4/14/2021 0 Comments Bike love and Shifting into springHey everyone!
This spring has accelerated right before my eyes! And maybe that's because Winter wasn't as sleepy as I anticipated? Well that's my reasoning to the lack of updates! The shop has been very busy for repairs and as I try to balance the gain in hectic work mode speed; more daylight, and general life hick ups, I find myself far from my computer and recent memories. But I am going to take a moment to reflect on the past two events carried out through the Park Fix It Series! Bike Love, and Shift into Spring! Bike Love was focused on cleaning and regular maintenance. We had the stands once again set up and open to teach and encourage people to care for their bikes after riding through the winter. We wiped down rims, and rotors, chains and frames. Keeping your bikes clean will help make it last! This event had the biggest turn out, out of the 4 events we've had so far. For early March it was a warmer afternoon than we were used too and everyone came through to hang out, say hi and share tips. That day there were 5 bike shops represented by employees hanging out or lending a hand with us. That is a huge take away for me, seeing our allies across shops come together for the community. At Shift into Spring, we focused on the drive train! One couple who was new to the Fix It Series, came after Emily my co-worker, had mentioned it to them. We had the opportunity to go over the drive train, how it works, what wear items are, and what adjustments you can make at home. It was encouraging to hear that after riding and racing their bike for years, they finally decided it was time to learn how it works and how to fix it. That particular morning was quite chilly and went quickly. There wasn't a very big turn out besides friends and volunteers so a few people set to work picking up trash in the nearby woods. All in all the series so far has been a wonderful growing experience. My close knit community of friends are very helpful and supportive, and they show up for each other. This safety net has been wonderful to rely on while planning and executing these events. It's encouraging to know there are people to answer a call. My hope is that the momentum of the series events can continue and evolve into what ever the community may need next. Right now, despite the support my efforts feel insignificant. When people of color are being murdered by the hands of the police, when a global pandemic has taken over 3 million lives, teaching someone how to lube their chain seems like that's the last thing that could help. But when I think about the bike as a tool, as a caveat to so many important social issues, my mind starts to spin again but this time with dreams of how to use them to liberate and bring justice to people around me. Christina from Cyclista Zine said "Bikes for us are tools to hold nuanced conversations across a variety of topics from fatphobia in active transit, police violence on BIPOC cyclists, bike lanes as gentrification, city planning as colonization, colonization of native land for recreation, homophobia and transphobia in sport, mental health and bikes not as a fix all, discrimination of immigrant bike deliverers, racism in environmentalism, racial biases in our bike spaces, sexism in cycling, erasure of trans and non-binary genders, abolishing hierarchies of bodies, and dismantling white supremacy, capitalism, and patriarchy." There's a lot of important work to be done! Our efforts are important and valid, but mindful consistency is what a movement needs to grow. Keep your eyes peeled for future news and the next events. In the mean time, remember to keep your feminism intersectional. We can't dismantle the system set in place by the oppressor, with the oppressors tools. Peace
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Howdy folks!
Last week I had the opportunity to join my friend Craig on his podcast, the Wheel Friends! We chatted about how the Fix It Series came to be. We also talked about our rad community and how we strive and dream to improve it in the ways we know how, bikes and working together for the people. Check it out! Craig and I know each other from the Wednesday Evening Rides in downtown GR, pretty much the huge weekly rolling party, but also from the Spoke Folks, the local non-profit co-op that I cut my teeth at a few years back! My dear Ryan was in on the podcast too and talked about Switchback, the bike shop he manages. They recently opened up half their storefront as a coffee shop, so fricken cool! They serve up local goodness from Aldea Coffee from Muskegon. Be sure to keep up with Craig, The Wheel Friends and Switchback to see what cool things they are getting into next! Thanks for having us on, it's always great to catch up and I look forward to seeing how many pb&js we can carry on our bikes ;)
The next Park Fix It event is coming up this Saturday March 6 at Lincoln Park, on Bridge Street.
***BiKe LoVe*** Come learn and clean your bike. Take care of your best friend after a very hard winter. Open house style like usual, come when you can, leave when you gotta. The fourth event will be announced there with a new poster! This park is right by Tacos El Cunado so that's a pretty good incentive to come!? Looking forward to seeing y'all there 2/17/2021 0 Comments fingers crossedI've been thinking about a lot of things.
