| WHOO HOOO ! !
T-SHIRTS ARE HERE |
|
The
T-Shirts have arrived ! The new logo is printed on the back of
the T-shirt and
it's humongeous -- a special distressing pattern in the ink
makes
sure you stay cool. Printed on a nice quality 100%
cotton shirt, they have the visibility you really want when cruising on
your
bike. Proceeds from the shirt sales cover ongoing
operational expenses of the shop. Help to support the shop and its
mission -- get one for
yourself and one as a gift. Only $20.
|
  |
|
| Open Shop Hours |
|
Come down
and work on your bike, or stop by and volunteer, there are a gazillion
things you can help with.
|
|
OPEN SHOP HOURS
Wednesday
6PM - 8PM
Thursday
6PM - 8PM
Saturday
Noon - 4PM
|
|
| Special Events - Bottom Bracket
Maintenance |
|
October 27, 2009 VOLUNTEER
NIGHT 6-8 PM |
ANYONE is WELCOME -- A SPECIAL
CLINIC:
HOW TO service and maintain the bottom bracket on your bike including
bearing repacks and cartridge replacement. If
you've always
wanted to service this critical component yourself, bring your
bike and you can learn to do it yourself - space permitting. Click
on the following link and let us know you're
coming so we can have enough goodies ->> click
here
|
|
| The
Annual Bicycle Auction 2009 is over |
|
The
Bicycle Auction was held September 19, and we sold a bunch of bikes.
A
special note of thanks to everyone who bought a bicycle at the auction.
We
use the money from your purchase to pay the operational costs of the
all-volunteer shop -- we couldn't keep the doors open without your
help. If
your new bicycle needs any further tweaking, please don't hesitate to
stop by the shop during
our regular Open Hours and a helpful volunteer will assist
you.
|
  |
|
| Earn-A-Bike
and Mentoring |
The
Earn-A-Bike program is available to anyone interested in completing
volunteer time assisting with work in the CBSO. There are
no age restrictions on who may participate in the Earn-A-Bike program. It
is a great team activity for other community agencies who provide
mentoring partnerships with youth. The only requirement is the
completion of 9 hours of volunteer time assisting at the CBSO. Although
the final reward is a bicycle at the completion of the program, the
real reward is the committment and perserverance it takes to get there.
If you're not familiar with our Earn-A-Bike program, get the
details at our website (Earn-A-Bike),
and stop by the shop to pick up an application form.
|
|
|
|
Photo Above: Brandon
and Chris, Boy Scouts with Mid America Council Troop 308 from St.
Andrews Church, helping with repairing a
donated bicycle as they work in the earn-a-bike program. Chris has
participated in the Corporate Cycling Challenge for the past 4 years
along with the MS Bike Tour.
|
|
| CBSO
partners with Omaha North High School students for facilities
evaluation and plan |
|
Omaha North
High School Engineering students are evaluating the Community Bike Shop
facilities as part of an ongoing class project. The Society
of American Military Engineers operates a Student Initiative Mentoring
program in which high school students select an engineering and
architecture related building or project and develop a plan to renovate
an existing building, construct an addition, or build a completely new
building. One team from Omaha North has chosen the Community
Bike Shop as the subject of their project. Currently their
plan is two-phased. The first phase would be a renovation of
the existing building, with a focus on increased storage, excluding
major structural changes. The second phase is an addition for
storage, office space, and possibly more workstations. Stay
tuned for more details on this exciting partnership.
|
|
| Did
You Know - IRS Approves the Bicycle Commuting Reimbursement |
|
On
January 1, 2009, the qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement was
added to the list of qualified transportation fringe benefits covered
by the Internal Revenue Service Code. The intent of the
provision
was to provide a simple, equitable solution to put cyclists on the same
footing as people who receive qualified transportation benefits
(QTF)’s for taking transit or driving (or parking, actually)
their cars to and from work. It was intended that the bike commuting
benefit would be treated the same as the other
QTF’s. A
qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement, means any employer, if they
chose to do so, may provide a reimbursement of up to $20 per month for
reasonable expenses incurred by the employee in conjunction with their
commute to work by bike. Ask your employer if they offer
QTF's.
|
|
| Thanks
for your support |
|
The bike
shop exists because of the generosity of the hundreds of volunteers,
donor members, and users. If you used the shop for
maintenance
work on your bicycle and realized the incredible benefit the shop can
offer, if you can, consider leaving a small donation behind.
The revenue from
donations is used to buy tools, supplies, and pay the monthly operating
bills. We all are very grateful for your support.
|
 |
|
| Bicycle
Friendly Business |
|
Omaha
is fortunate to have businesses with vision. RDG Planning and
Design and The
National Park Service, Midwest Regional Office, have been recognized by
the League of American
Bicyclists as Bicycle
Friendly Businesses. This is noteworthy since there are only
a handful of these designations
awarded across the U.S. Encourage your workplace to provide
the
infrastructure and incentives to make it feasible for employees to
bicycle to work.
As a consumer, when you shop at a store and there is
no bike rack,
stop and
talk to the store manager and let them know how important bike racks
are.
|
|
Headlamp
on a Volunteer |
|
Bob
Campbell is a CBSO volunteer who lives in Council Bluffs. Employed in
the
insurance industry, he stops at the shop on his way home and
provides CBSO with a couple of hours of volunteer time each
week. " I'm volunteering because the
co-op is a good opportunity to give something back to the
community. I'm finding out that helping someone with their
bike is a two-way effort. Hopefully, we will both learn
something from the experience." Bob mentioned
that his first bike was a red Columbia 3-speed with balloon tires.
|
Photo above:
Bob Campbell (aka "Biker Bob") testing out some ape hanger
handlebars.
|
|
| How
to Volunteer |
Send an
email to omahabike@gmail.com,
go to the website and fill out the volunteer application, or stop
and fill out one at the shop. Come to the monthly volunteer
night. If you have filled out an application and it seems
like
the wheels fell off, please send us an email so we can figure out what
went wrong and help find a place for you to participate in the mission
of the shop.
|
|
| Become a "Friend of
CBSO" |
|
The Board
of Directors of CBSO has instituted a new donor designation, the "Friend of CBSO".
A $50 contribution provides for special recognition
of the
donor on the CBSO website along with a CBSO T-Shirt. As the
end
of the year draws near and you are thinking of year-end charitable
contributions, consider becoming a "Friend"
and help support the mission of the all-volunteer CBSO shop. "Friend of CBSO" donations
can be made using the PayPal link at the bottom of this newsletter.
|
|
| Newsletter EDITOR Position
OPEN |
If you want
to help CBSO, but don't want to work on
bikes, there are a lot of options. One is to help
with the monthly production of this newsletter. If you like
to write, help with photos, or other graphics, just send an email to omahabike@gmail.com.
|
|
|
| CLASSIFIEDS
for free |
If
you have a bike for sale, we would be happy to insert your Classified
ad in the Newsletter, there is no
cost. Send your completed copy using the
following link
and
we'll get it in the next CBSO Newsletter -- for
free! omahabike@gmail.com
You can
also make a small flier and post it on the bulletin board in the shop
|
|
PayPal
Donations
can be made to omahabike@gmail.com
Friend of
CBSO Donations
|
