Yellow Bike News for February 2012
9 views
Skip to first unread message
yellow bike
Feb 18, 2012, 2:07:50 PM2/18/12
to yellowbike-newsletter
February 2012 Yellow Bike Newsletter
Some congratulations are in order to kick things off this month. First, welcome back Bikes Across Borders, who completed another successful ride to Piedras Negras in January, donating the wheels what brung ‘em to maquiladora laborers campaigning for workplace rights. Safe and effective modes of transportation to and from factories in Northern Mexico is a basic need largely unmet for workers, and BXB is proud to be lending a hand while learning more about struggles south of the border. Keep an eye on their website and Facebook page to find out how you can take part in their next ride for solidarity.
On the homefront, hats off to YBP’s own Hungry Javelinas cycling team for spinning their way through a chilly Saturday morning as part of the Ride for Refuge. As a whole, the peloton burst past their goal, raising more than $18,000 for Refugee Services of Texas - Austin. Talk about some powerful legs!
EVENTS
The Major Taylor Club of Austin Presents “Growing the Movement” - Named for cycling legend and professional sports pioneer Marshall “Major” Taylor, the Major Taylor Club of Austin is an exciting new addition to our city’s advocacy community. Focused on fostering some love for bicycles among minority populations, MTC is organizing the Growing the Movement Summit, February 23-26. Check out their website for details, registration, and more rides and events on the horizon.
Pedal Thru the Pines - Another chance to take a memorable ride while raising money for a good cause is coming up on Saturday, March 3. Pedal Thru the Pines benefits the Family Crisis Center, a small nonprofit that’s been battling domestic and sexual violence in the Bastrop area for nearly 30 years. Although this is the tenth annual PTTP, it will be like none before, winding through a landscape inextricably altered by last summer’s wildfires. Click here to register.
Spring Yellow Bike Release - It’s been fifteen years since the first Yellow Bike release, and bikes to ride but not to keep have come an awful long way. Here in 2012, there are municipal programs underway in metropolitan areas around the globe, with Austin possibly the next place to make a bicycle share part of its cityscape. As for us, we’ll be releasing a fleet of classic Austin sharing-bikes at the University of Texas Sustainability Fair on Thursday, March 8. UT staff at the Facilities Complex (I-35 and Dean Keeton) will be invited to speak with YBP volunteers about the collective, our own approaches to sustainability, and, of course, how much fun it is to get around town’n’campus on two wheels. They won’t have to take our word for it, as Yellow Bikes will be waiting for them to ride away on, and leave at their destination for the next bike-curious passerby. Want to have a hand in setting some of these rare golden rides free? Stop by the shop this month to fix a couple up.
Ghostbusters, the Play - Finally, in non-bike news, there’s one more event we need you know about. From the fine folks who brought you a stage production of The Princess Bride a few months back, it’s Ghostbusters - The Play! Saturday and Sunday, March 3, 4, 10, and 11 at 6pm, head down to Metz Park (2407 Canterbury St.) for a great night of amateur theater in public space. It should go without saying that this ain’t your usual summer-stock production - what with the ectoplasm, marshmallow men, keymasters, gatekeepers, proton blasters, and song-and-dance (?!) numbers, you can guarantee that no one in this audience is gonna be noddin’ off. Don’t miss some familiar faces in this free-for-all free-for-all.
COMMUNITY/ADVOCACY
HONK!TX 2012 - YBP is looking forward to the second annual HONK!TX community street band festival, and is thrilled to once again lend transportation support. If you missed out on last year’s fun, HONK!TX brings together amazing marching bands from all over the country, playing music that runs a gamut of styles from New Orleans second-line to klezmer to Afro-Brazilian and beyond. The hyper-kinetic, family-friendly performances are all absolutely free, taking place in streets and parks all over the city. Since HONK! musicians aren’t paid for performing, any travel aid is greatly appreciated, so YBP will be providing loaner bikes to help HONKsters make their way around town during the festival. Swing by the shop to help us get some rides fixed up, or fill out this form if you’re interested in other ways you can help make this year’s festival as memorable as the first.
Cooperative Oral History Project - The United Nations has declared 2012 the “International Year of Cooperatives.” Co-ops and collectives play a big role in our local community, from housing, credit unions, and grocery stores to breweries, bakeries, bike shops and beyond. UT grad student Anne Gessler is working on a Cooperative Oral History Project, compiling audio interviews with members of the movement in Austin, New Orleans, and Detroit. Check out the website for musings from a few of your favorite YBP collectivists, and contact Anne at ages...@utexas.edu if you’ve got a cooperative story to tell.
