Newsletter - January 2008

Dear supporters of Yellow Bike,

After a long and relaxing holiday break, we're kicking the New Year off right with lots of Bike Fun to report for January.  Read on for the details . . .

-The Yellow Bike Project (YBP)

DOCUMENTARY - Thanks to a generous donation of time and expertise from the good folks at Austin's Elephant Productions, we have a new mini-documentary aboutYBP that we can use to spread the word about our work (see it here).  Special thanks to Ally Kamel, Andy Gay, Jordan Torres, Anthony Kamel, Robyn Beck, and Gideon de Villiers for their work in putting this production together.

NEW BUILDING SPACE UPDATE -  We've been working with the City of Austin and Austin Energy for over a year to find a new, permanent home for ourselves.  Negotiations are going well, and we feel confident that we'll begin construction of our new permanent facility in the next few months.  We've found support and help along the way from a wide range of folks with much-needed expertise, and are on the road to making our dreams a reality.  We'll be reporting more specifics in the next newsletter as our situation develops.

AUSTIN CYCLING ASSOCIATION (ACA) MEETING AT MAIN SHOP NEXT MONTH - As part of YBP and ACA's ongoing efforts to bring the cycling community closer together, we'll be hosting the ACA General Meeting at 7pm on Monday, February 4th at the main 51st street shop instead of running our regular Monday shop that night.  We'll be showing our new mini-documentary mentioned above, giving an overview of current and upcoming projects, and hosting a Q & A session at this meeting.  This is a great time to strengthen the local cycling community by meeting other cyclists and sharing experiences, and we hope to see you there!

WORK PARTY AT 51ST STREET SUNDAY FEB 3RD - We'll be hosting a work party on Sunday Feb. 3rd from 1 - 5 pm.  We'll focus on organizing tool walls, cleaning the shop and designating surplus parts and materials for use at other shops and in art projects for our upcoming art show.  We welcome the public at our work parties, and will be providing pizza and drinks to all who participate.

BEDICHEK BIKES - We need help repairing and fine-tuning small and medium mountain bikes this month!  We'll be giving away 20 bikes to kids at Bedichek Middle School enrolled in the YBP-supported Citizen Schools Program starting on Feb. 24.  Inspired by the success of the YBP-supported community mapping project completed last month at Kealing Middle School, longtime YBP volunteer Stacia Bowley and a parent volunteer will be running a community mapping apprenticeship exploring historical parks/places around Bedichek.  In addition to the bikes, we will also be providing tools for the program for use in its bicycle maintenance education component. 

CAMPUS  AREA CO-OP TALK JANUARY 26TH - We'll be hosting a hands-on talk from 4-6pm on Saturday January 26th for the ICC (Inter Cooperative Council) in the UT campus area.  We'll also be bringing a work stand and tools to help folks with simple repairs at the event, then taking a short bike ride at the end of the talk.  Keep your eyes open in the UT campus area forflyers with more details (specific location still to be determined).

KEALING MIDDLE SCHOOL BOYS & GIRLS CLUB - YBP coordinator and bicycle activist extraordinaire Sachi DeCou has been working with the kids at Kealing Middle School for some time, and will be bringing the Boys and Girls Club kids from Kealing Middle School to our main 51st Street shop from 3:30 to 5:00 p.m. on Thursdays in January.  This will supplement the ongoing experience of these kids who will continue to use the Treasure city shop and develop riding skills in the neighborhood on Wednesdays.  We're excited to see the main shop getting used in the afternoons for these worthy after-school programs.

TREASURE CITY SATELLITE SHOP NEWS - The Treasure City shop had a short lull in December and we got to do some housecleaning and organizing.  We have a bunch of project bikes and have revitalized our tool wall and some of our parts bins.  In early January, things went crazy and so far all of our shops have been literally packed with people and energy.  It is very exciting having a wide range of ages and interests.  We've seen some amazing volunteers and lots of new personal projects, which usually means they will be back to help us out.  Several visitors commented how much they liked working at the TC shop, how the small, intimate feel of it was refreshing. One of the neighborhood kids said how much he wished we were open everyday.  It looks like we are on the way to becoming the community bike resource that we all dream of, but we still need more coordinators to expand our hours.  In conjunction with increased activity, we have quite a few "Ready-to-Ride" bikes available with suggested donations of $20 - $75, and every one of them perfect for somebody. Come by and see what we've got going on.

SPANISH-LANGUAGE SHOPS/SCHEDULE AND WEBSITE VERSION - In order to better serve Austin's Spanish-only speaking community, we have indicated on the schedule page of the website which of our shops are run by bilingual coordinators.  And thanks toYBP coordinator Alonso Txirrindulari, we will soon have our entire website available in Spanish.  Please help us spread the word! ­¡Corre la voz!

APPRENTICE COORDINATORS NEEDED - Almost all of our shops have been at or over capacity recently.  We need help to maintain our current shop schedule and provide shop users with a productive and educational environment.  We are looking for people who are interested in learning to work on bikes, have a love for teaching others, and who can reliably commit to a shop once per week.  No experience necessary.  Like everything at Yellow Bike you learn while getting your hands greasy and going for it .  Develop your mechanics skills and learn shop procedures while helping people repair their bikes.  If you'd like to be part of our continued growth as a community resource, come to a monthly Collective meeting (first Tuesday, 7:30 pm at 51st street main shop) or simply talk to a coordinator when the shop is open and let us know when you can help out.
 
SCHEDULE - This month we have yet another full schedule brought to you by dedicated volunteers.  We're running the 51st street shop 5 days a week, and would like to keep expanding the hours at Treasure City.  Get involved and you can help keep shops open even more hours.  Ask a coordinator about our apprenticeship program or learn more on our website.

(Bilingual) - Indicates a bilingual shop. Volunteers that speak Spanish will be present.
* Red Hours indicate Volunteer Shops: These shops are reserved for volunteering. Volunteers are also welcome anytime our shops are open. Volunteer Shops are usually less busy and facilitate a better learning experience. Personal projects are not allowed during volunteer shops; they can only be worked on during Open Shops. While volunteering, you can learn to fix bikes while giving back toYBP or accrue volunteer hours counting towards a free bike of your very own.
** Collective Meetings: Shop "closed" for collective meeting at our Main Shop (51st Street) on the 1st Tuesday of the month. Meeting begins at 7:30 pm. Open to the public. If you would like to contribute ideas to the collective, make requests, learn more about the project and its internal workings, or just get more involved this is the forum for you.
*** Volunteers Needed: We need volunteers so that we can expand and maintain hours of our shops. We want to be open more often. Come to the main 51st street shop to learn how you can help.