I've been thinking about my friend Leah, when we rode our bikes to the store, saying she wished she had a vehicle to bring all the things she wanted to buy, back home. For me out there, I did have my vehicle with me. I've been car free for 8 months now, that honestly blows my mind. It's felt like forever honestly. So many things have happened. It's very strange to ride my bike around town and see my old car parked in a neighborhood i'm passing through. The new owner has driven past me several times, often when I'm riding home from work in a snow storm. I just laugh and keep pedaling. When I looked in the mirror tonight I said to myself, 'I'm starting to see the transformation'. My muscles look strong. My hair is getting long. Marks of the passage of time and hard work. When I looked in the mirror I noticed I lost an earring and a nose ring today. Thinking thats why I enjoy more permanent decor on my body. The permanence is a comfort. I get to become familiar with it and watch it change. When I looked at my big bruised knee in the shower tonight I noticed how its coloring in a wing of my Keith Haring devil tattoo. A visual metaphor for what I know of myself, and how my body reacts to outside forces. I have a new way of thinking about how I plan and transport myself, and my things. And it all happens under my own power. And if that isn't enough of a powerful metaphor, I don't know squat. But that can be super intimidating. When my neighbors were fighting the other night, I thought about how I would leave the house and go to a safe space for the night, but I would have to do that by bike. I shop for groceries differently, and I have to do home renovations differently. And the hardest thing is having to ask for help and relying on people when I need help. 2020 was the year I consciously practiced asking for help. 2021 is a continuation. This past year has held every insane thing you could imagine. It's solidifying this fact that time, the idea of anything linear, is not real. When I started this draft I had just heard about Lael Wilcox's scholarship to create a 1000 mile route and ride in Alaska. I was stoked at first and then got nervous and then stoked again. I was just thinking about it and if I would want to leave my new home for a month. How I would miss my dog and my garden and how the light comes in the kitchen. I never had anything like this before and I really revel in it. A month away from all that and focusing on literally me- my body and myself, I wonder what ideas I could come up with. I wonder what anxiety knots I could unravel. That sounds scary though! What about bears!? I'm scared of bears, despite living in Michigan I have never seen one in real life! These feelings remind me of the Richmond fear. That dark pit I developed and got to know very well when I lived there a few years ago. That alone feeling. I've been working on creating wonderful web of filler for that hole since I got back. It's not filler in a bad way, and its definitely helping to heal that spot. I don't know if I'm scared of being alone again, I don't think thats it. I think I'm afraid of falling into that dread pit again. I think that's a valid concern. But I applied. I made a route I am very excited about. This route focuses on seeing and studying the art of the Indigenous People, the Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian and Eyak, who occupy what is now called the Inside Passage. If everything goes according to plan, I would begin my month long journey in Juneau, spending the first week riding along the coast and visiting the museums. I would then ferry to Wrangell, heading there specifically to views the petroglyphs that are preserved at the the state park. Another ferry would then take me to Ketchikan and Prince of Wales Island to visit the Totem Pole parks and other sites of artistic and spiritual importance. I have routed about 800 of the 1000 miles that Lael has challenged the applicants to map out. The rest of the mileage would be rambled out once I am there and can explore roads and trails that may not be on the maps I have been studying. Not only was the research and route making exciting, I found answering the questions Lael posed to be a great time of reflection on how I have gotten to where I am today. Here is my long form answer to, "Write us a story. Tell us about yourself, including school, work and life experiences that you think relate to this application. One page limit." :: Well, I would say I am an artistic mechanic. Creative thinking is the first lens I view the world through. The second lens I use is one guided by my strong moral compass. And both of these are balanced by my love of laughter and experiencing joy. I have studied and made art for most of my life. My parents always encouraged me in any way they could, to make and express. When I was 16 I began boarding school at Interlochen Center for the Arts in Northern Michigan. This is where I started to develop my identity away from my family and broadened my world view. After something so special, I found getting into the groove of college hard. I was restless and had no idea how I could make a career out of something so intensely personal. When I finally landed at Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids MI, I found a community that showed me what I was looking for. But it wasn’t at school, or even the art community. It was the effervescent local bike community. I started biking just to get around, and then joined weekly party rides. The summer before my junior year of college I began volunteering at a non profit co-op, called The Spoke Folks. I grew to love the work they were doing in the community, seeing real need, and real change. That following spring they invited me to join their team as a mechanic. Just thinking about that time, and that chosen family we formed makes