Join us at the Village Green on Saturday, May 11, from 11am-3pm for our yearly Bike & Plant Sale fundraiser and Open House!

The Village Green will be buzzing as both of our projects, MoBo and the Gardens, share the fruits of our labor with the community in exchange for some monetary support for our programming. We’ll also be introducing our newest program, Soapbox Books + Zines!

If you haven’t visited the Village Green in a while, this will be a great time to stop by. We’ve been busy throughout the winter in all parts of the organization, and good things are happening. Come check out what we’re up to and meet some new faces! And while you’re here, pick up a plant for the garden or even an affordable new ride for the summer.

Interested in maybe volunteering in Open Shop or our Kids’ Day summer program? Want some info about the next Sister Cycles series, or Bike Month events we’re involved in? We’ll be here ready to answer your questions and show you what we’re all about. See you there!

Thanks for coming to MoBo’s 2013 Winter Workshop Series!

Thank you to all of the presenters who supported MoBo and our biking community by sharing their skills and experiences!

Thank you to the MoBo volunteers who helped organize, publicize, and Journey-ize this year’s series!

The Winter Workshop Series is an annual series of educational workshops presented by knowledgeable folks from our community. All workshops are free and open to the public. The atmosphere is relaxed, participatory, and inclusive of all levels of experience! A variety of topics are covered, from bike culture to mechanics. If you have an idea for a topic for next year’s series, or would like to lead a workshop yourself, please get in touch!

More photos from this year’s series can be found here, courtesy of MoBo volunteer Michael Providenti.

Poster created by MoBo volunteer Charlie Brown

The 2013 Winter Workshop Series included:

• “Tune-Ups and Basic Maintenance” – 2/18/13, presented by Ron Gillespie of the UC Bike Kitchen/UC Sustainability
• “Brakes” – 2/25/13, presented by Nern Ostendorf of Queen City Bike with the Graduates of Sister Cycles
• “Wheels” – 3/4/13, presented by Scott Pardi of the Clark Montessori Bike Project
• “Hubs” – 3/11/13, presented by Thomas Brannan of Montgomery Cyclery
• “Powertrain and Shifters” – 3/18/13, presented by Martin Sanders of Reser Bicycle Outfitters
• “Urban Riding and Roadside Repair” – 4/1/13, presented by Jess Linz of MoBo, Guadalajara en Bici, and Sister Cycles with her friends
• “Commuting and Touring” – 4/8/13, presented by Bob Linz, who recently completed a cross-country tour in 2012
• “Modern Components” – 4/15/2013, presented by Dominic LoPresti of Spun Bicycles

We are thrilled to help spread the word about Spun Bicycles, a new bike/skate shop opening March 9th in our neighborhood!

Spun is the brain(/heart)child of Dominic and Judi, two long-time MoBo members and fixtures in our community. One struggles to think of two people more perfect to bring a bike shop to Northside; generous, approachable, and committed to the community, they also bring a wealth of experience and a seriously shocking amount of knowledge.

“We want to provide a service for the community of Northside. We will cater to the urban cyclist, the commuter, BMX’ers and even skaters,” says Judi. ”We will provide the very best customer service – no snotty elitist attitudes at Spun Bicycles. We will have a flat screen TV pumping out BMX videos and music. Dominic is in the process of fabricating his own bike racks. This bike shop will be nothing like any other bike shop in the city. It will be a destination. A place to hang out and have a beer while you get your bike worked on.”

We can’t wait! According to Judi, Spun is set for a grand opening March 9th. We’ll keep you updated. And you’ll be able to learn more about Spun at their website, www.spunbicycles.com, soon.

Did you know that we have a new Open Shop list-serve? We use this e-mail list to communicate about shop issues, policies, supplies, staffing, how stuff is organized etc. Anyone who is interested can be added to this list, just send your e-mail address to melissa_mcvay@msn.com!

So another year has slipped by, and it has been an eventful one. In addition to our regular Open Shop, MoBo was involved in a couple of Ghost Bike projects, handed out almost a hundred kids’ bikes during the summer Kids’ Day program, held a very successful Bike Sale, created the new Sister Cycles program, hosted and collaborated on workshops, and pulled off another great fundraiser party.

All of these things would not have been possible without the labor of love of MoBo members! We’re all volunteers, and to show our mutual appreciation for the work we’ve all done to make MoBo happen this year, we invite you to come have a beer and some food on us at Boswells on Friday the 14th, starting at 8pm.