Bike Clinic will be at William and South First, near the San Jose Bike Valet (@SJBikeValet) setup, so if you have any repair needs, questions, or are just interested in learning more about SJ Bike Clinic please stop by. We’re always looking for enthusiastic volunteers to help us put on more pop-up clinics like this. Also, if you’ve been wondering where to get one of those cool Bike Clinic t-shirts you’ve seen around town, we’ll have lots of different sizes available for a $20 donation.

You can RSVP to the SubZERO Facebook event here and read on to learn more about what to expect:

About SubZERO (@SubZEROfestival and #SUBZEROFEST) : Focused on emerging and present subcultures thriving in our region, SubZERO is a diy, artistically bent, hi/lo-techno mashup where street meets geek. Come downtown on June 7th to San Jose’s SoFA District from 6pm ’til midnight for an inspired evening of arts & culture. In addition to the South FIRST FRIDAYS monthly art walk you’ll find outdoor stages of entertainment plus artists, performers & musicians celebrating the indie creative spirit!

Click here to RSVP to the Facebook event and invite everyone you know!

This event is free and open to the public. Everybody’s welcome – invite your family and friends!

Want to lead a workshop or teach people how to fix problems on their bikes? Either click here to fill out our volunteer form or email us at sjbc@bikesiliconvalley.org, and we’ll plug you in. We’re always looking for enthusiastic volunteers to join the team! We have a Skill Share the third Thursday of every month, and as we gather momentum and more volunteer energy—like yours!—we’ll increase the frequency as fast as we can.

A big thank you to San Pedro Square Market for hosting our Skill Share! Please come early to check out the shops and restaurants there.

Click here to RSVP to the Facebook event and invite everyone you know!

Come for this month’s Bike-to-Work Gear-Up! That’s right, Bike to Work Day 2013 in San José is May 9, which means Bike to Work Week 2013 is all that week (May 5-11) and Bike to Work Month is all of May! In preparation the Bike Clinic is popping up shop so you can meet with skilled bicycle mechanics to make sure your bike is ready. Please ride/bring your bike so you can fix what needs fixing! The goal is always to put the tools in your hands so you can do it on your own the next time around (or share those skills with someone else).

This event is free and open to the public.

Want to lead a workshop or teach people how to fix problems on their bikes? Either click here to fill out our volunteer form or email us at sjbc@bikesiliconvalley.org, and we’ll plug you in. We’re always looking for enthusiastic volunteers to join the team! We have a Skill Share the fourth Wednesday of every month, and as we gather momentum and more volunteer energy—like yours!—we’ll increase the frequency as fast as we can.

A big thank you to San Pedro Square Market for hosting our Skill Share! Please come early to check out the shops and restaurants there.

Click here to RSVP to the Facebook event and invite everyone you know!

Come for this month’s workshop on Roadside Tire Repair or work directly with our volunteers on your bike’s repair needs. Please ride/bring your bike so you can fix what needs fixing! The goal is always to put the tools in your hands so you can do it on your own the next time around (or share those skills with someone else).

This event is free and open to the public. Donations are requested ($5-$25) to help us open our own shop, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Want to lead a workshop or teach people how to fix problems on their bikes? Either click here to fill out our volunteer form or email us at sjbc@bikesiliconvalley.org, and we’ll plug you in. We’re always looking for enthusiastic volunteers to join the team! We have a Skill Share the fourth Wednesday of every month, and as we gather momentum and more volunteer energy—like yours!—we’ll increase the frequency as fast as we can.

A big thank you to San Pedro Square Market for hosting our Skill Share! Please come early to check out the shops and restaurants there.

San José Bike Clinic’s next Skill Share is Wednesday, February 27 from 7 to 9 p.m., at the historic Faber’s Cyclery at 702 S 1st St in downtown San Jose. Thank you Faber’s for hosting us again!

SJBC Skill Share, Jan 2013

RSVP and invite everyone you know! https://www.facebook.com/events/342076329238186

We plan to work on some children’s bikes used for local bicycle education, and we’ll have stands, tools and volunteers at the ready to help you with your bike repair needs. The goal is always to put the tools in your hands so you can do it on your own the next time around (or share those skills with someone else!). Workshops are in the works, and if you want to lead one yourself let us know: sjbc@bikesiliconvalley.org.

Please ride/bring your bike so you can fix what needs fixing!

Donations are requested ($5-$25) because we need to raise about $6,500 towards opening a shop, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Want to lead a workshop or teach people how to fix problems on their bikes? Email us at sjbc@bikesiliconvalley.org, and we’ll plug you in. We’re always looking for enthusiastic volunteers to join the team! In case you’re wondering, we have a Skill Share the fourth Wednesday of every month, and as we gather momentum and more volunteer energy—like yours!—we’ll increase the frequency as fast as we can.