me tear up! Frick I love those people. I am so grateful and think so fondly of that time, despite the insane challenges we faced. My second year working at the Spoke Folks, I was a senior, working on my thesis, and trying to co-operate a nonprofit. That was wild and hard, but an awesome experience. After graduating I was awarded a week-long residency at a workshop in Colorado, where I met many other amazing artists, but they were all older than me, and all had Master Degrees. At that time, I thought that’s what I wanted to do... needed to do, in order to keep me on the path of becoming a legitimate artist. With a heavy heart, I left the Spoke Folks and moved to Richmond, Virginia, in efforts to manifest an acceptance letter to the very competitive sculpture program at Virginia Commonwealth University. While living there I was working at a bike shop, but really it was just a storefront with no soul. When I received a rejection letter from the school, I did my best to create what I had grown to love in Grand Rapids, working towards making Richmond my new home, but the seeds of loneliness had deep roots. So after a year of living there, I decided to move back to Michigan. Three days after being home I started my job as a mechanic at Grand Rapids Bicycle Company, where I still work! After thinking bikes were going to be my side hustle for so long I decided that I want to be a career mechanic, and I have no regrets in the slightest. I am creatively fulfilled through learning how to fix stuff, solving problems, and getting deeeeep custom with bikes. The support network that I have embedded myself in is something I never had in the art community. I see so many through lines between the art world, and the bike world. Both subjects can be seen as elitist pursuits, only for the wealthy. But they are really quite the opposite. Both center around the core functions of being human. Expression and mobility. And with that, I feel that I can serve my community best as a mechanic. In my work now, I focus on access to information and education through transportation and recreation. I have led a Womens, Trans, Femme - Winter Bike Commuting Panel Discussion, mechanic classes through the shop, and on my own. I want to leverage my position as one of the two female mechanics in Grand Rapids to ensure that silenced voices are elevated and that space is intentionally made, so that everyone can feel welcome on a bike, however they ride. In 2020 I sold my car and bought a house, I am invested in my community, and I look forward to seeing all the growth that we can achieve together. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I am looking forward to seeing what this year of growth and opportunity may bring, whether it's a big adventure outside of my home or right in my own community. Thanks to everyone who takes the time to listen to me and helps me and my dreams be heard. Ride on :) Here are some links to help further inform you about the scholarship and the area I would be visiting: https://laelwilcox.com/2021/01/06/lael-rides-alaska-2021-femme-trans-womens-scholarship/ https://www.travelalaska.com/Destinations/Regions/Inside-Passage.aspx https://lam.alaska.gov/asm-events https://www.wrangellalaska.org/visitorservices/petroglyph-beach-state-historic-park http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/aspunits/southeast/totembigshp.htm https://www.adventurecycling.org/default/assets//File/AdventureCyclist/MagazinePDFs/201103_Adventure_Cyclist.pdf Here are some winter update pics! On a freezing cold Saturday morning late January, I met my friends at Wilcox Park to work on bike brakes!
As the day of the second Park Fix It Series event was approaching, I kept an eye on weather, and wondered if anyone would want to meet in 14 degrees to talk mechanics. I did my best to get the word out to people, that there would be hot coffee, and a fire in the park grill to gather and warm up around. The day of, my roommate and I rode to the park as the sun was rising, and what a pleasant surprise that it stayed out with us all day! The sun shining that day really was a highlight. A few other highlights included the great coffee provided by our friends at Switchback, who just opened a coffee shop inside their store! So stoked for them. At this event, we put 4 bikes in the stand, quadrupling the number of bikes we worked on at the last event! I was so happy to see everyone who came through, it was such a great turnout despite the cold weather. I rode the awesome wave of smiling and chatting with everyone for a long time after! I was really looking forward to the next event, and still am but I decided to postpone. BIKE LOVE was scheduled to be this past weekend but the weather was shaping up to be colder than the last event! If I didn't want to be outside for that, I couldn't ask my community to do so either. But keep your eyes peeled for the new date as we hopefully leave this cold spell behind us soon! Thanks to everyone who has supported these events so far! I hope you all are staying warm and sane as winter has really settled in. Ride on! 12/3/2020 0 Comments Missouri Rocks! At the beginning of November Ryan and I took our long awaited trip to go visit my great friend, Morgan Barkley! I wrote about Morgan and her trail building experience here, back in March when we were initially planning on going to see her. Since then Morgan has started working for a new trail building company, Jagged Axe Trail Designs. Morgan is leading the build team in Ironton, Missouri where we got to check out the green, blue and black trails on Shepard Mountain! This region was originally home to the Kickapoo and Osage people who were removed during the Indian removal act of 1830 and marched along the trail of tears where they were given small parcels in territories of present day, Oklahoma, Nebraska and Kansas.
