Posts

Bike Donate

Give Your Old Bike A New Life: Donate It!

/in /by

Donate Your Old Bike Today!

If you listen to KCBX or any other public radio station, you’ve probably heard announcements asking for donations of old cars to help sustain their programs. You donate a car, it gets sold at auction, a percentage of the proceeds go to your favorite public radio station (and you get a tax break).

It may surprise you to know that Bike SLO County has a similar program – but instead of cars, we accept bikes. When you donate your old bicycle to Bike SLO County, your gift works in a number of ways:

  • By donating your old bike instead of throwing it away, you’re helping the environment by keeping it from heading to a landfill before its time.
  • Your bike will be tuned up and given a new life, giving someone else years of joy and transportation.
  • Your bicycle may be sold to someone looking for a gently used bicycle. The proceeds help Bike SLO County fund our other programs (Bike Education, Bike Valet, Bike Advocacy, Kidical Mass)
  • Your bicycle may be donated to someone through our Ride Well program, which serves SLO County families and individuals in need, for whom a bicycle may provide much needed mobility.
  • You get, at your request, a receipt of your gift that allows you to deduct your donation on your taxes.

Bike DonateWill We Accept Any Bike?

Great question! While we do accept most bikes, we can’t accept all bikes.

  • We do not accept “department store” bikes (Next, Roadmaster, Magma, modern Free Spirits). Why not? These bicycles are often constructed with very low quality parts in non-standard sizes and are not designed to be serviceable. Due to their limited compatibility, we are not able to make sure that they are safe to ride.
  • We do not accept bikes that are beyond help. That rusted bike that has been buried in wet leaves for the last 3 years? No thanks! Use your best judgement. When in doubt, call Michael at 547-2055 and ask us if your bike sounds like a good candidate for donation.
  • We do accept most other bicycles and will repair them (or use them for spare parts). “Old” does not mean we won’t accept it – it’s about quality, not age.

What’s The Next Step?

Ready to give your bike a new life? Bring your bicycle to the Bike Kitchen, 860 Pacific St, Suite 105, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 (map) any Friday, Saturday or Sunday between the hours of Noon – 5 PM.

Thank you for helping make SLO County an even better place for bikes!

 

Concerts in the Park

Bike Valet at Concerts in the Park

/in /by

Ride your bike to Concerts in the Park

A few weeks ago our free Bike Valet service began setting up on the southeast side of City Park during Concerts in the Park in Paso Robles. We’re excited to offer this free service to the Paso Robles bike community, and would like to thank the generosity of our Paso Robles Concerts in the Park Bike Valet Sponsor, Rahman Law, for making it possible.

If you’ve never used Bike Valet (and are wondering what it is), Bike Valet is our secure bike parking service, designed to encourage everyone to ride bicycles to community events. It works much like the more familiar valet service for cars that some restaurants provide:

  1. Each rider is given a numbered check tag that matches a numbered tag we attach to their bike.
  2. The bike is carefully parked in our secure enclosure.
  3. To retrieve a bike, the user hands in the check tag and the bike is returned.

Ready to ride? Come find us between 5:15-7:45 p.m. in City Park every Thursday from now through    August 18, 2016. We’ll park your bike right in the park so you can enjoy the show instead of worrying about finding a nearby spot to lock up.

Not sure what band is playing at the next Concert in the Park? Check out the 2016 schedule right here: http://pasoroblesdowntown.org/downtown-calendar/paso-robles-event-concerts-in-the-park/

Bike of the Week: Bianchi Nyala

/in , /by

Bike_of_the_Week_Bianchi_NyalaUPDATE 12:45 pm September 18th: This bike sold fast! Not to worry, we have other bikes!

The Bianchi Nyala is great as a starter mountain bike and as a commuter bike to get around town. This red and gray Nyala has an 18.5 inch frame, perfect for riders from 5’5″ – 5’10” tall.

The 21 speed, 3×7 drive train provides easy gears for cruising and harder gears for speed.

Ample tire clearances insure a comfortable ride on street and trail alike.

