A very raucous circus

What’s even better is that Paul will be selling scads of his artwork at the Second Saturday party following the scavenger hunt.  So while you’re listening to DJ Hail Bop and Be Brave Bold Robot and throwing back some delicious New Belgium beer, you’ll have a feast for your eyes as well!

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Hunt the Grid IV: The Circus is Coming to Midtown

Second Saturday, June 9

Sign-in starts at 3:00 PM, the hunt lasts from 4:00 to 6:00, the party starts promptly after.

Register a team (two to four participants) at circus@sacbikekitchen.org.

Event is $10 per person, cash due at sign-in.

All participants must be 18 or participate with a legal guardian.

Prizes for best circus-themed team and best scavengers!

Please bring a working bike; the Kitchen will be open as usual, but we cannot guarantee that we can help get your bike working on the day of the event.

The Sacramento Bicycle Kitchen is proud to bring back Hunt the Grid — our annual bicycle scavenger hunt — for an encore performance on Second Saturday, June 9th, and this year, we’re not clowning around.

We’ve told our ringleaders to pull together even better prize packs.  We’ve teamed up our strongman and lion tamer to come up with new feats of strength and bravery to match last year’s special challenges.  We’ve got our mentalist devising even craftier clues.  But this year, we’re introducing a new act: prizes for the best-dressed circus-themed teams!

You’ll need an elephant’s memory, a tiger’s cunning, and a juggler’s skill to win, but we guarantee you’ll have fun just showing up, so grab your bikes and your friends and come on down!

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After you’ve built up your thirst hustling around town, kick back at our monthly Second Saturday party, featuring beer from New Belgium and music by Be Brave Bold Robot. As always, there’s no cover charge, so even if you skip the scavenging, you can still enjoy the tunes and suds!

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Hunt the Grid IV: The Circus is Coming to Midtown

Second Saturday, June 9

Sign-in starts at 3:00 PM, the hunt lasts from 4:00 to 6:00, the party starts promptly after.

Register a team (two to four participants) at circus@sacbikekitchen.org.

Event is $10 per person, cash due at sign-in.

All participants must be 18 or participate with a legal guardian.

Please bring a working bike; the Kitchen will be open as usual, but we cannot guarantee that we can help get your bike working on the day of the event.

Second, our primary Ryan, Ryan Drobek, will be running a class on Saturday, April 21 at 10:00 am.  This will be an Introduction to Bike Tools, so if you’ve always wondered what that thing with the spring was called or when to use a chain whip, this is your class.

These classes are free, though we do suggest a $5 donation as a show of public support and to help us keep our lights on.  Seating is limited, so e-mail clas...@sacbikekitchen.org to reserve your place!

Wheel truing: The True Is Out There

Saturday, January 21, 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM.

Suggested donation: $5 at the door.

10 seats available; e-mail register@sacbikekitchen.org to preregister.

Instructor: Michael Larmer.

Amaze your friends, entertain at parties, be one of the kewl kids!  At last, the secrets of wheel truing are revealed by one of the initiate. Your instructor has trued (and built and rebuilt) more wheels than he can recall (but at his age, he honestly recalls very little), having been forced by poverty and circumstance to spend the earliest years of his biking life riding around on other people’s cast off junk wheels.

This will be a one session class, and if you have a portable truing stand, it would be nice if you brought it with you.  Also, bring your own wheel or wheels as a practicum, otherwise you will be working on one of the many crappy wheels we have lying around in the shop.

Overhauling your hub

Saturday, January 28, 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM.

Suggested donation: $15 at the door.

4 seats available; e-mail register@sacbikekitchen.org to preregister.

Instructor: Mel Melvin.

Don’t be frightened of the inner workings of your bicycle.  Open that thing up and get greasy!  In this two-hour class you will take apart, clean, and re-pack your front hub.  This simple maintenance procedure will keep your wheels rollin’ smooth and fast.

First off is the Night Brite Bike Parade, Wednesday, December 21. It starts at 7:00 PM on M Street between 40th and 41st, but a few SBK volunteers will be ganging up at Luigi’s Slice at J and 20th at 4:00 for some pre-ride carb loading.  For more information, check out the Facebook event.

Second is the Capitol Cargo Cruise, a benefit for the River City Food Bank. Bring your most cargo-y bike — even if it’s just your polo bike and your back pockets — and help schlep a bunch of canned goods from Edible Pedal at 1712 Liestal Row (the alley behind Old Soul on L) down to the River City Food Bank. There’ll be a first ride around 9:00 AM to collect food from local collection bins and a second ride at 2:00 PM to take the collection down to the food bank. A full itinerary and food bank wish list is up at the ride’s Facebook event.

And of course, if you’d like to lend a hand painting or scrubbing or reorganizing our shop, fire off an e-mail to i...@sacbikekitchen.org and we’ll put your idle hands to good use!

