December 2015 - TheThinkTank - lists.bikecollectives.org

Reusable Repair Checklist Tag
by director 02 May '23

02 May '23

Hey All, We just spent some time and redid the tag we use to track repairs on a bike. I'm sure your shops are similar to ours in that many mechanics of varying skill levels will work on a single bike before it's distributed back to the world for use. This make it challenging to ensure a standard of quality on any given bike leaving the shop. As we fleshed out the tag we realized that it could function loosely as a curriculum. For most mechanics, especially students we suggest starting at the top and working down the list. I've come to realize that no two mechanics will do things in the exact same way, everyone has their own style. We've been suggesting that folks do the first two items in order and then address the rest of the repairs at their discretion. Of course we couldn't put everything on a half page so we had to make compromises. You'll notice as you get closer to the bottom of the tag the categories are a little more broad and don't get into the finer details. We're working on a final check list that will include finer details like checking bearing play, tire wear, fine tune derailleurs and brakes... The final checklist won't hang on the bike but it'll be around the shop and part of our training. Stay tuned for this. We print these double sided, cut them in half and laminate them. We hang them on the handlebars and fill them out with a Sharpie. When the bike is done and gone we clean the Sharpie off with 90% rubbing alcohol and a rag. This allows us to use one tag over and over and over. We've been using these tags for about 2 weeks now and it's been awesome. Communication between mechanics is much clearer and bikes are getting done faster. It's really helped orient Earn-A-Bike students to what needs to be done next on their bike. Anyway if you think it's a good idea feel free to adapt it to your shops needs. -- Ride On! Rich Points http://communitycycles.org Executive Director (c)303-589-0597 (w)720-565-6019 Community Cycles is Boulder's only bike shop dedicated to bike commuting. Find us on facebook https://www.facebook.com/CommunityCycles

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no boys allowed zine from bikebike?
by veganboyjosh＠gmail.com 27 Sep '18

27 Sep '18

hey all, i'm looking to get in touch with the person who wrote/published the "no boys allowed" zine which was passed out at bikebike in san francisco. it was part of one of the oppression and gender identity issues workshops. we're looking to start a women's night here at community cycles, and i'd like to scan my copy as a pdf and email it to potential volunteers, as well as make some copies to have in the shop... if you're on the list, or if you know the person who wrote it (her name escapes me), please get in touch with me off list... thanks! josh. community cycles boulder

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Instruction for Marginalized Communities: Women on Wheels and Multilingual Nights
by Lauren Warbeck 26 Feb '16

26 Feb '16

Oh HEYYYY again... It's a double email kinda day. 1) Multilingual Nights We're hosting our first ever multilingual nights YAYYYYY! We now have a posse of rad mechanics who are fluent in English, Spanish, French, Cantonese, and Mandarin and we are planning to hold a series of multilingual instruction nights. We're about to have our first sub-committee meeting about how we're going to go about the planning of these nights (ie: Do we have a strictly Spanish night, or a Spanish & French night? What is the role of Anglo mechanics in these nights? What are the underlying needs of these communities beyond language instruction?), but first I wanted to find out if any of you have feedback or resource materials about your own experiences hosting multilingual nights. What did you set out to do? Did it work? What did you learn? 2) Women on Wheels We're in the process of reconsidering the reach and name of our women's night, Women on Wheels. This name has been revisited several times by our collective, and again we're feeling the need for change. Those of you who commit energy to thinking about providing services across the gender/sexuality spectrum...I'm looking for your input. The key challenges for us, (and maybe all of us?) I think, are two-fold: First, it's about holding space for those who adhere to identity politics (tangible and named - Woman, Lesbian, Dyke, sometimes Transwoman etc) while also holding space for folks who exist all along the gender and sexuality spectrum (intangible and variably named - Queer, Tomboi, sometimes Transwoman, Genderqueer, etc ). As in, how do we hold safer space for butch grandmas and trans women and gender queer folks all at once? Is it feasible or possible to hold safer space strictly around gender variance? Or is it presumptuous as fuck to try to lump these diverse communities together? Or reductionist to assume gender experience is the key connecting factor between these individuals (and not race, or class, or ....)? Second, it's about negotiating the instances of inclusion and exclusion that emerge as a result of differing levels of awareness and knowledge around these varied philosophies and ways of identifying. This is the crux of why we've called it Women's Night for so long. While in practice our "women's night" is attended by trans-women, cis-women, femmes, masculine-identified genderqueers, tombois, etc etc, we have continued to call it women's night to make sure that people who aren't familiar with the world of post-modern gender identity know they are welcome, and cis-men know easily and clearly that it is not for them. I guess, to make it legible to mainstream communities, while still welcoming to non-mainstream communities. Meanwhile, we've also had interest from femme-identified cis-men and trans men in having services for masculine-presenting folks or folks who are presumed masculine (which again, is on a really broad spectrum). We're in convo with folks about their needs and wants, but it would also be great to have input from other shops. Where I'm really seeking is input about how your shops are drawing the lines around participation in nights for marginalized communities (including communities bonded around race, ethnicity, ability, etc) and/or how to meld diverse communities in appropriate and supportive ways. I know that Plan B has Ladies, Trans, and Sissies Night, and BICAS has Women, Trans, and Femme night. Where are folks at with their organizing process around this? What are other shops doing? You are all so great. Lauren