$125.00 and available now at the Bike Kitchen. We’re open Friday, Saturday and Sunday from Noon – 5PM. Questions? Call (805) 547-2055. Ask for Tyler.

The Bike Kitchen is a program of Bike SLO County. We have all the parts, tools and knowledge you need to fix your bicycle! We can help you build a bike from the ground up, fix that junker you found at a garage sale, or simply tune up your bicycle. We serve all types of people, and are committed to creating a safe space for everyone. We have provided guided instruction to over 8,000 people since opening our doors in 2010.This bike not your cup of tea? Still looking to buy a gently used, ready to ride bicycle? We sell all kinds of bicycles! Come in and see us!Have a bike you’d like to donate? Your generous gifts help the Bike Kitchen thrive and give even more people the chance to experience SLO County by bike. Thank you!

Like Bikes? Join us! It’s free! Click here to join and we’ll keep you informed about all things bike in SLO County: JOIN

Bike of the Week: Olmo 2-Speed

/in /by
This gorgeous chrome frame Olmo is the city bike you’ve been dreaming about. 

Olmo1Frame: 23″/59cm Good for someone 5’8″- 6’+

SRAM 2-speed automatic hub

Big comfy tires

Upright riding position

Available now at the Bike Kitchen. We’re open Friday, Saturday and Sunday from Noon – 5PM. Questions? Call (805) 547-2055. Ask for Tyler.

The Bike Kitchen is a program of Bike SLO County. We have all the parts, tools and knowledge you need to fix your bicycle! We can help you build a bike from the ground up, fix that junker you found at a garage sale, or simply tune up your bicycle. We serve all types of people, and are committed to creating a safe space for everyone. We have provided guided instruction to over 8,000 people since opening our doors in 2010.

This bike not your cup of tea? Still looking to buy a gently used, ready to ride bicycle? We sell all kinds of bicycles! Come in and see us!

Have a bike you’d like to donate? Your generous gifts help the Bike Kitchen thrive and give even more people the chance to experience SLO County by bike. Thank you!

Like Bikes? Join us! It’s free! Click here to join and we’ll keep you informed about all things bike in SLO County: JOIN US

 

 

Bike Rebuild Workshop

/in /by

Build (or rebuild) your Dream Bike

Our new Bike Rebuild Workshop starting on August 6th is a great way to learn bicycle maintenance by dismantling and rebuilding a bicycle for restoration. Students will be guided through purchasing appropriate parts and have the opportunity to powder coat through a local company, for an additional cost. Registration for this course is limited to 5 students.

Cookie_Kitchen_600Some parts* will be included in the registration fee ($200). This class is taught at the Bike Kitchen in SLO by Bike SLO County and certified League instructors using the curriculum from the League of American Bicyclists.

Day One: Thursday, August 6th 9am-12pm

  • learn the parts of the bike
  • dismantle a bike, a personal** bike or a bike kitchen bike
  • removal of wheels, tires and tubes
  • prepare the bike for powdercoating
  • create a parts list
  • if painting, choose color sample, bikes sent to coaters

Day Two: Thursday, August 13th 9am-12pm

  • Review of basic bicycle components
  • Clean and prep parts for reassemble
  • Review and confirm parts and parts list

Day Three: Thursday, August 20th 9am-12pm

  • Assemble your bike!

All Bike Rebuild Workshop participants will receive a free visit to the bike kitchen during August.

Ready to sign up? You can do that right here: Bike Rebuild Workshop Registration

Course agenda subject to change.

* Parts included: cables, black housing, loose ball bearings, grease, lube, miscellaneous small parts.

**Personal bikes must be cleared by Tyler Jamieson at least one week prior to class. Call 805-547-2055 to schedule bike check.

Bike of The Week: Rockhopper

/in /by

This week’s bike is the Rockhopper, a great entry-level mountain bike that also works great as a commuter/city bike with grip shifters allowing you to switch smoothly between 21 gears.

Perfect for someone about 5′ tall, this bike has seen very little use and is available now for only $200 in The Bike Kitchen.

