9 months since we opened the  Community Bicycle Workshop! 

West Torrens Council  want for a short report, to know all is OK; BISA need a report too.   Council were supposed to get one every 3 months, but didnt ask til now....

Both BISA and W Torrens asked, if people who use  the workshop need anything further?  

Wish list time! 

My impression is, people visiting the Workshop, can nearly always get done, what they want to.    I can…

For some time now I have been toying with a couple of ideas to make my first 200km bike ride a reality. The first of these is to double up on the ride I made on the 12th March this year, the day after the Gawler Wheelers 1st year anniversary ride where I rode home from Nuriootpa, some 116km. The second option is to ride to a Gawler Wheelers Saturday morning ride, participate and then ride home. I now know its just over 70km, by a short route, to Gawler, 59.1km for the route number 1 ride and…

Only 4 months left for our next ride. This time raising money for Lifelibe. We driving to Woomera then being left off the chain to ride from Woomera up to the Oonadatta Track, across to Marree and down to Adelaide. We will be using out off road bikes as well as our road bikes. Sponsors are few and far between at the moment especially accommodation and there will be a few cool nights out camping. So looking forward to an adventure again.

Where do I start?

The last post was for the
SSRC 'P' Ride, hopefully the first of many. That was on the 6th May 2012. Since then I have ridden 8 times.


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• 13/05/2012 Spin from home to Outer Harbour and back
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• 14/05/2012 Ride to Flinders to…

A great quote from Melissa Ansett after she won the Ingkerreke Commercial Mountain Bike Enduro at Alice Springs.

“Last time I just rode, this time I was raced it. But I didn’t think I would win, so it was a really nice surprise. Kind of weird in a way as I just enjoy riding, and do a few local races in my area, so to win a big event like this is pretty huge."

“It’s given me some confidence, and I’m not usually confident. But I’m not about to get a coach. I just like to…

Had a few spare hours today waiting for a delivery from Stratco, I was a little bored and had a dirty chain. I've had this idea bouncing around in my head for some time and after a quick trip down to J-Car I came back with a little device, namely a motorised gearbox.

The rest is history.…

Have done some more thinking...

What Hayhurst (I said Hazlehurst earlier) chose to raise, were really issues about  groups finding ways to share space. The space is adequate, for both, to get done what they want.    There will always be niggles, but niggles can be sorted out by friendly give and take, communication.  Like we, and most of them, had been doing for 8 months.

As Hayhurst raised these as Safety, I had to address them formally, and  do a full risk assessment. Took…

While struggling up a quiet climb this afternoon, I momentarily thought wouldn't this be more enjoyable if the gradients in the Hills were a little more gentle.

But if they were a little more gentle, they'd probably be suburbs.

Keep tweeting little birds.

Evans Drive, Mark Oliphant Conservation…

There  were two complaints last week from   Hazlehurst Senior Citizens Club, who use the hall after us on Saturday . The issues are basically about how people can share space, and could have been solved earlier, and informally, and in a friendly way. However Hazlehurst chose not to do that, and instead   chose to raise them semi-officially, and as OH&S.

The issue was , while Hazlehurst members were arriving,  some  people were working on a bike, near the back door . The bike was…

The Bike Workshop isn’t just about giving bikes to individuals or families, it can also tackle projects, with more reach.. . 

Wednesday this week, we took one “class set” of 35 BMX-size bikes to Augusta Park primary school in Port Augusta. This followed a request from teacher Ben Kitchin, whom I’ve known since 2008.

Schools don't just use bikes for cycling...

 Ben, at his old school, Wilsden,   organised bike-fixing lessons (with help of the…

On the weekend, I went with a few mates who are seasoned riders. They were kind enough t give me tips and advice on improving my cycling technique. They decided to take me up Willunga hill on Saturday. I wasn't expecting it, and was kind of unprepared. (late night with not enough sleep, didnt water load as much as I should, felt a bit off with lungs) but I went along anyway to see what the fuss was about.

On the way there we did some mini sprints, learning the techniques of wheel…

Whats This?

The Adelaide Cyclists group "Southern Suburbs Road Cyclists" have been holding group rides for beginners for some time called "the 'L' Ride" and "The Rag Tag Trailer Ride (for parents and kids)." Well, now they have added a 3rd class of ride, the "P" ride. If you are not aware, the SSRC evolved from the "Muddies" group who once a fortnight do a 50km or so ride that includes a couple of…

Minimal Planning

We had made very few plans for the ride except a brief outline of where we would ride and a starting point and time. Just going on previous rides I had suggested we head down the Coast to Vines to Marino and follow the coast to Glenelg. From there head up Anzac Highway to the city, along West terrace to Port road and then down to Port Adelaide. From Port Adelaide down to Outer Harbour then follow the coast all the way back to Seacliff and back up the Coast to Vines…

I got caught in the very heavy rain last Tuesday, and the BSA got saturated (not to mention the rider).  However, it seemed to have dried out fairly well.

But this morning, going to and from the Community Bike Workshop at Plympton, I was having trouble getting the outside sprocket (high gear) on the cassette.  It would not change the final step unless I backed off, went down one, and then changed two at once.

Oiling and cleaning the chain made a slight improvement, but still…

Guys, 

just passing this on. My business has negotiated a 20% discount off NZO gear, and I'm happy to pass it on to all Adelaide Cyclists. 

Get 20% off our favourite bike gear from New Zealand! Discount valid once per person, until end of June 2012.

Escapegoat NZO discount

We love their gear, especially the Doobie shorts, which are super…

For recyclers, scrapyards are useful - they return components to service;  people use them to keep other things going.

Adelaide has plenty of car yards - there must be a demand  .

But Bike scrapyards? That is another service, the Bike Workshop provides to the public...

School bike project: 

 Last week,  we had a request from Melissa at WhiteLion – they were starting a bike-fixing program at a local school.  The   kids would do…

I thought people might like to hear, how cyclists are making use of the Workshop these days.   This was Saturday, 29th April... morning session.

Main development:

Refreshments! - tea and coffee, cooled water   occasionally, fruit, sticky buns and scones…volunteers and workers can help themselves any time, or stop for a mid-morning tea break and chat.. 

Helping school bike project get started: We sorted out 6 suitable bikes and parts, to…

For those of you who don’t know me I’ll let you in on a secret, I’m naturally very lazy! Cold, wet and windy is perfect weather for curling up with a good book and not doing anything until it goes away. Which at times can mean the entirety of winter! So how is it I ended up trying to ride 800km in one month? Well I have an over developed sense of curiosity and I was curious to see if I could do it and what it would take. So I thought I’d give it a go, it couldn’t hurt that much…