LOL, strictly on topic, I've made this suggestion to our coop:

• Attend a coop meeting and after the meeting be given a

quick familiarization tour. This would give the new veloteer and idea of what is where and assist the regular staff and volunteers by not having to juggle tasks between patrons and new veloteers when the coop is open.

• Attend two (2) basic classes and an advanced class when one is offered.

The intent is to provide an understanding of what type of work is typically performed in the shop and give them a chance to learn something right away.

• "Try" to have a couple of strippers on hand for new volunteers to take

apart. IMHO it's a good way to learn how a bike is put together.

In return, the new volunteer agrees to provide 6 hrs of volunteer time a month for two months. This will repay the coop the time spent in class.

On Thu, Sep 26, 2013 at 3:16 PM, Ryne Emory ryne@thebikedepot.org wrote:

Thanks, Dan for this question. We too at the Bike Depot (in Denver) are contemplating this as well. We have also been talking to SOPO bike collective in Atlanta who are also struggling with this idea of how to train volunteer bike mechanics. We are currently thinking of transitioning one of our mechanic positions into a volunteer coordinator who will spend a majority of their time training volunteers.... If anyone has a great system for training volunteers systematically, it is a big need.

On Thu, Sep 26, 2013 at 10:26 AM, Dan Hock < dan@bikerecycle.localmotion.org> wrote:

...

Hello All,

I work at Bike Recycle Vermonthttp://www.localmotion.org/programs/bikerecycle/ in Burlington,(you guessed it) Vermont. Our shop structure is all volunteer with the exception of myself. Our program, in short, accepts donated bikes and, with volunteer help, refurbishes them so that they can be sold exclusively to low-income Vermonters. Personally, I have been struggling with training unskilled volunteers that are new to our program. I have many great people coming through the door with great intentions, but limited mechanical aptitude. Our volunteer retention is down because new folks tend to feel helpless and frustrated. In an effort to address this, I am going to start offering structured mechanics training to new volunteers. I am coming to the list with a few questions:

• Are there other programs out there that require unskilled

volunteers interested in volunteering as mechanics to go through mechanics trainings? If so, shed light on what structure you are using?

• If we are investing over 10 hours in each prospective volunteer,

is it reasonable to charge participants or ask them to commit a set amount

of hours to our program in exchange for the class? If so, how much is fair in either time or money?

• Does anyone have any curriculum and/or course materials (diagrams,

glossaries, etc) for participants that they would be willing to share?

• Are there any lessons to be learned/advice to be given to someone

in my position.

Thanks in advance for your time!

Dan

Dan Hock Bike Recycle Vermont Program Manager w. 802.264.9687 Bike Recycle Vermont http://www.localmotion.com/bikerecycle 664 Riverside Ave. Burlington

Learn to ride a bicycle. You will not regret it if you live.

~Mark Twain

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-- Ryne Emory Program Manager The Bike Depot 2825 Fairfax St. Denver, CO 80207 Office: 303-393-1963 Fax: 303-393-2607 Ryne@thebikedepot.org

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First, not everyone with desire has mechanical aptitude. In a volunteer group, usually the organizer generally won't have the ability to pre-screen some out. Sometimes the only thing that can be done is to keep reemphasizing the need to ask for assistance.

This isn't what we do at Velocity, but here are my thoughts (I've keep going back and adding in thoughts, so it is now a bit disjointed, sorry):

If basic maintenance classes are offered on a routine basis, have the volunteer audit the class at least twice. Have them bring their own bike and if a stand is free they can work on it. I believe these are the basics a volunteer needs to be familiar with so they have a common starting place, understand the most common things they will see in the shop nd know both their own limitations (I sure have them and tell my students so). It's also a basis for rehabing a bike for resale. If no class is offered, then this is my list of what I like to work on teaching new volunteers. Till they have audited the two classes and rehabed a bike as a demonstration, their other time in the shop is watch and learn, ask questions, or tearing down bikes that can't be rehabed. Tearing down bikes can always be set aside for a learning opportunity.

In the classes I teach, I cover:

Overview of the syllabus. Basic bike layout, "righty-tighty," except for two places we won't be touching, tool use and care. Quickly as they have a hand-out for later reference.

Air: Inspect tire. Dismount front wheel, remove tire, and tube, inspect, reassemble and remount. Dismount and remount rear wheel. Patch a shop tube. All hands on B: Brakes. Inspection and adjustments. Hands on adjustment of own front brake. Show and tell minor wheel truing for proper brake adjustment. C: Cables & Chain: Clean, inspect & lubricate. Show and tell on one bike (explain you will cover derailleurs at the end) D: Derailleurs, shifters, and chain ring, sprockets, cogs, etc. Show and tell. Have students observer their own pulley/jockey wheel/gear alignment and what the limiting screws do (and don't do). Show or discuss friction shifters to help explain derailleur tuning. Show how to relieve derailleur cable tension while explaining how a derailleur works. Cleaning, and lubricating. Using Simple-Green to save $ followed by Clean-streak or similar.