Stop Congress from Defunding People-Powered Transportation - It seems that some wrong-headed legislators are once again attempting to strip funding for mobility measures that don’t involve burning fossil fuels. MAP-21 in the Senate and H.R. 7 in the House would inflict deep cuts to Transportation Enhancements, Safe Routes to School, and the Recreational Trails Program, initiatives supporting bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure and which currently make up less than two percent of the federal transportation budget. Even in these austere times, we’re fortunate that cuts to bike-ped programs are being opposed from both sides of the aisle, but that makes it no less critical that voices for multimodal movement be heard. For more information on proposed legislation and how to contact your Senators and Congresspeople, visit Bike Texas' Action Alert page.
SHOP NEWS
Let There Be Lights! - Thanks to a generous grant from the nice folks at Austin Community Foundation, we’re excited to announce that YBP will now be including a basic light set with every bike fixed up by our volunteers. That means sale bikes, Earn-a-Bikes, bikes donated to special causes, big-enough-to-ride-at-night kids’ bikes - the whole litany will be leaving our shop happily blinking and fully street-legal, at no extra cost to the riders. Brilliance!
Lady Bike - Women, ready your wrenches for a weekend round of Lady Bike, YBP’s female-only shop. Self-identified women and trans, come on down to 12th and Webberville on Saturday, February 25, 6-9pm for an evening of all the mechanics with none of the machismo. Fix up your own bike, learn the ropes by volunteering on some of ours, flip the male-dominated status quo on its handlebars, and kick your Saturday night off right.
Volunteer-Only Shops - One Volunteer-Only Shop not enough for ya? This month we’re doubling down on the altruism, as Tuesday nights join the long-standing Thursday volunteer evening. Whether you're coming in to earn a bike, complete community service hours, or simply learn more about our favorite machines while helping to make some work again, Volunteer-Only Shops are the special spot just for you. This month, we’ll be focusing our volunteer efforts on providing transportation solutions for HONK!TX musicians, preparing some good old-fashioned Yellow Bikes for a spring release, and hopefully even knockin’ out a few tiny rides for a children’s bike rodeo. As always, volunteers are encouraged to attend our Open Shops, as well - we’ve got plenty of work to do!
Garden Work Party - Grease ain’t the only gunk under our nails at YBP. Last month, we had a great turnout and made impressive progress on the shop garden, digging out overgrown beds and starting cool-season seeds and transplants. We’re doing it again on Sunday, February 26, 2pm-sunset; we’ll be digging more beds, planting, weeding, feeding, thinning, and more! Come on out and and learn a thing or two about growing your own organic food while meeting new friends and having an all-around good time.
Volunteer Shops at Lanier High School Boys & Girls Club - Wednesdays this month, the Tools for Life team at Lanier High School Boys & Girls Club are inviting volunteers to lend a hand at their burgeoning bike shop. February 22 & 29, 3:30-4:30pm, get involved with the next generation of do-it-yourselfers.
Sorry, No Rentals - With that big ol’ entertainment invasion just a few weeks away, we’d like to remind y’all that YBP is no longer renting bikes. The good news is that there are tons of other great shops to rent from, and our volunteer-refurbished sale bikes remain an affordable option for visitors looking to pedal around Austin for a week or two.
Easy Ways to Help Improve the Shop - Want to help make YBP the best community bike shop it can be? Take a few minutes at each shop to help us keep it in ship-shape. Wiping down workstands and sweeping floors is quick and easy if everyone pitches in, and makes for a much better place to fix stuff up in. Sorting small parts and components not only makes them easier for everybody to find, but will introduce you to lots of little bits you may have never noticed keeping your ride in one piece. Just think, if everybody leaves the shop better than they find it, we'll always have the best shop we've ever had!
Public Input at Collective Meetings - Collective Meetings are held the first Tuesday of every month at our Webberville headquarters from 7-9pm. Open to the public, they're a great place to learn how YBP and collective decision making work. For members of the general populous coming to make a request of or an offer to the collective, please be aware that the Public Input portion of our meeting is at 8pm. You may stay for as much or as little of the meeting as you like. Our agendas tend to be pretty jam-packed, so please be prepared with a well-defined proposal - public input is limited to five minutes per item.
Shop Schedule – (Updated for February)
YBP's shop schedule is set the first Tuesday of every month at our Collective meeting. Schedule below continues through Monday, March 5.
Austin's Yellow Bike Project | www.austinyellowbike.org
"Be the change you would like to see in the world." - Gandhi
"Keep Cycling: it is Undoubtedly the Best form of Activism there is."
