Thirty Cents

"Where can I make a donation?" The question emerged from Jasmine, a smily second grader with dark skin and pigtails, and a regular shop participant at the Clarkston Co-op.

I gave my stock response, explaining that she can give her donation to me and making a promise that it would get into the program's bank account.

Thrilled, she reached out to me and emptied the contents of her fist into my open palm.

One quarter and one nickel.

My heart caught in my throat. This donation may not have been the biggest our program has ever received, but I believe it to be the most significant. Our youth participants often hand over a few dollars spotted from their parents in exchange for new tubes and cables, but rarely if ever do we see our young friends reach into their own pockets in order to help sustain their neighborhood bicycle shop.

Jasmine could have given the quarter, or even the nickel for that matter. But she chose to give everything she had. May we all learn to be so generous.

Communicycle Clarkston has been serving huge numbers every week.

Word on the Street

It is always exciting when we hear folks talking about the Communicycle program. A past participant received this message from one of his neighbors and forwarded it along to us:

Wanted to share with you about a cool bike shop I went to today that is practically in Northwoods. It's part of a organization called Communicycle (www.communicycle.org) that runs three bike repair shops, one in Clarkston, another in L'ville, and then this one, located across Chamblee Tucker Rd in the Open Table Community Church. 

It is only open on Tuesdays from 6-8pm and is run by volunteers who will help you with any basic bike repair  for free and all you need to pay for are the parts if any are needed. They have all the tools there along with parts. They also have some  bikes you can purchase for a donation. I brought in a bike from Goodwill and they helped me replace a tire, fix a kickstand, do a few other tweaks and I left with a bike that rides like new for about $10. 

There are three guys to help you and while I was there, a 10 year old boy was essentially creating a bike from parts at the shop with the guidance of one of the volunteers. The guy who was helping me said they really want to work with kids in our area who would like to learn how to maintain or even put together bikes. It's a really cool program and one we are lucky to have so close!

Shifting Gears in Lawrenceville

If you bring your bicycle to McKendree UMC on Thursday nights (6-8pm), you will probably meet Larry. Leading the effort of bringing Communicycle to Lawrenceville, Larry is passionate about bicycles and building community. Though just a few weeks old, Communicycle Lawrenceville is fully-stocked, and the team is ready to teach shop participants how to accomplish repairs to their bicycles.

Come out each Thursday to work on your bike, earn a bike, learn more about mechanics, and help others with their projects. Cyclists, you may have just found your new home away from home.

Communicycle Lawrenceville

Meeting at McKendree UMC

Thursdays, 6-8 PM

1570 Lawrenceville Suwanee Road  |  Lawrenceville, GA  |  30043

Education Equals Sustainability

A Clarkston shop participant learns some repair fundamentals.

American culture has programmed me to operate in the most efficient manner -- I choose the most effective methods that arrive the quickest at the end-goals. At the Communicycle Co-op, we believe nothing could be a bigger mistake.

A simple repair that may take me five minutes to perform will undoubtedly require a tenfold time commitment from an untrained shop participant. And with a growing queue of folks waiting in the wings, it is tempting to grab a wrench and get a bike and its rider back on the road.

Imagine if I did that. The next time a similar mechanical issue arises, this bicyclist must return to a shop or co-op, dependent on the help of others once again. 

How much better it is to offer a bit of education with each repair accomplished. The more a rider knows about bicycle repair and maintenance, the more cycling becomes a sustainable means of transportation to her or him. It is a worthy investment of time, even if the line is growing.

A Little Press...

Thanks to Jennifer Woodruff or the Tucker Patch, we have a great article online about the new Clarkston shop. http://patch.com/A-lX84

A Little Contest

Here's a little fun contest to brighten your day. If you 'like' our Facebook page and you are the "___th" member, we will give you a FREE Communicycle shirt: www.facebook.com/communicycle

Communicycle Lawrenceville Grand Opening

Communicycle is thrilled to announce the launch of our third co-op location in Lawrenceville, GA.
Join us this Thursday, September 15, 6-8pm for our grand opening.