This year, we’ll be closed for the week before and after Christmas. So if you need bike work, pop in to our last shift on Saturday, December 17, or you’ll have to wait until our next shift on Tuesday, January 3.

We’re also hoping to get some work and organization done on the shop over these two weeks, including a special painting day on December 26. E-mail i...@sacbikekitchen.org if you’d like to help swing a hammer, swipe a rag, work a brush, or rearrange the furniture. We’ll find something for you.

Update: Bicyclette! On Monday, December 19, will *not* be affected by the shutdown. Saturday, December 17 will still be our last general shift, but we’ll keep our doors open for the special women’s and LGBT shift.

• First, we’d all like to give thanks to Paul, who will be graciously running our Tuesday shift on November 22nd.
• Second, we’d like to give thanks to Vince and the crew behind the Appetite Enhancement Ride, providing the usual scads of food, libations, jams, bikes, camaraderie, and all-around awesomeness at the California Auto Museum on Thanksgiving morning, November 24th.
• Third, we’d like to give thanks to Mel for opening the shop for our normal Saturday shift on November 27th.

And of course, we’d like to give thanks to all of the volunteers, customers, and donors who have supported us over the last five years and counting. It’s very humbling to be a part of such a wonderful organization and bring such a unique service such a grateful community.

SBK Thanksgiving Week Hours:
Tuesday, Nov 22: Open 6pm – 9pm
Wednesday, Nov 23: Closed
Thursday, Nov 24: Closed
Friday, Nov 25 (day shift): Closed
Saturday, Nov 26: Open Noon – 4pm

SBK Events

First, the cooler weather is inspiring even those of us who bike through fog and flood to take a break and spend some time indoors.  This means SBK’s public classes are rolling right along.  If you’re a prospective rider looking for tips on how to find a good bike on the Internet, a cyclist looking to start fixing your own flats, or an experienced roadie looking to repack your hub bearings, we’ve got the classes for you!  We’ve covered them here before, so check http://sacbikekitchen.org/2011/10/upcoming-classes/ for dates, details, and registration instructions.

Our monthly Shift Rides are chugging along, too.  This month, one of our Thursday shifts goes on the chopping block.  So Thursday, November 17th, come join us on a fun little ride from our shop.  The ride leaves at 6:00 PM, and like a true collective, we’ll hammer out the destination when we all assemble.  Bring a working bike (’cause we ain’t doin’ no wrenching), lights, and a fun attitude.

Other Events

Looking beyond our ivy-covered walls, the do-goodniks at the Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates are hosting VeloBall, their 20th anniversary party, on Saturday, November 19th, featuring a live auction, silent auction, bar, music, dancing, dinner, and a raging good time.  Check SABA’s web page at http://sacbike.org/veloball/ for tickets.  Word on the street is that they need volunteers to help with the event, too; if you’ve got a hand to lend, volunteer coordinator Larry Robinson will put it to use.

And of course, cooler weather means we can finally start digging that moth-eaten wool out of our closets and start getting ready for the Sacramento Tweed Ride, on Sunday, November 13. Rick Houston’s providing pretty frequent updates over at http://sactotweed.blogspot.com/, including the just-posted ride route, a slick poster, and a tie-in with next year’s NAHBS.

More SBK Events

If you still want your SBK fix, your favorites are still around.  We’re happily hosting our third Bicyclette! on Monday, November 21 at 6:00 PM.  This is a special shop shift open to all women, transgender, queer, femmes, and anyone else who has had gender bias, homophobia, or transphobia impede them from participating in bicycle mechanics.

And, of course, SBK Second Saturday this year is bringing in the big guns; we haven’t had some heavy rock ‘n’ roll in a while, so on November 12th, we’re bringing in 50 Watt Heavy to shake our walls and frighten our neighbors, after an acoustic set from Sherman Baker and an acoustic/rock ‘n’ roll set from Blame the Bishop. All with the same delicious beer you’ve come to expect from us for the last three years.

We’ll also be closed for Thanksgiving, but chances are you’ll see most of the usual suspects out at the Appetite Enhancement Ride.

Finally, a special congratulations to Core volunteers Doug and Emjay.  After years of helping us keep our shop going, we’re pleased as punch to be able to host their wedding this November, as well.  All of us around here wish you two all the best.  Now, we just need to find them a nice tandem…

Winterizing your bike

Sunday, October 30, 1:00 PM.

Suggested donation: $5 at the door.

Limited seats available; e-mail register@sacbikekitchen.org to preregister.

Instructor: Mel Melvin.

This class will cover how to winterize your bike, winter bike maintenance, dressing, riding safety and commuting tips.  The class will be taught by the intrepid Mel Melvin, a veteran year-round bicycle commuter.  Come one, come all and learn how to stay dry and safe during these winter months.  You don’t have to put your bike away for the winter, you just have to be prepared!

