Thanks to a generous donation of time by our volunteers we will be expanding our hours.

All evening shop hours are now from 5:30 pm until 10:00 pm; we are now open on Wednesdays (with the exception of the first Wednesday of the month which is ladies night); and we are now open an hour earlier on Saturdays.

Click here for the hours.

We have filled the position for the Shop Manager in SLC, and so we are pleased to welcome Gary Hurst to the Collective's full-time staff.

The role of the Shop Manager is different this year.  We are hoping to create more consistency during our DIY nights, which means (pending a vacation) you will see Gary's smile whenever our shop is open for DIY nights or hours.

Gary comes to us with a wealth of mechanical knowledge.  In addition to volunteering, he has worked at Contender Bicycles since 2006.  So visit the Community Bike Shop, bring your bike, and expect to see the Collective become an even greater asset to the community in 2010 than it was in 2009.

We need patient volunteers to enlighten the minds of young mechanics. Contact me if you are interested in becoming an Earn-A-Bike Instructor. Ironically you do not need any previous bike mechanic skills or experience. The quality we look for the most is your ability to work with young adults. If that is something you relate to, I will gladly set aside time to teach you the mechanics part.

Earn-A-Bike dates are as follows:

Monday & Wednesdays 4:15-5:15PM
Tuesdays & Thursdays 4:00-5:00PM

Thanks,

Krisha Pessa
Youth Director
Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective
2312 S. West Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84115
w: 801-328-2453
c: 801-931-0895
f: 801-466-3856
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

We would like to thank Calvert "Cal" Cruz for the amazing work he has done over the last 10+ months while he served an Americorps position with us as our Shop Manager.  The shop looks nothing like it once did, and we are better for it, he has forever left a mark on us.  Every task he was given was attacked with insight, passion, and a level head.

He will be missed.  Hopefully we can sucker him into a few DIY Night shifts! ;)

On behalf of everyone that represents the Collective, we wish Cal the best as he jumps back in the shoes of a full-time student and persues a degree in music in addition to volunteering at Midnight Record Studio, part of the Utah Arts Alliance.

Courtesy of the Deseret News:

...

Council members earlier this month approved a deal to donate up to 400 bicycles found or confiscated by the city police department each year to the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective.

"It provides people with a low-cost, sustainable form of transportation that's environmentally friendly," said Dave Iltis, chairman of the Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee. "It's healthy and it doesn't use gas."

The collective refurbishes the used bicycles and puts them back out in the community. Most of the bikes go to low-income and refugee families.

"Everyone needs to get around," said collective director Jonathan Morrison. "And car ownership is not cheap."

For those of you who are interested in improving your wrenching skills, we will be offering FREE lessons from the Park Tool School for the first 30-45 minutes of each Monday Volunteer Night at the Community Bike Shop.  Each week we will pick a different chapter (schedule below), and provide you with bikes to practice on, so don't bring your own.  We will have the textbook, Park Tool's Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair, for sale during the classes.

• January 11th @ 6pm sharp: Tires and Tubes
• January 18th @ 6pm sharp: Hubs, Rear Sprockets Martin Luther King Day
• January 25th @ 6pm sharp: Wheel Truing
• February 1st @ 6pm sharp: Pedals, Cranks & Bottom Bracket
• February 8th @ 6pm sharp: Chains
• February 15th @ 6pm sharp: Derailleur Systems Part 1
• February 12th @ 6pm sharp: Derailleur Systems Part 2
• March 1st @ 6pm sharp: Rim Caliper Brake Systems
• March 8th @ 6pm sharp: Caliper Disc Brake Systems
• March 15th @ 6pm sharp: Headsets
• March 22th @ 6pm sharp: Hubs, Rear Sprockets REDO
• March 29th @ 6pm sharp: Open Slot for Bike Fit Instructor

• April 5th @ 6pm sharp: Tires and Tubes
• April 12th @ 6pm sharp: Hubs, Rear Sprockets
• April 19th @ 6pm sharp: Wheel Truing
• April 26th @ 6pm sharp: Pedals, Cranks & Bottom Bracket
• May 3rd @ 6pm sharp: Chains
• May 10th @ 6pm sharp: Derailleur Systems Part 1
• May 17th @ 6pm sharp: Derailleur Systems Part 2
• May 24th @ 6pm sharp: Rim Caliper Brake Systems
• May 31st @ 6pm sharp: Caliper Disc Brake Systems
• June 7th @ 6pm sharp: Headsets
• June 14th @ 6pm sharp: Open Slot for Bike Fit Instructor
• June 21st @ 6pm sharp: Open Slot for Guest Instructor