The shop will operate out of McKendree UMC and will be open each Thursday, 6-8pm. To donate bicycles, become a volunteer, or for more information, send an email to Larry, L'ville's shop manager.

Communicycle Lawrenceville
at McKendree UMC
1570 Lawrenceville Suwanee Road
Lawrenceville, GA 30043
map >>

Clarkston Opening Photos

Before the mayhem...

Rusty gears ready to spring into action.

A view of the shop from the inside.

This is the cleanest these tools will ever be.

If this sign is hanging up, the shop is open.

Our first bike repaired at the opening.

Anyone, young or old, can learn to make basic repairs.

With only two bike stands at the shop so far, this is the second-best method for making repairs.

The crowd grows...

And grows some more...

Cycling is a family affair.

Our Clarkston neighbors repaired over 20 bikes at the opening, and over 50 folks came to check out the new digs.

A small group of the volunteers that helped close shop the first night.

Clarkston Communicycle is open!

Tonight was the big night. Lots of kids from the area showed up and lots of bikes were fixed. We had an amazing crew of supporters and volunteers, some of whom showed up on bicycle themselves. Through all the chaos, we made some new friends, got a lot of bikes working, and closed the shop with a better idea of what Clarkston Communicycle is going to look like. Thanks to everyone who made Clarkston a success!

photos coming soon. for more, also see our page on Facebook.

Clarkston Grand Opening

Tomorrow (Thursday, September 8, 5-8pm) is the big day! Communicycle Clarkston is finally open to the community. Please stop by, and bring friends and neighbors to celebrate the launch of this new bicycle collective.

In addition to bicycle repairs, it would be great if everyone could bring some snacks to share -- fruits, sandwiches, whatever -- for the grand opening celebration. See you tomorrow at 5!

The First

The Clarkston shop has not yet opened its doors to the community, but we have already repaired a handful of bicycles. As we work to outfit the shop and train volunteers, curious passers-by often poke their heads through the bay door. And what better training could there be than to fix actual problems with actual bikes belonging to actual neighborhood folks.

Thanks to our volunteer Bill W. who was ready with his cell phone camera, we have a snapshot of a momentous occasion -- the first bicycle to be repaired at Communicycle Clarkston.

It's beginning to look a lot like Communicycle...

Thanks to all the volunteers (20 folks total) who made the Communicycle Clarkston work day a huge success. Once we put on the finishing touches and have a volunteer orientation, we are ready to go live! Here are a few photos from along the way today.

The shop's bay door opens up to a large basketball court with plenty of shaded work space.

Organization gurus Margaret and Kelly at work.

Posing in front of our new banner.

The first pile of miscellaneous bike flotsam. Momentous.

Communicycle Clarkston is almost ready to offer complete bicycle service to the community members.

A clever caption to make this photo seem cool does not exist.

Potential

After all the planning, all the meetings, all the ordering, all of the emails, all of the networking, and all of the fundraising, we head to the Clarkston Community Center to build and outfit a space for our second co-op location -- Communicycle Clarkston.

Heaps of potential sit stacked in my hallway. There are boxes of tools, an array of supplies, vats of simple green and jugs of Tri-Flow, plus the obligatory plethora of Sharpies, patch kits, and bike-related bramble.

It all sheds the shiny varnish tomorrow as it prepares to spring into action. May all of the effort make life just a little bit better for our sisters and brothers in the Clarkston community.

One question remains tonight -- with all of the excitement, how will I manage to sleep?

Solving Problems the Communicycle Way

Communicycle is a co-op, and it is open to people of all ages, but we often end up working with youth who live in the apartment complexes of Chamblee, GA. 