Some congratulations are in order to kick things off this month. First, welcome back Bikes Across Borders, who completed another successful ride to Piedras Negras in January, donating the wheels what brung ‘em to maquiladora laborers campaigning for workplace rights. Safe and effective modes of transportation to and from factories in Northern Mexico is a basic need largely unmet for workers, and BXB is proud to be lending a hand while learning more about struggles south of the border. Keep an eye on their website and Facebook page to find out how you can take part in their next ride for solidarity.
On the homefront, hats off to YBP’s own Hungry Javelinas cycling team for spinning their way through a chilly Saturday morning as part of the Ride for Refuge. As a whole, the peloton burst past their goal, raising more than $18,000 for Refugee Services of Texas - Austin. Talk about some powerful legs!
EVENTS
The Major Taylor Club of Austin Presents “Growing the Movement” - Named for cycling legend and professional sports pioneer Marshall “Major” Taylor, the Major Taylor Club of Austin is an exciting new addition to our city’s advocacy community. Focused on fostering some love for bicycles among minority populations, MTC is organizing the Growing the Movement Summit, February 23-26. Check out their website for details, registration, and more rides and events on the horizon.
Pedal Thru the Pines - Another chance to take a memorable ride while raising money for a good cause is coming up on Saturday, March 3. Pedal Thru the Pines benefits the Family Crisis Center, a small nonprofit that’s been battling domestic and sexual violence in the Bastrop area for nearly 30 years. Although this is the tenth annual PTTP, it will be like none before, winding through a landscape inextricably altered by last summer’s wildfires. Click here to register.
Spring Yellow Bike Release - It’s been fifteen years since the first Yellow Bike release, and bikes to ride but not to keep have come an awful long way. Here in 2012, there are municipal programs underway in metropolitan areas around the globe, with Austin possibly the next place to make a bicycle share part of its cityscape. As for us, we’ll be releasing a fleet of classic Austin sharing-bikes at the University of Texas Sustainability Fair on Thursday, March 8. UT staff at the Facilities Complex (I-35 and Dean Keeton) will be invited to speak with YBP volunteers about the collective, our own approaches to sustainability, and, of course, how much fun it is to get around town’n’campus on two wheels. They won’t have to take our word for it, as Yellow Bikes will be waiting for them to ride away on, and leave at their destination for the next bike-curious passerby. Want to have a hand in setting some of these rare golden rides free? Stop by the shop this month to fix a couple up.
Ghostbusters, the Play - Finally, in non-bike news, there’s one more event we need you know about. From the fine folks who brought you a stage production of The Princess Bride a few months back, it’s Ghostbusters - The Play! Saturday and Sunday, March 3, 4, 10, and 11 at 6pm, head down to Metz Park (2407 Canterbury St.) for a great night of amateur theater in public space. It should go without saying that this ain’t your usual summer-stock production - what with the ectoplasm, marshmallow men, keymasters, gatekeepers, proton blasters, and song-and-dance (?!) numbers, you can guarantee that no one in this audience is gonna be noddin’ off. Don’t miss some familiar faces in this free-for-all free-for-all.
COMMUNITY/ADVOCACY
HONK!TX 2012 - YBP is looking forward to the second annual HONK!TX community street band festival, and is thrilled to once again lend transportation support. If you missed out on last year’s fun, HONK!TX brings together amazing marching bands from all over the country, playing music that runs a gamut of styles from New Orleans second-line to klezmer to Afro-Brazilian and beyond. The hyper-kinetic, family-friendly performances are all absolutely free, taking place in streets and parks all over the city. Since HONK! musicians aren’t paid for performing, any travel aid is greatly appreciated, so YBP will be providing loaner bikes to help HONKsters make their way around town during the festival. Swing by the shop to help us get some rides fixed up, or fill out this form if you’re interested in other ways you can help make this year’s festival as memorable as the first.
Cooperative Oral History Project - The United Nations has declared 2012 the “International Year of Cooperatives.” Co-ops and collectives play a big role in our local community, from housing, credit unions, and grocery stores to breweries, bakeries, bike shops and beyond. UT grad student Anne Gessler is working on a Cooperative Oral History Project, compiling audio interviews with members of the movement in Austin, New Orleans, and Detroit. Check out the website for musings from a few of your favorite YBP collectivists, and contact Anne at ages...@utexas.edu if you’ve got a cooperative story to tell.
Stop Congress from Defunding People-Powered Transportation - It seems that some wrong-headed legislators are once again attempting to strip funding for mobility measures that don’t involve burning fossil fuels. MAP-21 in the Senate and H.R. 7 in the House would inflict deep cuts to Transportation Enhancements, Safe Routes to School, and the Recreational Trails Program, initiatives supporting bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure and which currently make up less than two percent of the federal transportation budget. Even in these austere times, we’re fortunate that cuts to bike-ped programs are being opposed from both sides of the aisle, but that makes it no less critical that voices for multimodal movement be heard. For more information on proposed legislation and how to contact your Senators and Congresspeople, visit Bike Texas' Action Alert page.