BOTW_Rockhopper_450The Bike Kitchen is a program of The SLO County Bicycle Coalition. We have all the parts, tools and knowledge you need to fix your bicycle! We can help you build a bike from the ground up, fix that junker you found at a garage sale, or simply tune up your bicycle. We serve all types of people, and are committed to creating a safe space for everyone. We have provided guided instruction to over 8,000 people since opening our doors in 2010.

Bike of The Week not your cup of tea? Still looking to buy a gently used, ready to ride bicycle? We sell all kinds of bicycles! Come in and see us!

Have a bike you’d like to donate? Your generous gifts help the Bike Kitchen thrive and give even more people the chance to experience SLO County by bike. Thank you!

Like Bikes?

Become a member of The Bike Coalition – it’s free to sign-up and we’ll keep you informed every month about bike events and issues in SLO County. Click this link to join: I Like Bikes!

 

 

Bikes & Beauty

Bikes and Beauty 2015 Recap

/in /by

This year’s Bikes & Beauty Fashion Show Party was a blast! This year was bigger than ever and it was a joy to see so many bike-minded folks come out to celebrate. BikesBeauty2015WPWe got lots of fun photos from Barry Lewis and you can see them all over on flickr:

Bike Fashion Show Photos

(We’ll post a link to the photo-booth photos next week!)

We’re so excited by how amazing this year’s show was that we’re already opening up our interest form for next year. Want to participate in next year’s show – as a designer, model or volunteer? Sign up here and we’ll keep in the loop: Bikes & Beauty 2016 Interest Form.

The Bikes & Beauty party wouldn’t be possible without the support of the bike community and our generous Bikes & Beauty sponsors:

Flanders_logo  RRMDesignGroup_Logo Peloton_Logo_4C_1_253 cooplogo

MeeHengLow_Logo              EE-100

bhbc-circlelogo_100  KOMPLETE100  linnaeas_logo    BTD100    CCB_Logo_Arched100

 

Finally, a huge hug to the fine folks at iFixit for opening up their fantastic space to the community. Thank you!

Like Bikes?

Become a member of The Bike Coalition – it’s free to sign-up and we’ll keep you informed every month about bike events and issues in SLO County. Click this link to join: I Like Bikes!

Meet the Winemaker

/in /by

A Delicious Benefit for the Bike Coalition

The Central Coast is truly special in so many ways. We have great places to bicycle, an abundance of mouthwatering local wines and a fantastic variety of world-class cuisine using locally produced fruits, vegetables, meats and seafood.

However, whether you commute to work, take long distance road rides or bunny hop the trails on your mountain bike, you know that there is still a long way to go to connect our towns, to improve our roads and trails countywide, and to transform SLO County into a more bike friendly place in general.

Formed 14 years ago in 2001, the Bicycle Coalition is always looking for ways to make SLO County an even better place to bike. During Bike Month we’re joining forces with two local bike-friendly businesses, Peloton Cellars and Windows on the Water, to do just that.


Why? Because both of these locally owned businesses actively support our mission to improve the quality of life in SLO County through bicycle advocacy, education and inspiration. Aside from their year-round support for bikes, both of these businesses are taking the opportunity of May’s Meet The Winemaker evening to spread the word about the SLO County Bicycle Coalition.

We invite you to join The Bike Coalition on May 8th from 5 – 7 PM at Windows on The Water in Morro Bay for one of their dependably delicious Meet the Winemaker evenings. Bill and Trish Kesselring of Peloton Cellars will pour their award-winning wines accompanied by a special pairing of Windows on The Water appetizers. Peloton Cellars will also donate 10% of sales from their Triple Ring Pinor Noir during the entire month of May to the Bike Coalition.

Peloton_Logo_4C_1_253

 

vq_windows_rest_black_253

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SLO County Bicycle Coalition Meet the Winemaker Benefit

WHEN: May 8th, 2015 5PM to Undecided…
WHERE: Windows on The Water
699 Embarcadero, Upstairs, Suite 7
Morro Bay, CA 93442

COST: No charge for wine tasting. Appetizers are available for purchase. Reservations are recommended should you decide to stay for dinner. (Yum!)