The youth have very little, if any, sense of bicycle etiquette and we have never seen anyone using a helmet. For a while, our approach was simply telling the teens a bunch of rules and whining at them put their helmets on when they ride.

It didn't work. 

In a discussion about this with one of our faithful volunteers, she had the great idea of 'showing' bike safety and etiquette in action instead of merely talking about it. Great idea!

So we packed our cars FULL of the kids' bikes (mine carried 11), and we trooped the youth over to the Silver Comet Trail, an amazing rails-to-trails paved path that runs from metro Atlanta to the state line of Alabama.

The participants were each given a helmet and required to wear it. We didn't have to say very much - most of the youth noticed right away that all of the other riders on the trail (and there were MANY) were wearing helmets too.

Additionally, the participants were taught some basic riding guidelines including how to pass safely and how to utilize some simple hand signals.

Everyone was told they could keep their helmets if they agreed to wear them. Several agreed, and I am thrilled that they did.

Special thanks to our faithful volunteer for organizing the day, preparing lunch, and making sure the event was a huge success.

Clarkston Co-op Taking Shape

So much enthusiasm is building as Communicycle makes significant progress in opening a second co-op location in Clarkston, GA. With space secured at the Clarkston Community Center, tools and supplies purchased, and a growing list of excited volunteers, a community bicycle program for the city of Clarkston is quickly moving from dream to reality.

There will be a workday at the Community Center on August 13 at 10am. We will be outfitting the shop with shelving, pegboard, and other fixtures as well as moving in a good amount of gear. We would love to have as many helping hands as possible, so please plan to join up. Look for us in the building adjacent to the basketball court.

Sopo Bikes Fundraiser

Communicycle is friends with Sopo Bikes, a bicycle co-op in East Atlanta. They are hosting their annual fundraiser, and we are helping to get the word out.

Sopo Bicycle Cooperative is proud to announce the seventh annual Broken Hearts and Bicycle Parts fundraiser the weekend of May 7th

April 11, 2011 – “Broken Hearts and Bicyle Parts 7: Backroads and Lightloads,” Sopo Bicycle Cooperative’s seventh annual fundraiser is slated for a weekend of fun, May 6-8th. This event has grown from an alley cat in past years to a full weekend of inclusive cycling events meant to encourage individuals to pick up their bikes and go for a ride.  Advance registration can be done now online at Sopobikes.org.  Those with smartphones can quickly link to the registration page via QR code from any of the posters or fliers around town. 

Friday, May 6th is set to be a low-key welcoming event for both travelling participants as well as new cyclists to town; including a group ride, cookout and dance party. We hope that this relaxing start to the weekend will encourage good friendly relations in the community and allow a positive competitive spirit to grow between participants.  Meet at Woodruff Park at 7pm for the group ride.

Saturday, May 7^th, alleycat participants will meet at Sopo Bike Coop at  3pm to pick up manifests, and the alleycat will at begin at 4pm. Participants will finish by 7pm at The Music Room, followed by a benefit concert starring Indyana Jonz, Basement Banshees, and The Wild, ending with DJ Soundwave spinning the night away.  Prizes will be awarded based on the originality of participant costumes, creativity and good spirit in completing checkpoint tasks, as well as overall time for completion.  Tickets to the benefit concert will be $10 but event participants will have complimentary access.  The benefit concert is an 21+ event, ID required.

We will also be hosting a farewell vegan friendly brunch Sunday starting at 1pm and all are welcome to come out.  This event will be hosted at WonderRoot and will be $5. 

Sopo Bicycle Cooperative is a 501(c)3 nonprofit bicycle repair workshop.  Sopo's mission is to create equitable access to bicycling by providing affordable bicycle maintenance services and education.  All donations to Sopo are tax deductible.  The shop is located in the East Atlanta Village at 465-C Flat Shoals Avenue.  Operating hours are Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights from 7 pm until 10 pm and Saturday afternoon from 2 pm until 5 pm.  Visit www.sopobikes.org for more information.