In This Issue
CSA Bike Centre Proves a Hit With Campus Cyclists
Shop helps riders learn their way around their wheels
BY DAVID DICENZO
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| Physics student Bayden Pritchard runs the Central Student Association's Bike Centre, a free do-it-yourself repair shop that's a big hit with campus riders. Photo by Martin Schwalbe |
Money is always a concern for students, so when Sam Dickson needed some potentially pricey work done on his mountain bike, the third-year philosophy major recalled an e-mail he'd received at the beginning of the semester from the Central Student Association (CSA) about the free service offered at its Bike Centre. Dickson had little experience fixing bikes, but at the centre, no experience is necessary — just a willingness to learn.
“I've had problems with resistance and a lot of drag,” he says, while cleaning his bike during a recent visit to the shop. “We cleaned the chain, and I actually had one of the gears snap. The Bike Centre staff showed me how it worked, and I was able to fix it myself.”
At a commercial bike shop, repairs like this can cost up to $40 an hour, making the Bike Centre a popular destination. It has operated in a couple of locations since it started up three years ago, but now has a permanent space in the basement of Biology House on Gordon Street near South Ring Road.
With an ever-expanding number of bike riders at U of G, the CSA recognized the need for a repair centre and applied for a Gordon Nixon Leadership Award to start up the service, says Bayden Pritchard, the centre's co-ordinator for the past two years.
“It became clear that there's a huge population of bikers on campus. Look at the bike racks on any given warm day, and you'll see it's harder to park your bike than your car around here. The Bike Centre was an obvious step.”
It's been a big hit with cyclists, drawing about 30 people a day to work on their wheels during the main riding months, he says. “Oftentimes there will be a lineup.”
The repair shop has four stands and a wide selection of bike-specific tools, fluids and supplies. Pritchard says most of the work done is general maintenance such as fixing flats, cleaning, lubing chains and repairing gears and brakes.
A third-year theoretical physics major from “bike-mad Ottawa,” he says the work is pretty simple to do, and even those with zero repair experience catch on quickly.
“Unless you're getting into the real complicated components, the general maintenance to keep a bike running is not hard. This is the place to learn that. You can come down and ask questions, read our reference books and just poke around. It's a learning-oriented place — that's our philosophy. We try to demonstrate as much as we can as opposed to taking it behind a curtain and fixing it.”
Although many users come in with little or no experience, some do know their way around the shop and drop in just to use the tools. Either way, they leave with more knowledge and a safer bike, he says.
Working with Pritchard at the centre are a volunteer co-ordinator and five volunteers. In addition to its general hours of operation from Monday to Thursday, the centre hosts a couple of workshops on general maintenance each month, with more specialized topics planned down the road.
Although use of the centre peaks during warmer weather, it does stay open year-round, accommodating the many hard-core riders who refuse to shy away from biking in the snow. Winter maintenance is actually an important component of keeping bikes running well, says Pritchard.
“Just like with a car, you have to take care of a bike in the winter to make it roadworthy. Clean it off, lube it up — that goes a long way in the winter. A lot of people don't know that. Neglect is a big cause of damage.”
He sees the centre as more than just a place to tune a bike. An avid rider — the blue and red FSR mountain bike he uses for racing hangs on one of the shop walls — he stopped into the centre a couple of years ago and became a big fan. Working on bikes is a release from studying physics, says Pritchard, and he enjoys seeing the sense of accomplishment visitors to the centre feel as they pick up useful new skills.
Plus it doesn't cost a dime.
“Some people don't believe me when I say it's free,” he laughs. “You can save hundreds of dollars here on labour. The bike shops generally support us because they make most of their profits from parts and equipment sales. We don't sell anything — we just fix stuff.”
For information about Bike Centre hours and events, visit www.uoguelph.ca/~bike.