Ryan and I have been on a lot of trips but this was our first road trip out of state. We left after work on Saturday and stayed in the driveway of a Lafayette Indiana bike polo player. It's so great to have a bike community that stretches outside of Grand Rapids! The drive went quickly while we listened to podcasts, and The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. Ironton is in the middl eof nowhere Missouri, like the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, but as we made our way out there we passed through St. Louis and saw the arch for our first time! We arrived at the Academy where the Jagged Axe crew has put up. The last time I saw Morgan was just over a year ago. The minute I tumbled out of the Element, Morgan was right there in the parking lot. We cried a little and hugged and laughed a ton. She handed us PBR's and we headed out on the tour of the Historical Arcadia Academy. (Arcadia is adjacent to Ironton, both tiny towns that are pretty much bunched together to make one normal sized town). The Academy was originally built as a Methodist High School in 1846 and was used as a hospital during the Civil War. (The Battle of Pilot Knob happened in another tiny adjacent town, Pilot Knob.) In 1877 the Ursuline Nuns bought it and ran it as a girls school until 1971. The architecture and grounds are really beautiful and I can only imagine how incredible it was back in the hay-day. Yes, the pipe organ still works in the Cathedral, and the spotlights in the theater still work too. Fast-forward to waking up the next morning to Ryan making coffee out the back of the Element. Morgan had to head up to work on the trails so Ry and I drove out to Council Bluffs and rode an intense 12 miles around an old reservoir. We immediately discovered that yes, Missouri is very rocky, and hilly! Mountainous to be precise, we were up in the St. Francois Mountains, I had no idea there were mountain in Missouri!? Out at Council Bluffs we saw a ton of geodes and beautiful rock formations. The variety out there, so stunning. Tuesday Morning we met Morgan up on Shepard Mountain in the warm, late fall mist, and rode the trails that she and her crew have been working on! Missouri rocks, but also Missouri MUDDD! We typically try not to make a practice of riding when the trails are wet but hey, the foreman said we could! Neither Ryan or I have full sus bikes so we stuck to the green trail that day, but i'd rather call it teal haha It was so fun to session the jumps and berms that have been masterfully built into the side of the mountain and around the old mining trenches. We had a hoot bombing down the trail and then turning around and walking back up to do it all over again. After reveling in our muddy glory we cleaned up, napped and met back up with Morgan. As we were chilling, the owner of Jagged Axe, Alex, drove up with Morgan's new work truck and a sick huge chainsaw that the crew gets to use. That night we got to know the whole crew better over monster margaritas and homemade tattoos. Morgan had the next day off so after a decent amount of recovery time in the morning, Morgan took us to Elephant Rocks and Johnson Shut Ins. Both are extraordinary rock formations and result of erosion. The softer rock or earth was worn away by the elements or in the shut ins case, a river, until the bedrock underneath was exposed to what we interact with today. Hate to say it but you had to be there. Or you have to go there! It's so stunning. I love climbing and scrambling around on rocks hahaha Our last day in Missouri started with another ride up on the trails of Shepard Mountain, but this time we got to ride them with Morgan! It was so cool to follow her and hear the stories of all the neat features that they've working through up there. It was a beautiful sunny morning, melting the frost that came in the night. While Morgan finished her work day Ryan and I went to go look at more rocks. This time we went to Marble Creek which is essentially a smaller version of the Shut Ins, but the rocks there are more purple! There's ruins of an old dam from the mining operation that used to be set up there. It's cool to see the rocks cut up in such unnatural shapes. 11/3/2020 0 Comments Patching for the peopleKnowledge is power! With this statement in mind, I recently planned and led an event that taught our friends and neighbors how to repair their own bicycle flats. Patching for the People!
This summer was full of activism and unrest throughout the world. I watched bikes being used to help and protect people. Protests were being led by folks on bikes, knowledgable people were teaching others how to repair bikes at marches and gathering places. But we also saw bikes being used to hurt people. The police used them as weapons, the companies that manufacture police bikes refused to take responsibility for the chaos they were perpetuating. Though there were marches and protests here within Grand Rapids, I never saw the bike community come together as a united front to make a statement or help out. Another issue we faced this summer was the #bikeshortage. Running out of common parts such as tubes and brake pads made it hard to get everyone taken care of. At the shop I work at, we resorted to patching tubes for customers rather than replacing them. We even were taking parts off of our own bikes to complete repairs. Yet after all that, I felt it was time for myself and the Grand Rapids bike community to finally step up and begin working for the people. The idea for the Park Fix-It Series stemmed from a non-profit bike shop in Portland, Bikes For Humanity. I saw a flier they posted on Instagram, that they were hosting their own park meet up and repair workshop, and calling for donations. In this wild time of Covid-19, gathering groups of people for educational classes has been put on hold. I asked my co-worker, Tyler, if he wanted to try and continue our community outreach, despite the pandemic still churning away. Hosting an open house style event at a park seemed like a smart and safe option. We immediately wanted to plan for multiple events, hence the fix-it series. The first in line was decided to be a patching clinic. We had so many tubes saved up from the summer that it seemed like a win win. We get to keep the tubes out of the trash, and folks get to learn and receive what they need! Following the lead of Bikes For Humanity, we asked for donations of tubes, tires lever, patch kits and any other supplies people were willing to pass on. We chose to only post about the event on our personal Instagram's, and hang fliers through out the city. We chose to not affiliate ourselves with the shop we work with. This personal choice was made based on the desire to approach the community from a grass roots- for the people- base. My goal is to, by the best of my ability, live through symbiotic relationships. Not one that's first goal is to kiss the boots of capitalism. I purposefully chose to host this first part of the series at Martin Luther King Jr. Park. I recently moved to 49507, and wanted to engage within my new neighborhood as soon as I could. Bikes seemed like logical language for me to begin. This approach also provided a means to quickly grow my relationship with the local co-op bike shop in this area, Boston Square Community Bikes. I had talked to Jo, the head coordinator there, in the past about doing events together but again, Covid has been all season and we were unable to follow through. We finally collaborated over this event. They donated tubes to patch, we patched them, and gave them back along with other supplies we had gathered from the event. (We had never met in person until that night and I really look forward to seeing what we can come up with to continue bike education and activism.) The turn out of the whole event was great. The first new face to the event said they came because they saw a poster! That was so cool to hear because, hell, it worked! I was able to teach him how to change a flat and we patched a few spare tubes for him to take with. It was a great experience and made the cold night out at the park go by quickly. Our friends came to learn from each other, and help out. I am still smiling and am very optimistic for the next classes in our series. I feel grateful to have this position in my life, to have the support and feel the confidence to do these events. Let's talk again soon. Never forget that Black Life Matters. Keep pedaling. 9/21/2020 1 Comment Up and out Oh holy cow, wow where do I even begin!?