• June 28th @ 6pm sharp: Tires and Tubes
• July 5th @ 6pm sharp: Hubs, Rear Sprockets
• July 12th @ 6pm sharp: Wheel Truing
• July 19th @ 6pm sharp: Pedals, Cranks & Bottom Bracket
• July 26th @ 6pm sharp: Chains
• August 2nd @ 6pm sharp: Derailleur Systems Part 1
• August 9th @ 6pm sharp: Derailleur Systems Part 2
• August 16th @ 6pm sharp: Rim Caliper Brake Systems
• August 23st @ 6pm sharp: Caliper Disc Brake Systems
• August 20th @ 6pm sharp: Headsets
• September 6th @ 6pm sharp: Open Slot for Bike Fit Instructor
• September 13th @ 6pm sharp: Open Slot for Guest Instructor

• September 20th @ 6pm sharp: Tires and Tubes
• September 27th @ 6pm sharp: Hubs, Rear Sprockets
• October 4th @ 6pm sharp: Wheel Truing
• October 11th @ 6pm sharp: Pedals, Cranks & Bottom Bracket
• October 18th @ 6pm sharp: Chains
• October 25th @ 6pm sharp: Derailleur Systems Part 1
• November 1st @ 6pm sharp: Derailleur Systems Part 2
• November 8th @ 6pm sharp: Rim Caliper Brake Systems
• November 15th @ 6pm sharp: Caliper Disc Brake Systems
• November 22nd @ 6pm sharp: Headsets
• November 29th @ 6pm sharp: Open Slot for Bike Fit Instructor
• December 6th @ 6pm sharp: Open Slot for Guest Instructor
• December 13th @ 6pm sharp: Open Slot for Guest Instructor

If you really get into it, inquire about volunteering your new found knowledge during our Do-It-Yourself Nights (we really need confident women for the women's night), or as an Youth Instructor in our Earn-a-Bike classes.  We can teach people to be technical, but we can't teach them to be personable, so if you like people, we can turn you into a great mechanic.

If you have any questions contact our Shop Manager.

For Immediate Release:

Salt Lake City Council Approves Resolution to Donate Unclaimed Bikes to the SLC Bike Collective

11-6-09 (Salt Lake City) -- The Salt Lake City Council unanimously approved a resolution last night that will allow Salt Lake City to donate all unclaimed bicycles held by the Salt Lake City Police Department to the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective.

"We have experienced a tremendous demand for bicycles this year and this influx of bicycles will help those in need, specifically those in need of transportation," said an elated Jonathan Morrison, Executive Director of the Collective.  "The Collective would like to publicly thank the Mayor's Office, specifically Matt Lyon, David Everitt, and Mayor Becker as well as the City Council for collaboration on this resolution."

SLCPD holds bicycles that are abandoned, recovered as stolen property, or as evidence in cases. The bikes are held for a specified amount of time (generally 90 days) and attempts are made to contact the owner of the bicycle.  If the bicycle is unclaimed after that time period, then the bikes are deemed surplus and have in the past been auctioned off or disposed of.

The new program will see that the bikes are put back on the streets to serve the residents of Salt Lake City and County.  The Collective will repair and service the bikes as needed and provide those bikes to low-income residents or non-profit organizations. Putting the bikes back on the streets helps to increase the level of cycling in Salt Lake City and benefits the City and its residents by reducing air pollution and carbon output, increasing the health of its residents, and providing transportation solutions to its low-income residents.

The resolution was the result of a year-long process of that required the drafting of an agreement between Salt Lake City and the Collective, conducting a Doug Short analysis to show that the donated items would improve the public good, and much hard work from Matt Lyon of the Salt Lake City Mayor's Office. The Mayor's Office, the Collective, the Salt Lake City Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee, SLC Police Department, the Salt Lake City Council and Staff, and the City Attorney's Office contributed to the process.

The approval of the resolution should result in the donation of approximately 100-200 bikes per year to the Collective given current levels of unclaimed bicycles.  The resolution provides for a cap of 400 bikes per year to be donated to the Collective.

The draft agreement and resolution can be viewed here: http://www.slcgov.com/council/agendas/2009agendas/Nov5/110509C5.pdf
 

***

The Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee (MBAC) is an all volunteer advocacy organization whose purpose is to promote, enhance, preserve and, where necessary, restore physical, social, political and economic environments in which bicycling is recognized as an essential element of a clean, healthy, and vital community.  For information on the MBAC or this press release, contact Dave Iltis, Chair at 801-328-2066, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit slcgov.com/bike.

