Yellow Bike News for January 2012
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Jan 12, 2012, 12:05:33 PM1/12/12
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January 2012 Yellow Bike Newsletter
We’d like to kick off the New Year with gratitude for all the help that made our Fossil Fuel X-mas Tree such a success. Thanks to your volunteer efforts, a couple dozen neighborhood kids and their families were given the gift of cycling over the holiday, and we got to see faces both young and old light up brighter than even the zaniest decorations. Along with our birthday party in May, our Tools for Life youth outreach program, and folks just dropping into the shop, your greasy hands had their part in around 100 kids’ bikes being fixed up and put back to use in 2011. Add to that an Independence Day bike sale, a Day of the Dead Yellow Bike release, a bunch of Earn-a-Bike graduates, and fleets for Hope Alliance and Casa Marienella to equal a productive year we can all be proud of. Thank you so much for your continued time, effort, and donations. We hope to see even more of you and fix up even more bikes in 2012!
EVENTS
Ride for Refuge - Austin’s Ride for Refuge takes place Saturday, February 11. Featuring both 38- and 10-mile routes, cyclists of all skill levels can register, ride, and raise funds for Refugee Services of Texas - Austin. Get some friends or co-workers together, form a team, and spin those pedals for a great cause! Since 2002, RST-Austin has assisted those seeking asylum from natural crises, political strife, and human trafficking with housing, furnishing, food, clothing, orientation, and counseling aid. Come raise funding and awareness for an oft-overlooked part of our population with a nice weekend loop followed by lunch, live music, and good times with some Austin Bike Zoo animals.
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. If you’re involved with a co-op or collective and are interested in participating, you can contact Anne at ages...@utexas.edu.
Austin Mural Project - Don’t forget to lend your creative vision to the Austin Mural Project Idea Box, located by the sign-in computer at the shop. AMP and YBP volunteers will collaborate to make mobile community art out of your input! The Mural Project is also seeking material support, as well as talented artists interested in trying to translate a box full of ideas to canvas - contact them at AustinMur...@gmail.com if you'd like to help.
For Esme - Early New Year’s morning, Austin was robbed of a deeply beloved resident, teacher, music lover, and friend. Esme Barrera was senselessly murdered in what appears to be one of a series of assaults that occurred in her North Campus/Hyde Park neighborhood. With no one apprehended, friends and neighbors have come together to disseminate information about the crimes and a police composite sketch of the suspect. We urge everyone in Austin to spread the word in their communities, be safe and vigilant, and take care of one another. We have some fliers available at the shop if you’d like to post one on your street or at your workplace.
SHOP NEWS
Tools for Life - Tools for Life, YBP’s youth education program, just wrapped another successful semester. In 2011, Tools for Life helped the Lanier High School Boys & Girls Club set up their own bike shop, providing basic repair kits and the know-how to use them. Students were enthused by their new tools, as well as a field trip to our Webberville headquarters, which we’re told is the coolest place on earth. The kids at Lanier were so stoked that in the coming semester, Tools for Life hopes to facilitate making their shop student-run. Pupils schooling their teachers on the finer points of patching tubes and oiling chains? Teens volunteering time towards two-wheeled transport? Way to go, Tools for Life!
Tire Recycling! - At YBP, we’re committed to disposing of kaput-parts as responsibly as possible. One major hang-up for ourselves and other ecologically-minded shops has always been tires. Very few facilities recycle them, and the cost of shipping piles of old rubber to far-flung plants has made doing anything other than trashing them unfeasible. Thanks to the folks at Jack & Adam's Bicycles and their pilot recycling program, tires and tubes won’t be going in the YBP trash anymore! If you’re at the shop, check with a coordinator to make sure those gnarly old 27’s find their way to the right receptacle. If you’ve got an unusable bicycle tire or two at home, you can drop them off at Jack & Adam’s during regular business hours. We’re very happy that J&A’s have asked us to partner with them in this effort, and look forward to diverting more waste than ever.