Well, it's been probably the fastest summer I've had in my life thus far. The rona is still a thing, and the bike shortage of 2020 has been very real. I have mostly spent my time this summer wrenching and working myself into oblivion, or playing in the woods with friends when I have a spare moment. I am grateful for the time on my bike as it has helped my stay rooted and reminded how sweet life is, when surrounded by chaos out of my control. In the last few weeks of summer I did two major things. I moved into a new house, and I went on an epic bikepacking trip. The exciting thing about this new house is that I will be here for a long time, because I am gonna be buying it here very shortly! I did not see myself buying a house at this age, it didn't even seem close to being a realistic possibility. But as quarantine unfolded, my living situation as a renter began to unravel. I had the money I saved from unemployment at the beginning of quarantine, and began figuring out my next move to get back in control of my home life. One star aligned after another and I moved into the home of a friend with intentions to buy it from her! It feels really wild, but really right. I can't wait to create my ultimate bike punk dream house, full of plants and animals and great friends. If you have construction experience, let me know. She's a bit of a diamond in the rough, but my diamond! Two days after I moved into the new place, I left for a week long bikepacking trip up the North Country Trail. My good friend and co-worker, Emily, and I had been planning this trip since we saw the route on bikepacking.com. The NCT is a multi-use (in some places) trail that goes from Vermont to North Dakota. It passes through the lower and upper peninsulas of Michigan and offers access to a big portion of raw single track within mid Michigan, and the Manistee National Forest, which is the section that this route goes through. (If you haven't been out on the NCT I HIGHLY recommend it.) The written route for our trip starts in White Cloud, at the M-20 trailhead and ends at the Vasa trailhead in Traverse City. Emily and I altered the route and started at my boyfriend's family cabin south of Baldwin and ended at Right Brain Brewery in downtown Traverse! We took 5 days, and went 125 miles with 8500 ft of climbing. It's so hard to even begin to explain what we saw or what we learned and experienced. But let's try. The scenery, the woods, were stunning. Whether we were down in a low wet spot, with sparkling streams or way up high on top of Michigan's mountains (aka a sand dune) everywhere we looked we saw beauty. The moss and the ferns provided excellent habitats for frogs that jumped out of our way and mushrooms that burst if we hit them with out tires. I kept joking that the moss was like bowling bumpers, as it grew thick along side of the cut trail and kept my heavy bowling ball of a bike from going off trail. The sweeping views of the various rivers and valleys that we had climbed over were laid out so perfectly, with the color in the leaves just starting to turn, and the further north we climbed, the more golds and reds we saw. We lifted our bikes over lots of trees across the trail, and pushed them up and walked them down treacherous and impossible ravines and cliff edges. We passed through the Ward Hills, Udell Hills and Big M, Red Bridge and the Manistee High Rollway. We just kept going up, up and out of each valley. We camped the first two nights in the national forest and the last two nights at forest campgrounds. Thursday night was the coldest and therefore decided it would be our last. We did not have the right gear to sustain another 30 degree night! To still reach our goal on Friday, now the last day, we took the advice of an old hunter we came across as he was two tracking in his Subaru with his wife and dog. He asked why we were way out in the woods if we were trying to get to Traverse, because it was only 12 miles away by road. Emily and I realized we were ready for a short cut and took the 6 miles of seasonal road out of the woods and into civilization. The rest of the miles that day were spent on the busy road getting us down to the bay and across to the brewery! We were happy we took that guys advice. My boyfriend Ryan dropped us off at the start and Em's man picked us up at the end. All of our friends showed tremendous support, from sending us messages via social media, to hand writing us a letter to read at the end of each day (Thank you Lisa!). We even had a goodie package hidden for us at the Red Bridge trailhead (Thank you Jill and Dan!). Which was perfect timing because I was out of snacks and we were just about to start the most extreme segment, elevation wise. It was an incredible trip, I had the opportunity to practice asking for help and practice a lot of patience. I am so proud of Emily and I for accomplishing this goal that we had been planning for so long and really giving it our best. We had so many wins on this trip, it was really confidence inspiring. No mechanicals, no crashes, none of our gear fell off and we didn't lose anything. I cut my foot at the lake of out first camp ground but that was about it! We nailed it. And I'm so proud of us! That will probably be my last big trip of the season, as now I've got to keep my head down and finish some projects around the new house!! Also hoping to get back to writing monthly for the blahg again, so this time, it won't be so long until you here from me! Cheers and keep pedaling! 4/14/2020 0 Comments Where the hell are weA wrenching wench covid 19 update ... or something like that But mostly I'm gonna ramble about what I've been doing these past few weeks and maybe I can try and realize and validate some feelings and the events that have taken place. Hoooold on. So as of today I have been home for 27 daze. And damn, time doesn't mean too much anymore. Currently the Governer says we have to stay home until April 30. 10 more days. We shall see how the next few weeks unfold.
