Over here at Free Ride we are just getting into our second year of our Mobile Bike Repair Project. This program is primarily a youth summer internship program. Over the course of 8 weeks we will train 4 youth in bike repair and we will repair some bikes in the shop (to sell and help pay for the program) and take a mobile kit out to farmers markets, community fairs and other events to offer safety inspections and minor repairs for a donation.
This year we have partnered with the Pittsburgh Summer Youth Employment Program and the Bridge of Pittsburgh (an organization that works with foster kids) The way it works is that the City and County throwdown a ton of $$$ to youth service orgs to pay their hourly wage. They are place to work at local business and non-profits like ours. It is great from our end because we have cool youth employees, and we all we have to do is sign their weekly time sheets. No paperwork, payroll or accounting nightmares.
To see that our $1500 of gear gets good use in the off season, we allow any collective council member (our highest level of participation in the org) to take the kit out to community fair that we are invited to. They are paid $15 an hour to transport the gear (with a Bikes at Work trailer of course) and do the mechanic stuff.
That is the basic. If you would like any more details on the specifics, just let me know. Boulder's Rolling Bike Clinics sound pretty cool too. Maybe they could pipe up on some of that stuff.
Scott
On Fri, Jul 16, 2010 at 1:41 PM, The Bicycle Tree info@thebicycletree.orgwrote:
We're mobile, looking to establish ourselves in a building, but mobile for now. We use two medium Bikes At Work trailers to haul everything - three big tool boxes (two with drawers), two canopies, two folding tables, truing stand, three folding repair stands, two 18-gallon tubs (holding small parts drawers, cables, housing, tubes, etc.), two collapsible chairs, 2-gallon container for lubes and cleaners, two pumps, banner, lil' trash can, file box for flyers, brochures, paperwork, etc.
Advantages: -You can keep stuff on the trailers so you don't need to unload/reload at home base. -Bikes are fun and make you look cool -No rent, no gas -Easier to store and manage than a truck trailer - I think you need special registration for those.
Challenges: -Subject to weather (not a big problem in Southern California) -You need commitment from two riders to get there and back. We have done events doing bike checks/minor repairs with more limited stuff using one trailer. One long trailer probably too much weight for one rider (unless they are herculean and equipped with disc brakes), given the density of everything. -Takes about 45 min to 1 hour for set up and break down -Very limited parts on hand -We've only done 10 mi round trip (on primarily flat ground), I'd say 20-30 mi round trip is probably pushing it for everyone but the really strong riders, hills can be a bit difficult. We did river trail underpasses just fine, though control may be a little iffy at these higher speeds should an obstacle present itself. -Bungeeing everything in place requires a little tetris (the first time) and time. You need a lot of bungees - I think we use at least 15.
Other advice: -Make sure the bikes have good brakes.
Bikes At Work specific: -If the load balance is heavy toward the front (which may be required by how things must be arranged) and you rest the towbar on the ground it bends a bit so it wont fit on the trailer hitch and needs to be filed down (this problem mitigated in a half-assed way by sliding an old bottle cage on the towbar so that contacts the ground). -Trailer hitch band clamps come loose over time. -The wheels are held on by what looks like a paper clip on steroids, doesn't particularly inspire my confidence with potential sideways forces but its worked fine and the makers are experienced using the trailers so I guess don't worry about it.
One photo of our trailers is on our website at www.thebicycletree.org Bikes At Work: www.bikesatwork.com
Good luck!
-Paul Nagel
The Bicycle Tree
P.O. Box 881 Orange, CA 92856
info@thebicycletree.org
Date: Fri, 16 Jul 2010 10:09:16 -0600 From: jonathan@slcbikecollective.org To: thethinktank@bikecollectives.org Subject: [TheThinkTank] Mobile shops
Does anyone have a proven working (not conceptual) mobile shop operation? We are going to be partnering with a local college, and while we have done this in the past, I was looking for some creative ideas on others have made it work.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Morrison Executive Director Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective 2312 S. West Temple Salt Lake City, UT 84115 w: 801-328-2453 c: 801-688-0183 f: 801-466-3856 www.slcbikecollective.org
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. _______________________________________________ Thethinktank mailing list Thethinktank@bikecollectives.org To unsubscribe, send a blank email to
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