Sorry, No Rentals - While we haven’t advertised bicycle rental at YBP for quite some time, we have had a discretionary policy to meet the occasional short-term need. It’s never been a great system, and due to recent confusion, we are unfortunately announcing that YBP will no longer rent 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.
Volunteer-Only Shops - Thursday night keeps holdin' it down as our extra-awesome Volunteer-Only Shop month after month. Whether you're coming in to get closer to earning that bike, complete your community service hours, or simply learn more about our favorite machines while helping to make some work again, Thursday nights are the special spot just for you. This month, we’ll be focusing our volunteer efforts on providing transportation solutions for HONK!TX musicians, as well as preparing some good ol’ Yellow Bikes for a spring release. As always, volunteers are encouraged to attend our Open Shops, as well.
Garden Work Party - Grease ain’t the only gunk under our nails at YBP. Our shop garden is excited to have gotten rained on some over the last couple months, and the time to plant some seeds has come. Head out to our Garden Work Party on Sunday, January 22, 2pm-sunset to help sow new crops and learn a thing or two about growing your own organic food.
Apprentice Workbook - One of the things that make being a Coordinator so rewarding is seeing other folks get as excited as we are about greasy fingernails. Enthusiasm is what keeps an all-volunteer shop doin’ its thing - which is why we’re pleased to introduce our new Apprentice Workbook, a handy guide to becoming a Coordinator, too! Whether it's your first time at Webberville or you already know everyone by name, if you’re interested in taking the next step as a YBP volunteer, check it out!
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 January)
YBP's shop schedule is set the first Tuesday of every month at our Collective meeting. Schedule below continues through Monday, February 6.
*Legend: Open Shops | Volunteer Shops | Kids Shops | All-ages Shops | Bilingual | 1st Tuesday Collective Meetings | Lady Bike | Volunteers Needed
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."
We’d like to kick off the New Year with gratitude for all the help that made our Fossil Fuel X-mas Tree such a success. Thanks to your volunteer efforts, a couple dozen neighborhood kids and their families were given the gift of cycling over the holiday, and we got to see faces both young and old light up brighter than even the zaniest decorations. Along with our birthday party in May, our Tools for Life youth outreach program, and folks just dropping into the shop, your greasy hands had their part in around 100 kids’ bikes being fixed up and put back to use in 2011. Add to that an Independence Day bike sale, a Day of the Dead Yellow Bike release, a bunch of Earn-a-Bike graduates, and fleets for Hope Alliance and Casa Marienella to equal a productive year we can all be proud of. Thank you so much for your continued time, effort, and donations. We hope to see even more of you and fix up even more bikes in 2012!
EVENTS
Ride for Refuge - Austin’s Ride for Refuge takes place Saturday, February 11. Featuring both 38- and 10-mile routes, cyclists of all skill levels can register, ride, and raise funds for Refugee Services of Texas - Austin. Get some friends or co-workers together, form a team, and spin those pedals for a great cause! Since 2002, RST-Austin has assisted those seeking asylum from natural crises, political strife, and human trafficking with housing, furnishing, food, clothing, orientation, and counseling aid. Come raise funding and awareness for an oft-overlooked part of our population with a nice weekend loop followed by lunch, live music, and good times with some Austin Bike Zoo animals.
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. If you’re involved with a co-op or collective and are interested in participating, you can contact Anne at ages...@utexas.edu.
Austin Mural Project - Don’t forget to lend your creative vision to the Austin Mural Project Idea Box, located by the sign-in computer at the shop. AMP and YBP volunteers will collaborate to make mobile community art out of your input! The Mural Project is also seeking material support, as well as talented artists interested in trying to translate a box full of ideas to canvas - contact them at AustinMur...@gmail.com if you'd like to help.
For Esme - Early New Year’s morning, Austin was robbed of a deeply beloved resident, teacher, music lover, and friend. Esme Barrera was senselessly murdered in what appears to be one of a series of assaults that occurred in her North Campus/Hyde Park neighborhood. With no one apprehended, friends and neighbors have come together to disseminate information about the crimes and a police composite sketch of the suspect. We urge everyone in Austin to spread the word in their communities, be safe and vigilant, and take care of one another. We have some fliers available at the shop if you’d like to post one on your street or at your workplace.