I keep telling people "that's the hardest part, the not- knowing" And the not being able to understand why I have so many emotions and can barely name any of them. One of my roommates told me to listen to Brene Brown. Listening to her helped me name this giant mood, a 'F*cking First Time'. Which could not be any more true. I've expierenced so many firsts thus far, we all have. Our first pandemic, our first quarantine, our first time applying for unemployment. This is my first time ever being out of school, and out of a job at the same time since.. well.. I got my first job when I was 15, so for ten years. (And I understand that may not sound like a long time but y'all gotta understand that's almost half my life time) Millenials were raised in a society that told us worth and merit come from a production of something.. money mostly. So raise your hand if you've heard a negative narrative or shameful thought attached to the idea for applying to unempolyment for all of this. That's a fun new idea we get to combat. And what I find especially hard about all thattt is that my job as a bike mechanic, in some states, is essential! I would still be working if I lived in California, or Oregan. Many of the people I follow and support online are still working in their communities to make sure people are mobil during this time. It sucks to sit on the sidelines and watch that. No other way to say that one. As far as I am aware, Michigan simply does not have the infrastructure, nor the data to logically deem bike shops as essential right now. It's definetly a privilege to be able to stay home and be safe and happyish. There is a lot of fear out there and I can only imagine the extra hurdles, logistically and mentally it would take to go to an essential job right now. Everyone is (for the most part) working really hard to help out and do their part either working and keeping us healthy and safe and fed, or staying home. So I'm totally understanding why I am not going to work and staying home. But still, sucks. I started quarantine out by writing down what I would or did do every day. So that I would be able to realize I am productive and don't get bored. I stopped writing lists a week after I started. Here's some stuff I've done so far: cleaned and organized my room cleaned out my email inbox - it was at like 2,700 constructed a bench/ shelf for my room planted flowers and repotted some babes cleaned my bikes cleaned the basement reorganized my bike shop set up my 27.5 wheel set tubeless my boyfriend and i drove around town 'icing' our friends by leaving smirnoff ices' in their mailbox's cooked some really good food eaten lots of candy and cookies read steve martins biography made a painting made a bench/ shelf thing lots of dog walks lots of talking to the dogs one 65 mile bike ride painted and worked on a collage So for the next 10 days I'm building a wheelset for the gary fisher and maybe work on a few of my friends bikes if I can work out some arrangements. My roommate and I have also planned a small garden and will be starting the seeds soon! I have also been watching a lot of tv and movies. I created a Kanopy account which is through the library system and it's free! There you can find some excellent docmentaries, art movies and old films. I'm discovering new music too! Shout out to Spotify for having such a great algorithm that knows exactly what I like. Our local radio station WYCE has also been laying down some sick tracks. Here's a playlist I made to listen to during any and all of the above listed activities. Below are some photos of the most recent version of my basement bike shop, what my dog has been up to, and some art I've been playing around with. Be well, ride on. 3/16/2020 0 Comments Happiest Trails Hey y'all it's been a minute... over a month! Things have really started to pick up around here at the shop and in my personal life. We have had two more classes since I last posted, Brakes clinic and a Drivetrain class. There has also been a quick up-tick in repair work at the shop too. My roommate got a sweet new dog and we've been working on the new guy, Foster, and Mel-dog becoming good buddies. I also got a new bike! There was a demo Surly ECR at the shop that I finally found all the right reasons to rescue ;P But I'm super stoked to say I am looking forward to a vacation here soon (if all goes according to plan, fingers crossed.) My boyfriend and I are gonna take the newly, sleeper converted Honda Element, and go ride the trails around North West Arkansas, Bentonville in particular. Not only do they have awesome trails there with funding from the Walton (Wal-Mart) family, but my best friend lives there too! And she's been working on building those exact trails!!! Morgan and I met through bikes and mutual friends and worked together at the former, non profit co-op, the Spoke Folks. A few years after turning wrenches she decided it was time to go explore some other parts of the world and pursue other aspects of the bike life. She's now found herself in Bentonville as a hand builder. With the anticipation of being able to experience her work and see what the hype is all about I asked her a few questions about her experience in this realm. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Morgan Barkley Rock Solid Trail builder- Hand Worker Enduro MTB racer Dog mom What are your top 5 Songs to dig to? Tempo + Fitness - Lizzo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Srq1FqFPwj0 Spice Girl - Amine https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3AVtQkEHaE Anything Ata Kak (some super spicy African hype) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cd0PV82e1jE Chun Li - Nicki Minaj https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wpm07-BGJnE MOOD 4 EVA - Beyonce JAY-Z, Childish Gambino, Oumou Sangare https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i978rjXw3P0 What are some surprising things you learned about trail building? I think the most surprising thing about trail building so far is just the fact that I’ve been able to do it! I was super nervous to make the switch from shop work to chopping up dirt with hand tools. The first few weeks were really hard, and its still the most intense job I've ever had, but seeing just how much physical labor my body is capable of has been pretty empowering What has your favorite project been so far? My favorite project so far has been a black diamond trail in Minnesota where they're in the early stages of developing a bike park at a ski resort called Giants Ridge. Tiny little town just north of Duluth. I was only on the project for a couple weeks as a sub after another crew member quit but it was THEE BEST two weeks. I absolutely loved the crew, and even though we worked 9+ hours days in sometimes knee high mud, I’d do it all again. Morale was high even when the weather was garbage and we were building some seriously sweet shit. Gigantic berms, chunky glacial rock gardens, 30+ ft jumps, and my favorite - a big ol’ drop / step down. Have you found that your riding has improved since building? I think my riding has definitely improved since I’ve started building! I think its especially pushed me to hit features I might not have otherwise gone for. The best example is probably that drop / step down at Giants Ridge we worked on. It was so big and intimidating, but when you spend days and days grooming it and looking at it from every possible angle you get the feeling that you have to hit it, you know? You just get to know it so well that it seems strange to just walk away from it! What’s your experience as a woman out there? I feel extremely lucky to have been paired with the foremen that I have so far. The first two I worked for were extremely encouraging, put me in leadership roles, and gave me the feedback I needed to be more efficient. Their input combined with the empowerment I’ve gained from my body’s ability to “keep up” with whatever the day demands have given me a ton of confidence to work on things I’m not as good at. Like - navigating how to communicate in a way I’m not used to. I’ve learned to speak up, to openly disagree and not shy away from conflict, and to continue to look for opportunities to learn everyday. It seems often women are taught to be much more agreeable than men. That having an opinion or staking claim to knowledge you trust you have makes you difficult or bossy. I’ve had more “difficult” conversations since I’ve starting trail building than any other time in my life - and I couldn’t be more grateful for that. Whether its with my peers - fellow hand workers that I disagree with and force myself to speak up so that hopefully we can work more cohesively together, or with leadership - as a strong leader myself I expect a lot out of my foremen. And it has been such great and uncomfortable practice to speak that truth to power. Because plain and simply, they out rank me. But that doesn’t mean that they are not also held to expectations. I care very much about the product we produce, the quality of the trail reflects on all of us. I want to be nothing but proud of what we attach our names and efforts to. It is honest and humbling work that is systematically attached to my absolute love of bikes, and because of that I will always do the uncomfortable but necessary action of growing where I’m weakest. I feel incredibly lucky to represent women in a male dominated industry and I try my best to do so with all the energy I can muster. My competitive nature makes it mandatory, personally, to not only be “good” at my job, but very good. And as a woman I feel it mandatory to be even better. One day I will be a foreman and I hope to god that I get to train the next generation of women in the industry. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ THANK YOU MORGAN!!! I seriously cant hype up Morgan enough, its been so exciting watching her glow up and see where her courage and tenacity and passion takes her. I feel like part of how we've grown to be so close is due to our interest and hype for bikes and community. Morgan and I seem to be kindred spirits in our need to go out and try things first hand. We follow our hearts and our strong minds. So so proud and continually impressed with her. Morgan has also been a part of a sweet documentary called Stay Wild!! Their Facebook describes this film as: Stay Wild is a documentary about the barriers women face in and out of the mountain bike industry. Follow along as we unfold the stories of 5 incredible women as they rip down some of the most wonderful trails in Northwest Arkansas. It's currently being edited, keep your eyes out for it! https://www.facebook.com/staywildfilm/ Morgan currently works for Rock Solid Trail Contracting LLC. Here is their portfolio of work and other projects! https://www.rocksolidtrails.com/project Look how awesome these trails are!! So rad omg! 2/11/2020 0 Comments Two classes and a biddy bop. In these past two weeks I helped lead two maintenance classes and went on a lil group ride! It's been really fun getting together with different people and talking about bikes and riding and just overall genuine cool experiences.