Finding True Love on the Internet: A guide to buying bikes on Craigslist

Sunday, November 6, 1:00 PM.

Suggested donation: $10 at the door.

15 seats available; e-mail register@sacbikekitchen.org to preregister.

Instructor: Mike Larmer.

This one session class will cover the various aspects of delineating, discovering, and buying a used bicycle that is right for you using available resources on the internet with particular attention to Craigslist.

Topics will include some basics of bicycle construction, some reference to the history of bicycles in the USofA since the 70′s bike boom, a general overview of frame construction, geometry, and components, and some basic rules for survival in the  Craigslist jungle environment. The focus will be on steel framed bicycles, with a particular lengthy digression into the world of high end double butted steel road bikes…..if you think this refers to a bicycle with two saddles, this class is probably not for you. If you are a fixed gear fanatic, a carbon fiber fan, or in general a weight weenie; again, this is not the class you want to take, because the instructor will hold you up for ridicule.

Basic maintenance

Sunday, November 20, 12:00 PM.

Suggested donation: $10 at the door.

10 seats available; e-mail register@sacbikekitchen.org to preregister.

Instructor: Ryan Sharpe.

A two-hour introductory course in bicycle maintenance, focusing on fixing the most common problems and making simple adjustments.  It will feature a general overview of the parts of a bike, how to remove and replace a tire and tube, how to patch a tube, how to adjust brakes and derailleurs, and how to adjust a bike to fit the rider comfortably.

Overhauling your hub

Sunday, December 4, 1:00 PM.

Suggested donation: $15 at the door.

4 seats available; e-mail register@sacbikekitchen.org to preregister.

Instructor: Mel Melvin.

Don’t be frightened of the inner workings of your bicycle.  Open that thing up and get greasy!  In this class you will take apart, clean, and re-pack your front hub.  This simple maintenance procedure will keep your wheels rollin’ smooth and fast.

Mel Melvin is a longtime volunteer at SBK and a veteran year-round bike commuter.  He commonly shames our other volunteers with his steadfast dedication to our hectic Saturday day shift.

Mike Larmer is a long time bicycle junkie and retro roadie fan, who has been logging significant commuting and sport riding miles since his college years in the early 1970′s (he is old). He currently serves as custodian and maintenance staff to an embarrassingly large fleet of high end road bikes from the 70′s, 80′s, and very early 90′s. His last new bicycle was given to him on his thirteenth birthday, a maroon 3 speed Dunelt, which was stolen in Charleston, S.C. during his term of active duty service in the United States Navy. A pox upon the thief (may he burn in hell.)  He thus has possession of an esoteric body of knowledge with regard to steel framed bicycles (and what makes a good one), their selection, maintenance, and use. It appears that there is an audience for this information, and if nothing else, every bike you buy on Craigslist before he can contributes to the longevity of his marriage.

Ryan Sharpe picked up the bike bug reorganizing Sacramento Critical Mass in 2007 before holding down a regular clerking shift at SBK in early 2009.  Through exposure, osmosis, and thickheadedness he’s managed to learn a thing or two about keeping a bike on the road in one piece.

So, in the next few months, you can look forward to a few changes:

More frequent classes

Teaching bike maintenance is a big part of our mission.  Though we haven’t been as up on that as we’d like, we’ll be ending 2011 with a wealth of classes.  We’re offering our basic maintenance class once a month starting on November 20.  Before that, we’ll have  a few other classes on winterizing your bike (October 30), what to look for when buying a bike on Craigslist (November 6), and overhauling your hubs (no date set).  We’ll have more details very soon.

Monthly SBK rides

For the first time in what seems like forever, we put down our wrenches for a day last September and took off to ride those two-wheeled contraptions we love so much.  We had such a great time, we’ve decided to make that an ongoing thing.  So look forward to more SBK rides as we shut down a different shift each month to get a little quality time in the saddle and out with friends.  If you show up this  Wednesday, October 19, bring a bike that’s ready to ride, cause we ain’t gonna be wrenching!

More volunteer hours and training opportunities

Just like our public classes have tapered off, so did our volunteer time, but that’s all changing.  We’re planning on opening our shop more often to our underpaid and overworked volunteer staff, to give them more chances to work on their own projects, get more experience wrenching on different bikes, and to help beef up the camaraderie that makes our shop so much fun already.

Special events

Last month’s inaugural Bicyclette! — shop time exclusively for our female and LGBT patrons — humbled us with the turnout and energy, and we’re happy to see it take off on the third Monday of each month, including tomorrow, October 17, from 6PM to 9PM.

And like last year, we’ll be closing down again this Christmas and New Years weeks to work on the shop itself.  This year, we’re looking for a few artists to help us use up a few gallons of paint we’ve had donated.  If you’d like to help out but you’re handier with a hammer than a brush, give us a buzz; we’ll have plenty of projects to work on.