SHOP NEWS
Tools for Life - Tools for Life, YBP’s youth education program, just wrapped another successful semester. In 2011, Tools for Life helped the Lanier High School Boys & Girls Club set up their own bike shop, providing basic repair kits and the know-how to use them. Students were enthused by their new tools, as well as a field trip to our Webberville headquarters, which we’re told is the coolest place on earth. The kids at Lanier were so stoked that in the coming semester, Tools for Life hopes to facilitate making their shop student-run. Pupils schooling their teachers on the finer points of patching tubes and oiling chains? Teens volunteering time towards two-wheeled transport? Way to go, Tools for Life!
Tire Recycling! - At YBP, we’re committed to disposing of kaput-parts as responsibly as possible. One major hang-up for ourselves and other ecologically-minded shops has always been tires. Very few facilities recycle them, and the cost of shipping piles of old rubber to far-flung plants has made doing anything other than trashing them unfeasible. Thanks to the folks at Jack & Adam's Bicycles and their pilot recycling program, tires and tubes won’t be going in the YBP trash anymore! If you’re at the shop, check with a coordinator to make sure those gnarly old 27’s find their way to the right receptacle. If you’ve got an unusable bicycle tire or two at home, you can drop them off at Jack & Adam’s during regular business hours. We’re very happy that J&A’s have asked us to partner with them in this effort, and look forward to diverting more waste than ever.
Sorry, No Rentals - While we haven’t advertised bicycle rental at YBP for quite some time, we have had a discretionary policy to meet the occasional short-term need. It’s never been a great system, and due to recent confusion, we are unfortunately announcing that YBP will no longer rent 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.
Volunteer-Only Shops - Thursday night keeps holdin' it down as our extra-awesome Volunteer-Only Shop month after month. Whether you're coming in to get closer to earning that bike, complete your community service hours, or simply learn more about our favorite machines while helping to make some work again, Thursday nights are the special spot just for you. This month, we’ll be focusing our volunteer efforts on providing transportation solutions for HONK!TX musicians, as well as preparing some good ol’ Yellow Bikes for a spring release. As always, volunteers are encouraged to attend our Open Shops, as well.
Garden Work Party - Grease ain’t the only gunk under our nails at YBP. Our shop garden is excited to have gotten rained on some over the last couple months, and the time to plant some seeds has come. Head out to our Garden Work Party on Sunday, January 22, 2pm-sunset to help sow new crops and learn a thing or two about growing your own organic food.
Apprentice Workbook - One of the things that make being a Coordinator so rewarding is seeing other folks get as excited as we are about greasy fingernails. Enthusiasm is what keeps an all-volunteer shop doin’ its thing - which is why we’re pleased to introduce our new Apprentice Workbook, a handy guide to becoming a Coordinator, too! Whether it's your first time at Webberville or you already know everyone by name, if you’re interested in taking the next step as a YBP volunteer, check it out!
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 January)
YBP's shop schedule is set the first Tuesday of every month at our Collective meeting. Schedule below continues through Monday, February 6.
| Yellow Bike Shop | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| Webberville Shop 1216 Webberville Rd. |
9am-12pm *Open Shop 3pm-9pm *Open Shop |
6:30pm-10pm *Open Shop |
Closed | 6pm-10pm *Volunteer Only Shop |
7pm-10pm *Open Shop |
Closed | 1/22 Garden Work Party 2pm-Sunset |
| Yellow Bike Monthly Collective Meeting at the Webberville Shop 1216 Webberville Rd. |
*Collective Meetings 7pm 1st Tuesday |
*Legend: Open Shops | Volunteer Shops | Kids Shops | All-ages Shops | Bilingual | 1st Tuesday Collective Meetings | Lady Bike | Volunteers Needed
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."
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