group again. My question is, where did we end off on this discussion? Is there an ongoing small group discussion that we could join in on? Since I've lost individual emails, could Rich, Nathan, and Josua possibly try to get back to me? Many thanks folks for the amazing work you all do, and that us santa barbarians do our best to emulate. -Ed France BiciCentro.org

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We are hiring!
by Bicycle Collective Jobs 09 Jan '08

09 Jan '08

The Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective (www.slcbikecollective.org) is looking for a full-time volunteer coordinator. The ideal candidate would be a well organized and social person that needs meaning in what they do -- and wants to be community builder. The mission of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective is to promote cycling as an effective and sustainable form of transportation and as a cornerstone of a cleaner, healthier, and safer society. The Bicycle Collective provides refurbished bicycles and educational programs to the community, focusing on children and lower income households. The Volunteer Coordinator will be in charge of meeting and expanding our network of volunteers to staff four key programs: The Community Bike Shop, Valet Bicycle Parking, Youth Earn-a-Bike classes and special events such as the International Bicycle Film Festival. The benefits package includes health and educational funds. If you are interested in fighting the good fight, send an email to jobs(a)slcbikecollective.org including your resume and personal mission statement.

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P3 Grant for Students (money for campus-based bike shops!)
by rachael spiewak 07 Jan '08

07 Jan '08

I just learned about the EPA's P3 program <http://es.epa.gov/ncer/p3/> from someone who's been awarded a grant to create a community bike shop at Appalachian State University. Just wanted to pass the word along to folks doing campus-based work. -- Rachael Spiewak, MSW Executive Director Sopo Bicycle Cooperative www.sopobikes.org * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Hours of operation: Tues/Thurs 7 pm - 10 pm Sat/Sun 2 pm - 5 pm

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Community Cycling Project Research
by Jessica Goldberg 07 Jan '08

07 Jan '08

Hi All, I'm a senior sociology major at Hamilton College, and I'm doing my senior thesis on why community bike organizations advocate cycling as a vehicle for social change. I think what your organizations do is extremely important on community, personal, environmental, and political levels. I believe that there should be a greater emphasis on the value of these organizations, so my project will help publicize and advocate them to a broader public. I was wondering if anyone would be willing to discuss your organization and why it is imperative to creating needed social change. We could chat via phone, e-mail, IM, gchat, or in person if we're close enough. If you would like to chat, you could either reply to this post and we'll get in touch, or e-mail me at the address below. I look forward to talking to some of you. Jess jess.b.goldberg(a)gmail.com

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Weed & Seed retry
by Urban Bike Project of Wilmington, Inc. 03 Jan '08

03 Jan '08

3rd try...I guess there were too many quoted messages and it was too big for the mail server. Sorry if anyone gets this twice. Last post from me, Just wanted to let everybody know what's going on with the W & S program. Thanks for everybody who weighed in on the topic. Basically the program is way scaled back from what we had thought it was at first. Corporal Witte will be collecting bikes from the impound and using our shop space to fix them up. He will purchase a standard bike tool kit and stand as well as all of his own parts. We will keep a separate area for bikes that he is working on (maybe 10-15 at a time) until he can give them out to kids on his beat. We all expressed concern that the kids really should be learning something and not just getting a handout but this is the program as it stands now. What we get out of the deal: Equal time-share rent (we estimated) for how long he uses the space vs. us. Really good press. Adult bikes from the police impound. An "in" and knowledge for possibly receiving a much larger W & S grant in the future. This could be used to hire a coordinator for an Earn-A-Bike or or other program. An "in" with Job Corps participants who need community service hours. If there is something we need moved or done we got a lotta hands that can help. Time to set up shop without feeling pressured to run a program we really don't know about or have a solid grasp on. I feel the most important points are the first and last. We need rent and to pay for liability insurance. This is basically free money. All we do is share the space we already have. We also have plenty of time to develop a curriculum and procedures for an earn-a-bike (so the kids can actually learn) and write a solid grant proposal for funding. Brian signing off from fabulous Wilmington, DE. Happy New Year everyone! -- Urban Bike Project of Wilmington 1908 N. Market Street (entrance is in the parking lot behind the building) Wilmington, DE 19801 Phone - 302-654-5304 Visit online at http://urbanbikeproject.org

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question about starting a bike co-op
by Kale 02 Jan '08

02 Jan '08

Hi, My name is Kale and I am involved in starting a bike collective in New Haven, CT. The group was wondering how other collectives have navigated the issues of liability and non-profit status. How many people have opted for 501c3 or c4 status, and what has been your experience? If you haven't opted for this, why? Also, how have people addressed the issue of safety in the shop, as far as insurance or legal risk for people injuring themselves in the shop or on bikes made or repaired in the shop? Any advice will be much appreciated! Thanks, Kale

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Re: [TheThinkTank] question about starting a bike co-op
by Taylor 02 Jan '08

02 Jan '08

Greetings Kale, The shop that I helped start (www.thebikecave.org) is in its infancy and is aiming to maybe start the paperwork to become a non profit in the next year. Right now it is a "community service" under auxiliary services at Texas State University, but we are far from exclusive to students with our open arms community view. Let me know if you come up with good advice on this subject, and I echo the call for experiences as well. To get away from liability, we talked with the campus lawyer and they recommended that we SELL bikes, parts, etc. outright to people thus stripping the university of liability. That is one solution, and the only we have tried yet. Just like a for profit bike shop - if someone buys a bike, gets hurt, you cant sue the local bike shop that sold it to them! Or at least I hope not! Taylor the bike cave San Marcos, Texas www.thebikecave.org

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TheThinkTank January 2008