The first class was at Grand Valley State University's sustainability class. One of our customers and daily commuters teaches this class and asked me if we did educational programming, and while we didn't have anything in place yet for the season, I said yes. We made plans and last week my manager and another coworker and myself crammed into one of the company's Honda Element along with our three bikes and a bin of tools and bike pumps. Once we finally found the appropriate classroom and got set up, we began speaking about the benefits of biking and why and how we bike commute. I also wanted to be sure to mention some bicycling history and highlight a few women and people of color who changed cycling for the better. It was really exciting to talk to the room, as there were about 20 students and only two of them were guys. After the little lecture, we had everyone get up and we taught them how to change a tire. We didn't get too much of a reaction from the class as we spoke but when we were in smaller groups a few kids opened up and said they were stoked on what we had to share. I didn't realize it at the moment but it was great practice for the next class that was taught at the shop! On Monday we started our mechanic class series at our Fulton shop. The first, in the series of four, was all about tubed and tubeless set ups, and how to set up and repair both! We had a great turn out and about half the class was women! Our guests asked great questions, were very open to hands on learning and walked away excited to come back for the next class! I really enjoyed walking people through changing a tube, or even removing and reinstalling the rear wheel into the drop outs, and then seeing it click! I think education like this is really important to make bikes approachable and fun! I began my bike journey by volunteering and then working at our local non-profit co-op, the Spoke Folks. (RIP thanks for the great memories!) We taught people how to repair, build and maintain their bikes. As I moved on to for-profit shops, the urge to show people how to fix something stayed with me, however not always encouraged. Now that I am at a shop where we want enlightened customers, I am stoked on continuing these classes and helping people feel confident about their bikes. It's also a win for us when our customers are able to explain what is wrong with their bike, and we can save sometime and don't have to chase down that mystery creeking noise. And on another note, but similarly related in the way of sharing and growing, some ladies and myself went on a little bop around Reed's Lake one Sunday morning. It was so fun and just what we needed! On the group chat where we planned our ride, one friend, Jenny, expressed interest in joining but not having the right bike (a polo bike would be a little sketch on this particular slushy winter day). I offered for her to ride a bike of mine. She was game and was over within an hour, trying out the fit of my winter commuter (which I recently put drops on and is very hot) She fell in love and we were off to go meet up with the other bbs. As Jenny rode with us and checked out our bikes and gear she grew more excited about getting a bike of her own to do the same! That ride helped her feel more confident riding on the roads and also realize that she has the sense and enough knowledge to get herself going! And with that, the very next day she brought in a bike (that she actually picked up from the Spoke Folks final sale) and asked me to set it up for winter riding and commuting! I installed a new pair of tires, YELLOW tires, that would be more compliant in slush, a rear rack and got it all tuned up. When she picked it up, she was wearing a yellow sweater, it couldn't have been more perfect!!! (I am stoked for her too if you can't tell) I can't wait to hear all the stories of where she goes on that baby! But back to our 'biddy bop' as I call it... It wasn't anything crazy, we all rode our commuters, stopped to pet dogs, and ended with coffee. But it was the fact that we all got together and rode. Riding with your friends helps you sort your brain out, gets oxygen in there and helps you feel accomplished. There are a lot of organized group rides, though not always in the Michigan winters. Most are faster paced, geared towards race training and what not. And then there's a group of my male co-workers and friends who bop around after work but I can never make it cause I gotta go home and see my Mel- Dog. So intentionally getting together to ride for fun with the ladies was so refreshing. I haven't ridden 'for fun' in a while, I bike commute to work but don't have a ton of time outside of that to bop. I can't wait til the days get longer. I am so excited for the tangible growth and am looking forward to the sun being on our side so we can be out longer and continue to learn together. Peace out and ride on! |
AuthorLiz is a bike mechanic in Grand Rapids MI. She is one of two female mechanics in the city. She holds a Bachelors Degree in Drawing and has one dog and one hedgehog. Archives
March 2021
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