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Safe Routes to School experience with 2nd grade groups?
by Jim Sheehan 04 Feb '16

04 Feb '16

Folks, We have done some presentations and rodeos for 4th graders, but after the news that D.C. schools are teaching bike riding to all 2nd graders, our district is interested in reaching this younger cohort. While we have had a bit of experience with this age, any lessons learned from working with schools (especially in Phys Ed) would be appreciated. Thanks, Jim Sheehan Director, Ohio City Bicycle Co-op 1840 Columbus Rd Cleveland, Ohio 44113 216 830 2667 OhioCityCycles.org jim(a)ohiocitycycles.org

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TEDx video summarizing big picture of what bike collectives are all about
by David Davis 17 Dec '15

17 Dec '15

Hi All! We were invited to give a TEDx talk to a broad audience here in SLC. We used it as an opportunity to illuminate the concept of bicycle collectives/co-ops in a way that focuses on what collectives do for people, not just bikes. Check it out here <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8MR8VdKbEg>, and feel free to use it whenever you need a flashy intro to the concept. I tired to keep it as universal as possible and mention early on that there are organizations like this around the world. The goal was to make it useful for your organizations, as well. Cheers! Feedback appreciated! -- -- David Eyer Davis Executive Director Bicycle Collective c: 801-230-6308 www.bicyclecollective.org The mission of the 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 Collective provides refurbished bicycles and educational programs to the community, focusing on children and lower income households.

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Tracking parts used by participants
by David Oliver 17 Dec '15

17 Dec '15

Hey, Currently at the bike co-op where I work and the other one where I volunteer we try to track what parts people are using on their bikes so that when they are done we're not forgetting to charge them for something. Both co-ops use clipboards with small "receipts" on them for participants/volunteers to write down what parts they've used. The clipboards stay at the front of the shop and are then handed to the person as they walk in. In what I would say is the vast majority of cases these clipboards either don't get used at all or people don't write down the parts on them as they get the parts. I don't think this actually results in that many parts not getting paid for because people are pretty honest when you ask them what parts they used or the volunteer helping them remembers. There are probably small parts like v-brake noodles that get missed though. The only alternative I've thought of so far is having something permanently attached to where the people are working on their bikes. Curious if other co-ops out there have a better system for tracking parts people have used on their bikes. Thanks, David

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Bikes Not Bombs Contact
by Reno Bikes 15 Dec '15

15 Dec '15

Is anyone from Bikes Not Bombs on here? Was doing some reading about your Youth Employment Program and had some questions? If so would you please contact me at noah(a)renobikeproject.com Thanks, Noah -- Wed-Fri 11am-6pm Sat 10am-4pm 541 E. 4th Street. Reno, NV 89512 775.323.4488 donate via paypal: http://www.renobikeproject.com/index.php/donate/ Follow us on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/renobikeproject/ Please let us know if you would like to unsubscribe to our email list.

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Southern California Community Bike Spaces
by Wm Dakota Callaschai 14 Dec '15

14 Dec '15

Hello sun loving warm folks! My name is Dakota and you may know of me being from the great Troy Bike Rescue in Troy NY. Well I left Troy to see the world of bikes. I'm on my way back to socal, running from the cold and would like to meet up, do some bike works, and hang out. https://m.facebook.com/cargoawaybikes/?ref=bookmarks This is one of the ways I'm working with to help us live a better way. Thank you for your time and consideration.

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It's that time of year!
by Angel York 09 Dec '15

09 Dec '15

Most of the readers of this listserv are in winter now, which means your community bike shops are, too. It's the slow season! Some of you may have reduced your hours for winter, fewer people show up with injured bikes, etc. With volunteer-run organizations (and mostly volunteer-run organizations) there's a fair bit of volunteer turnover. This means that the volunteers who are around this year may not know what the volunteers knew last year, or the year before. *Which means...* *It's time to let everyone at your local friendly bike collective know about this listserv! * Drop 'em an email and say "HEY! There's lots of amazing bike people on this listserv talking about COMMUNITY BIKE SHOPS, OMG how COOL is THAT, and they want you to know they're there!" And while you're at it, put an automatic reminder on your online calendar, and then tell everyone about the think tank next year, too! <3 Angel York

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Liability Waivers, Disclaimers, etc
by Johnny Fill 08 Dec '15

08 Dec '15

Hi everyone, We run drop-in DIY bike fixing workshops with volunteer support. These are open to the general public. I was wondering what, if anything, do other organisations who provide similar sessions do about liability waivers, disclaimers, etc? Thanks for any info, Johnny -- Johnny Fill Mechanical Administrator Broken Spoke Bike Co-op www.bsbcoop.org --

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