Please RSVP on Facebook, invite your friends, and spread the word: https://www.facebook.com/events/461967340609213.

Bike Clinic volunteers will lead several workshops about repairing flat tires, basic bike maintenance and safety checks, and how to replace brake or shifter cables. Please bring your bike, questions, frayed cables, squishy brakes, flat tires and mysterious noises for another evening of bike repair fun. You can borrow Bike Clinic’s tools, tap our volunteer mechanic’s expertise, and fix what needs fixing!

Donations are requested, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds. If you’d like to lead a workshop or teach people how to fix problems on their bikes, email us at sjbc@bikesiliconvalley.org, and we’ll plug you in. We’re always looking for enthusiastic volunteers to join the team!

Starting with its inaugural workshop event in May 2012, volunteers of San José Bike Clinic have been doing all of this and more, working towards realizing our mission “to provide a shared space for bicycle repair and education and to build a robust and diverse cycling community in San José.” With skill share events every month, a mobile clinic at San José Bike Party, and other events lined up, we have lots in store for 2013! Though the future is bright, we have miles to go before we can raise the funds we need to establish a dedicated Bike Clinic location.

Now to open its doors in 2013, San José Bike Clinic needs your help! Join as a Member of San José Bike Clinic and you will receive:

• Membership card admitting free use of resources, tools, and access to events and future workshop
• For annual members and above, a corresponding complimentary membership to Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition (including all SVBC membership benefits, a $35 to $1000 dollar value)
• Subscription to news about mixers, rides, educational events, and great volunteer opportunities delivered to your email
• A great chance to meet new people and network with other bike advocates and friends of San José Bike Clinic
• A swell of pride from helping to realize the dream of an open bike repair workspace for the good of the San José bicycling community
• And best of all, joining San José Bike Clinic strengthens our collective power for safer, better bikes for all.

Don’t wait! Join today as a member or buy a gift membership (great for the holidays) by visiting http://www.sjbikeclinic.org or by emailing sjbc@bikesiliconvalley.org.

Sound like fun? We need your help! Please register to volunteer by Nov. 9.

Event: San Jose ICO (Inner City Outings)

When: Saturday, Nov. 17, time TBD

Location: KIPP San Jose Collegiate High School, 1790 Educational Park Drive
San Jose.

Registration Required to Volunteer: Deadline to register is Friday November 9. Email sjbikeclinic@gmail.com with “San Jose ICO volunteer” in the subject line. Include your name, email and phone number in the email, and we’ll send you the SJ ICO participation forms to fill out and return.

We’re looking for several skilled volunteers, especially if you have experience maintaining mountain bikes but that’s not necessary. The tasks will be simple: adding air to the tires, aligning tires, adjusting brakes, and indexing the derailleurs. We would like this to be educational for the urban youth who participate in ICO programs.

Bike Clinic is proud to work with SJ ICO, a program of the Sierra Club, which takes urban youth on outings such as day hikes, mountain biking, sea kayaking, camping, and backpacking throughout the Bay Area and Northern California.

In addition to learning valuable skills like bike repair, which as we know involves overcoming challenges big and small, ICO participants discover the beauty of wild lands and how to enjoy these areas without harming them. According to ICO’s website, “through active involvement with nature, the ICO program increases participant’s environmental awareness. Interpersonal skills and self esteem develop as a natural result of teamwork and an active relationship with the outdoor.

What does this mean? It means that we now have nonprofit status and the backing of SVBC’s existing infrastructure, allowing our group of dedicated volunteers to take Bike Clinic to the next level! We will be looking to all of our supporters over the next year to help us design and deliver programs, raise funds, recruit volunteers, and put in time and energy to help move Bike Clinic forward. We hope you’ll join us.

Our mission continues to be “to provide a shared space for bicycle repair and education and to build a robust and diverse cycling community in San Jose.” As you can see from our History, Bike Clinic was founded in January 2012 by a grassroots group of bicycling enthusiasts, and has achieved a lot already.

Some of the next goals on our road map are to recruit more volunteers, continue to put on Mobile Bike Clinic events and community bike rides, raise funds to buy tools and equipment, save up capital, and open our doors in downtown San José. Want to help?

Get Involved

Please contact SJBikeClinic@gmail.com if you’d like to be informed about volunteer opportunities, upcoming planning meetings, Mobile Bike Clinic repair events, or planned community-building rides. Tell us what you’d like to know or how you’d like to plug in, and we’ll add you to the right email list.

We also have a Wish List on our website, and we would be grateful for any donations, large or small. If you think Bike Clinic sounds great, please consider liking us on Facebook, following @sjbikeclinic on Twitter, and telling all your friends about San José Bike Clinic. Thank you for your support now and in the future.

Sincerely,

Steve Barkley, Angela Dube, Aaron Francis, Cody Kraatz, and Dan McCue
SJBC Steering Committee members.