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.  For more information, including crank addiction, visit www.slcbikecollective.org or call 801-FAT-BIKE.

--
Dave Iltis
801-328-2066
Chair, Salt Lake City Mayor's Bicycle Advisory Committee
slcgov.com/bike

Summer was a total success with 215 students completing our 2009 Earn-A-Bike program. This is our 7th year with Youth City! We're excited to announce, in addtion to our long standing parter, Boys and Girls Club South Valley and Spectrum Academy are now part of our Earn-A-Bike program.

Our other amazing program, Trips for Kids, had 15 mountain bike rides with a total of 126 youth this season. We visited Bonneville Shoreline Trail - Red Butte Gardens & Memory Grove, Little Dell Resivour - Mormon Pioneer Trail, and a little singletrack around Liberty Park on days transportation became an issue.

In 2007, the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective started a fund for Marty Kasteler, a local cyclist that was intentionally hit by a car. The donated funds were given to Marty and his family so that they could concentrate on the recovery process.

Now another friend of the Collective is in need.

Emilio is an outstanding person and an exceptional and influential member of Salt Lake City's bicycle community. Emilio is a major contributor to the SLC Bicycle Collective, working with the young and old alike. His absence is felt by his family, including his three young children; friends; and Salt Lake City's bicycle community.

Please consider making a donation, they are all tax deductible.

Archival Footage on Marty:

News: KUTV channel 2 , KSL channel 5 , Fox 13 , Fox 13 (Video/Interview with Nicki)

KUTV video courtesy of hektik.org, choose a format:

Windows media (9MB)
AVI (11MB)
Mpeg (26MB)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Rachel Colledge (801) 936-0318

7th Grade Teacher, Spectrum Academy

SEVENTH-GRADE STUDENTS FROM SPECTRUM ACADEMY WITH HIGH-FUNCTIONING AUTISM AND ASPERGER’S SYNDROME GAIN SKILLS FROM SALT LAKE CITY BICYCLE COLLECTIVE EARN-A-BIKE PROGRAM

October 16, 2009 --Spectrum Academy, the premier charter school in Utah that tailors learning environment and curriculum to accommodate the unique needs of children with Asperger's Syndrome and other high-functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders is partnering with the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective to provide unique learning opportunities for these students in the areas of bicycle mechanics and assembly, teamwork, project management and social skills.

The generous volunteers and staff of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective offer their time twice per week for one hour sessions to instruct and assist 7th grade students in repairing and reconstructing bicycles that they will earn to keep upon the completion of their session. These amazing volunteers are working to ensure that these students with special needs have an especially-enriching experience.

Students are finding themselves accomplishing feats that they once thought impossible, thereby helping them to feel more self-reliant and capable of accomplishing a project. Some examples are: students with fine motor deficiencies are now reconstructing the inner workings of the bicycle tire. Students who are working on improving their social skills ability are now working in teams.

Spectrum Academy is ever so grateful for the generosity of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective and its efforts to offer such wonderful hands-on education to those with special needs.

Class Days: Tuesday and Thursdays
Class Time: 8:00 a.m. until 9:00 a.m.
Class Place: Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective: 2312 S. West Temple, Salt Lake City, Utah 84115

Momentum Magazine issue 41, pages 19 & 21:

The 19th century Mormon prophet Brigham Young instructed the builders of Salt Lake City to make the roads wide enough to allow horse-drawn carts to make U-turns. Whether or not you believe in prophets, you have to wonder whether he sensed how modern cyclists would struggle to share the road with motorists. Just as Young was concerned with the future of transportation in Salt Lake City, the city’s modern leaders foresee the necessity of improving the city’s cycling infrastructure.

Parked outside the Salt Lake City Hall you can often find mayor Ralph Becker’s well-loved commuter bike. Becker, a long-time commuter cyclist, has increased the cycling infrastructure budget from $50,000 to $500,000 to double the city’s 60 miles of bike lanes over the next several years. He and his Bicycle Advisory Committee have put the wheels in motion to establish a bicycle transit center at the Intermodal Hub in downtown Salt Lake City, with the hope of installing a bike share program.

Read More...

Tim Bochnowski, founder of Mountain Velo LLC, will be offering a FREE Intro to Bike Fit class as part of our Monday Night Class Series on August 24th.  Answer the age old questions of, does my bike fit?  What can I do to make it fit better?  What bike is right for my body type?

A little about Tim:

On August 15th the Downtown Alliance will be hosting a themed Pedals and Produce Downtown Farmers' Market.  Come to Pioneer park see all the fun activities, as well as win a bike from Bingham Cyclery!