Welcome to the Bike Shack Brief!
We at the Bike Shack have decided to start putting out updates on our little corner of the tool library. News about the Bike Shack, our goals, and how to get involved has been mostly word of mouth since we started, and we want to change that. Plus, a lot has changed in the last year, and it is looking like things will continue to change, so we thought it would make sense to keep our members updated on what we are doing.
When the tool library expanded to our shoreline location in 2024, it became clear that a second Bike Shack was expected with the new location, especially given that the new tool library was situated right along the inter-urban trail. After rallying some volunteers, we were able to get the Shoreline Bike Shack officially up and running on May 1st of that year.
Since then we have grown quicker than any of us expected. Similarly to how we started selling used materials at the Tool Library to keep them out of the dumpster, we started taking bike donations, refurbishing them, and selling them back to the community. As of writing this, we have processed over 100 bikes. We also hired our first Bike Shack specific staff member (Colin). If you want to get involved, or just want to know more about what getting involved even means, always feel free to reach out at bikeshack@seattlereconomy.org. Mainly, we just need volunteers who are excited about helping keep the Shoreline and NE Seattle communities on two wheels. You do not need to be a licensed bike mechanic to help out. Many of us got our start just wanting to know how to fix bikes (myself included!), and we stayed because it is a great community.
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Recently, we received a very generous donation of over 50 bicycles from Cascade Bicycle Club. This is, by far, the largest inventory of bikes we have ever had at one time. Luckily for us (and for the sake of the Tool Library's storage space...) they are selling like hot cakes! In order to keep up with demand, we are organizing work parties in the coming months to get as many of these bikes in working condition as possible. For now we have 2 more planned: April 12th, and April 19th. All 10am-3pm at the Shoreline Tool Library. If you have time and want to lend a helping hand, or if you want to learn a thing or two about how to diagnose and repair bikes, come on by!
The vast majority of these bikes fall into one of three categories: Steel road bike (Torker branded), Aluminum road bike (Raleigh branded), and kids single speed bikes. If you are interested in a bike that fits one of those descriptions, come take a look! We have plenty of inventory:
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Next basic bike maintenance class is April 7th (6-8pm) at NESTL and then April 22nd (6-8pm) at STL. Be sure to sign up if you are new to bike maintenance or just need to brush up on your skills. Remember: If you volunteer at least 9 hours a month, you qualify for a free class!
This Saturday (April 5th), we will have a “bike corral” at the Town & Country Earth Day Event. We are looking for Bike Shack volunteers to help staff the Shoreline Tool Library Bike Shack while Colin is staffing the event, or help Colin at Town & Country if possible. If you are at the Earth Day event, go say hi to Colin at the bike corral!
Next up is Bike Everywhere Day, this May 14th. Like last year, we plan on being out on the Interurban Trail behind the Shoreline Tool Library all day 7 (ish) AM to 7 PM. If you want to come hang out, we will be handing out snacks, refilling water, adjusting derailleurs, and more. All are welcome, so come say hi and we hope to see you out on your bike!
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As we finish building out our backup bicycle storage facility (see above), we are looking to update and improve our current Bike Shack repair space. If you are in possession of an old workbench, or have an idea on how to build out our current one (made of an old door and some 2x4s...), please reach out!
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Finally I wanted to give a big thanks to all the volunteers and community members who have helped us out in the last year. Having grown up near the Shoreline Tool Library, I know how under-served our neighborhood is when it comes to community spaces. And don't get me started on the biking issues in Shoreline. We don't even have a bike shop in the city limits! So, thank you to everyone out there helping with the Bike Shack. Together, we are on our way to making biking in Shoreline more fun, and more accessible to everyone!
- Ryan
