Ohio City Bicycle Co-op

Now that we are getting settled into the new shop, we are working out how best to use all the space, and ways to enable folks to help do all the new things we can accomplish in it. Here are a few changes that we have settled on to improve our service to members, volunteers, and the public:

New hours, and members' shop use during Apprentice Wednesday evenings.

To better handle the summer bike camps we do with Slavic Village Development Corp. and other neighborhood groups; and to enable our staff (of four, now) to have two days off in a row, we are now closed on Mondays and open on Tuesdays (from noon to 5pm) for retail, volunteering and members' shop use. To make up the lost Monday evening hours for members shop use, the shop is now available for members to work on their own bikes on Apprentice Wednesdays (5 - 9pm), as well as for volunteering to work on OCBC bikes with an experienced mechanic, as always.

New Bike Basics class series:  free for all members, and with every bike purchase

In 2002, when we moved into our first shop and began selling reconditioned bikes, we decided that, rather than just getting bikes "out the door," we should offer some basic mechanical and riding tips to help our customers use their bikes more safely and reliably, as an important part of our mission.  So one part of the education we have always offered with every bike we sell has been a "Bike Basics" class that covered How to Fix a Flat; make fit adjustments to the seat and handlebar; and do simple maintenance and a Safety Check to be sure all those things are done right. 

Until now, because of space and time constraints, that class used to be combined with the first class in our membership Shop Class series, but it made that class really long, and could never cover all the other stuff we've found folks want to know -- like the best ways to to lock their bike securely, carry cargo, or use and maintain their chain and gears.

So we now offer a series of four, one-hour Bike Basics Classes on Tuesday evenings or Saturday afternoons, immediately before the Shop Classes  that cover all those things, and more. They are free with any bike purchase, and are included with the Shop Classes for those students who want both.  The cost is $10 per class for anyone else, but we invite anyone who has EVER purchased a bike or membership to take them for free -- registration is appreciated, but not required; so you can just drop in, and learn a bit more about how to use your bike as much as you can.

Key Volunteers needed to help greet visitors, orient volunteers, sell bikes, and run the shop

With all the new space we have to work in, we need more volunteers on hand during open hours to make sure the place runs smoothly.  Any members who are interested in helping make the most of our new facility are invited to get some simple, easy training, and sign up for two-hour shifts as greeters, retail volunteers, or shop mentors.  You'll get valuable experience and significant discounts on new parts in addition to regular volunteer credits, and the satisfaction of knowing you had an important hand in the first steps of your new co-op's transformation into an efficient and effective community resource.  For more information on this new program please stop in, call, or email volunteering@OhioCityCycles.org.