ABCD is easy to remember. Not original to me, but I think it works well. Based on this I can also leave a quick note on a rehab bike that didn't get completed noting what work has been done/needs to be completed.

With hands on what I think everyone needs to know through hands-on to stay safe and "Show and tell" of the rest, I can cover the syllabus in a little under 3 hours. Classes are usually from 6:30 - 9:30 every other Tue. Four different bikes with four different brake types will consume the most time. Some students will be bored as they won't care about other types, I just accept that and try to keep them engaged.

I teach brakes are the most important followed by tires and no loose fasteners. These are the things that can kill a rider.

For the things I do "Show and tell" I encourage students to come back to the shop for help on their first try. I teach them about using a book and the internet to learn. And to ASK QUESTIONS. I have students read aloud the instructions inside the Park patch kit and offer why it is important to follow the directions. We get a few laughs and I tell them we all pay for some of our lessons, but I'm trying to help them not pay for the ones I've already paid for. Usually at least one student doesn't fully hear or understand, and we talk about asking questions. And how hands on after hearing helps things "click."

We're fortunate and my employer supports my volunteering with reproduction support so I give them a copy of my 30+ page syllabus that has a maintenance list/schedule, some web links and a book list. I just added a basic trail took kit list; tube & patches, multi-tool and leavers, & pump. It's always a work in progress.

So back to the new volunteer:

If a new volunteer can do all of the above work, IMHO they can assist patrons with 90% of what will come in the shop. And not set anyone up to kill themselves. It will take a while to cover the different brake types, but if they can do a Vee brake, then they will see what is most common right now.

If a new volunteer is starting from absolute zero, start them off stripping bikes. Always have some set aside for them to work on so they won't be bored. They will be in the shop where they can listen, observe, and learn. And ask questions.

100% of new volunteer work is inspected for at least 6 months. Just another pair of eyes, AND it gives the new volunteer opportunities to learn from someone with more experience on what they may have missed. And learn vocabulary as they explain what work was done.

I have a "draft" syllabus I've considered posting to the Bike Collectives wiki. or a wiki book like http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Bicycles/Maintenance_and_Repair

This seems like a good topic to have on the wiki, would like it structured so there are multiple options listed, not just one article.

IMHO,

Ron

On Tue, Oct 1, 2013 at 4:58 PM, mike.pattisall < mike.pattisall@velocitycoop.org> wrote:

At Velocity Coop we offer basic and advanced classes to the public. The Basic class is basically learning to adjust everything on your own bike, the Advanced class gets into rebuilding hubs, bottom brackets, installing headsets, etc. Coop volunteers have the option to take or audit the class.

We also have " Stripper Night". Several times a year some of our donated bikes that either can't be repaired or aren't worth repairing really start piling up. We get some beer,pizza and invite volunteers in for an evening of stripping these bikes for parts. Not only is this a great bonding experience it also give new members a chance to learn how to use almost every tool in the shop - removing wheels, headsets, forks, cranks, even pulling freehub bodies and axles off bent wheels. They learn how bikes are put together even if it is sort of in reverse, what tools do what and what all the parts are called. Not a bad way to start learning and if they do something wrong its no big deal.

On Tue, Oct 1, 2013 at 4:24 PM, jacqueline dougherty jd@sopobikes.orgwrote:

...

Hey Dan, Jacqui here from Sopo Bike Co-op. We have also been struggling with this issue in our shop, as Ryne mentioned. It is a great idea to connect with each other and figure it out! I am also the only part-time employee of the shop, which is also all volunteer led.

I am working on an in-shop guide for volunteers that I will share once it is scanned in. We are offering free volunteer trainings about once a month right now, but it would be ideal for us to have this bi-weekly or more. I suggest providing free classes to volunteers and then offering advanced/specialized courses for a suggested donation, where perhaps volunteers can work on their own projects.

We have 2 professional mechanics who are volunteering their time to work with volunteers. We offer a basic "tool review" for newly orientated volunteers and then a rotating subject depending on volunteer requests. We have offered: wheel basics, cranks and bottom brackets, and tool reviews so far.

Feel free to contact me by email or phone if you wanna talk about any specifics p- 386 216 0346 e- jd@sopobikes.org

-jd

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-- Mike Pattisall http://velocitycoop.org/ http://delrayretrocycle.blogspot.com/

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