A How-to Guide: Fixing 600 bikes during a Pandemic
BBP will donate 500 bikes to children during this year’s Holiday Kids Bike Giveaway. To pull that off we’ll likely need an extra 100 bikes of various sizes to serve as alternates. Somehow, a fifth of the kids grow a few extra inches between the time they give us their measurements (November) and the day they get the bikes (December 19), and we always end up swapping out about 100 bikes. So 600 bikes, in total, is what needs to be ready.
In a normal year we’d have about 100 volunteers (the majority over the age of 60) helping out at BBP every week, we’d have our partners at the women and men’s prisons churning out 30 bikes per week, and we could order as many tubes, tires, saddles, and pedals as our pocketbook could handle. Even if it were a normal year, and all of the above were possible, 600 bikes would still be a challenge. Of course 2020 is the opposite of normal, and we’ve only been able to accommodate 6 volunteers per week, the Idaho Department of Corrections is on total lock down, and there’s a global bicycle parts shortage.
So how are we going to overcome such an impossible situation?
Let’s start with our all-star volunteers! Because of social-distancing challenges, we haven’t been able to allow volunteers to come into the shop. Instead we created a new Volunteer Shop down the street called Bikezza Hut (formerly known as Pizza Hut from 1984-2012). While it’s only been able to accommodate 4-6 volunteers at time, those volunteers are basically living in that rejuvenated pizza parlor, and their tireless efforts can likely account for roughly 150 bikes. Another 50 bicycles have been fixed up by volunteers in their own garages. That brings the volunteer total to 200 bikes (probably more if you include all of the double checking).
Now let’s talk local bike shops! In early November, Columbia Bank approached BBP with an idea that probably saved the Holiday Kids Bike Giveaway. In an effort to support local businesses and nonprofits, Columbia Bank created the Pass It On Project, essentially a grant that pays local businesses up to $1500 to provide services to local nonprofits. So Columbia Bank is now paying George’s, Bikes and Beans, the Cycle Learning Center, Reed Cycle, and IMT to fix bicycles for the Holiday Kids Bike Giveaway! Some of these bicycle shops have done it for free in the past, but this incredible grant is making it possible to keep the bills paid for our generous bike shops during a pretty tough time. Right now George’s, Reed’s, and Cycle Learning Center are battling it out for the most bikes fixed and may reach 100 bikes each by Dec 19. In total we believe this partnership will generate 350 bikes fixed by local bike shops.
And now BBP’s staff! Last week we officially closed our doors to the public during the week and are now only open on Saturdays and online for shopping. This decision will likely cost BBP about $10,000 in sales, but it also will allow us to focus 100% on not only fixing the remaining 50 bikes needed, but also double check and customize/dreamify all 600!