Austin Yellow Bike - November Newsletter

Newsletter - April 2007

Dear friends of Yellow Bike,

Bike month is almost upon us and there is no better time to get on a bike. Ever biked to work? There's a bike to work day (with free breakfast!), commuter cycling classes to show you how, and weekend rides, parties, and bike in movies. What are you going to need to not feel left out? A working bike! You still have a few weeks left to come in to the shop and fix up your bike to prepare for the festivities. Yellow Bike has organized several events for the month and we wouldn't want you to miss out.

So, read below for the latest YBP news and what to expect during next month.

Thanks again,
-The Austin Yellow Bike Project

BIKE MONTH EVENTS! - Bike month is almost here. The Austin Cycling Association (ACA) maintains a list of city-wide Bike Month events ( View Schedule). Listed below are events that Yellow Bike is sponsoring.

VOLUNTEER WEEK: Monday April 30th to Saturday May 5th at our 51st Street Shop - Instead of our normal schedule for this week all shop hours will be volunteer only. So set your personal projects aside and help the project out for a week. We will be fixing kids bikes for the school year's final Bikes to Schools giveaway, reorganizing and cleaning the shop, and getting yellow bikes ready for our birthday release. Call it a present for our very big birthday.

BIKE ART SHOW: Opening Friday evening May 4th through May 11th at Gallery 1906 - This year we are hosting our second annual Bike Month art show . We have invited artists to submit their bike related drawing, photography, sculpture, video, painting or anything else that vaguely deals with the subject. We look forward to seeing the unexpected once again from a large group of artists from the local cycling community. Opening party will be on Friday evening from 7pm-Midnight. Come celebrate the evening with Yellow Bike Volunteers, homebrew, and the artists behind the work. Gallery 1906 is located at the in the intersection of 3rd and Chicon ( View Map).

COMMUNITY ART AND BICYCLE CARNIVAL: May 12th 1pm-4pm at Kealing Middle School - In collaboration with Cycle Circus and Theater Action Project, YBP is helping organize a kid-oriented bike carnival. We will be giving away another 40 kids' bikes through our ACA and REI supported Bikes to Schools program. There will be music, a bike parade, stilts, face painting, ice cream, puppets, and prizes. Kealing Middle School is located in Central East Austin ( View Map).

YELLOW BIKE'S 10TH BIRTHDAY PARTY: May 19th 5pm-12pm at Ben's Longbranch BQQ - We will celebrate our 10th birthday at Ben's Longbranch BBQ. We will enjoy the evening with music, BBQ, Beer, Movies, a Yellow Bike release, and lots of friends. So far on the lineup are Cat Scientist, Opposite Day, Guy Town, The Hydemen, You Make Engine, with others to be announced. Ben's Longbranch BBQ is on 11th Street just east of IH35 ( View Map).

BIKES TO SCHOOLS COLLABORATES WITH TOOLS-FOR-LIFE - The Bikes to Schools program is one way YBP uses bicycles, which might otherwise go to the landfill, to promote cycling and bike safety among Austin's next generation of cyclists. YBP volunteers overhaul the cycles and then we give the bikes, along with safety gear and information, to Elementary and Middle School aged kids who might otherwise not have access to such resources. Thanks to the support of the Austin Cycling Association and a generous grant from REI we have expanded the program quite a bit during the past year. At our May 12th Bike Carnival at Kealing Middle School we'll deliver another 40 bicycles, bringing our total to 120 bikes donated during the 2006-2007 school year.

Another bike oriented program working with youth at several local schools is the Tools-for-Life program, that teaches bike repair and life skills. As an extension of the Bikes to Schools program, YBP is purchasing tools and supplies that Tools-for-Life needs to expand its programs for the coming school year. As always, Yellow Bike is excited to build closer working relationships with other groups with whom we share common goals.

GRAND OPENING AT TREASURE CITY - Our grand opening for the Treasure City Shop was on Saturday March 24th. We kicked things off at the new space with a Bikes to Schools release and an afternoon open shop.  Children and parents started showing up for the noon release at 10am but, despite any worries to the contrary, we were able to provide all 35 kids (many students from nearby Blackshear Elementary) who came out with bikes, helmets, lights, locks and safety information. Thanks again to ACA and REI for supporting this program and to all the volunteers who help make these events such a success.

The Treasure City shop is now open and in normal operation four days a week serving central East Austin . Come use the new shop!

SCHEDULE - Another full schedule . To kick off Bike Month we will be hosting Volunteer Week from Monday April 30th until Saturday May 6th at our 51st street shop. All shop usage that week will be for the benefit of Yellow Bike community projects.   We will be building kids bikes for the May 12th release, reorganizing the shop, building a YBP photo-booth, preparing Yellow Bikes for our birthday party, and anything else we can think of. We know that it is tough to set aside that new ride that you almost have finished, but we would love to see you come out and give back a little time to our great community bike project. It's more fun than you might think!

Shop	Mon	Tues**	Weds	Thurs	Fri	Sat	Sun
Main Shop: 2013 E. 51st St.	6-10 pm*	6-10 pm*	6-10 pm	6-10 pm	6-10 pm	10am-2pm
Treasure City Shop: 1720 East 12th St.	4-6 pm	12-6 pm	4-6 pm	11am-2 pm 4-6 pm
Bikes Across Borders : 300 Allen St.		7-10 pm
Wheatsville Shop: 3101 Guadalupe	PERMANENTLY CLOSED AS OF JANUARY 1ST 2007

* Red Hours indicate Volunteer Only Shop: Learn to fix bikes while giving back to YBP, earn a bike of your very own, or just help out. Personal projects during Open Shops shown in black on the schedule.
** Collective Meetings: Shop "closed" for collective meeting at our Main Shop (51st Street) on the 1st Tuesday of the month. Meeting begins at 7:30 pm. Open to the public. If you would like to contribute ideas to the collective, make requests, learn more about the project and its internal workings, or just get more involved this is the forum for you.
*** Volunteers Needed: We need volunteers so that we can expand and maintain hours of our shops. We want to be open more often. Come to the main 51st street shop to learn how you can help.

TWO KIDS CLASSES IN PROGRESS - We are currently hosting two middle school classes at our 51st street shop. A group of 6 kids from the Sri Atmananda school come in during school hours once a week. They're building bikes for themselves as well as bikes for the Project. The class is part of their science and sustainability curriculum. The class is also planning a field trip by bike to emphasize the sustainability of bike transportation. Another group of 4 students from Mendez Middle School is utilizing the shop as part of an after-school program. They are building bikes for themselves as well as volunteering to give back to the Project. Both groups are doing well and making great progress on their bikes.

CALL FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS / VIDEOGRAPHERS - If you are interested in documenting Yellow Bike events please contact us by email. We are always in need of people with the photography skills that does justice to our work. Our events and operations include our kids bike giveaways, shop use, birthday parties, rides, kids repair classes, and much more. We have a constant need of pictures for our website and monthly newsletter. Also, we regularly get coverage in the Austin Chronicle, Southwest Cycling News, The Statesman, and the Wheatsville Breeze and often supply photographs for the articles. Your pictures can help give exposure to the project and the great work that we do, ultimately getting more people interested and involved.

ART OUTSIDE - At the start of the month a group of volunteers projected video and slides about Yellow Bike at the Art Outside Event. The two weekend exhibits were successful. Thanks to the volunteers who worked to get this together.