SHOP NEWS
Let There Be Lights! - Thanks to a generous grant from the nice folks at Austin Community Foundation, we’re excited to announce that YBP will now be including a basic light set with every bike fixed up by our volunteers. That means sale bikes, Earn-a-Bikes, bikes donated to special causes, big-enough-to-ride-at-night kids’ bikes - the whole litany will be leaving our shop happily blinking and fully street-legal, at no extra cost to the riders. Brilliance!
Lady Bike - Women, ready your wrenches for a weekend round of Lady Bike, YBP’s female-only shop. Self-identified women and trans, come on down to 12th and Webberville on Saturday, February 25, 6-9pm for an evening of all the mechanics with none of the machismo. Fix up your own bike, learn the ropes by volunteering on some of ours, flip the male-dominated status quo on its handlebars, and kick your Saturday night off right.
Volunteer-Only Shops - One Volunteer-Only Shop not enough for ya? This month we’re doubling down on the altruism, as Tuesday nights join the long-standing Thursday volunteer evening. Whether you're coming in to earn a bike, complete community service hours, or simply learn more about our favorite machines while helping to make some work again, Volunteer-Only Shops are the special spot just for you. This month, we’ll be focusing our volunteer efforts on providing transportation solutions for HONK!TX musicians, preparing some good old-fashioned Yellow Bikes for a spring release, and hopefully even knockin’ out a few tiny rides for a children’s bike rodeo. As always, volunteers are encouraged to attend our Open Shops, as well - we’ve got plenty of work to do!
Garden Work Party - Grease ain’t the only gunk under our nails at YBP. Last month, we had a great turnout and made impressive progress on the shop garden, digging out overgrown beds and starting cool-season seeds and transplants. We’re doing it again on Sunday, February 26, 2pm-sunset; we’ll be digging more beds, planting, weeding, feeding, thinning, and more! Come on out and and learn a thing or two about growing your own organic food while meeting new friends and having an all-around good time.
Volunteer Shops at Lanier High School Boys & Girls Club - Wednesdays this month, the Tools for Life team at Lanier High School Boys & Girls Club are inviting volunteers to lend a hand at their burgeoning bike shop. February 22 & 29, 3:30-4:30pm, get involved with the next generation of do-it-yourselfers.
Sorry, No Rentals - With that big ol’ entertainment invasion just a few weeks away, we’d like to remind y’all that YBP is no longer renting bikes. The good news is that there are tons of other great shops to rent from, and our volunteer-refurbished sale bikes remain an affordable option for visitors looking to pedal around Austin for a week or two.
Easy Ways to Help Improve the Shop - Want to help make YBP the best community bike shop it can be? Take a few minutes at each shop to help us keep it in ship-shape. Wiping down workstands and sweeping floors is quick and easy if everyone pitches in, and makes for a much better place to fix stuff up in. Sorting small parts and components not only makes them easier for everybody to find, but will introduce you to lots of little bits you may have never noticed keeping your ride in one piece. Just think, if everybody leaves the shop better than they find it, we'll always have the best shop we've ever had!
Public Input at Collective Meetings - Collective Meetings are held the first Tuesday of every month at our Webberville headquarters from 7-9pm. Open to the public, they're a great place to learn how YBP and collective decision making work. For members of the general populous coming to make a request of or an offer to the collective, please be aware that the Public Input portion of our meeting is at 8pm. You may stay for as much or as little of the meeting as you like. Our agendas tend to be pretty jam-packed, so please be prepared with a well-defined proposal - public input is limited to five minutes per item.
Shop Schedule – (Updated for February)
YBP's shop schedule is set the first Tuesday of every month at our Collective meeting. Schedule below continues through Monday, March 5.
| Yellow Bike Shop | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| Webberville Shop 1216 Webberville Rd. |
9am-12pm *Open Shop 5pm-9pm *Open Shop |
6pm-10pm *Volunteer Only Shop |
6pm-9pm *Open Shop |
6pm-10pm *Volunteer Only Shop |
7pm-10pm *Open Shop |
2/25 6pm-9pm Lady Bike |
2/26 Garden Work Party 2pm-Sunset |
| Yellow Bike Monthly Collective Meeting at the Webberville Shop 1216 Webberville Rd. |
*Collective Meetings 7pm 1st Tuesday |
Austin's Yellow Bike Project | www.austinyellowbike.org
"Be the change you would like to see in the world." - Gandhi
"Keep Cycling: it is Undoubtedly the Best form of Activism there is."
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages