And another thing. Bicycle non-profits are killing me.

I went to the CCC (Community Cycling Center) last week to look through the scrap metal and also find some used pedals for a bike I'm fixing up.
I was told that scrap metal is no longer available to poke through ("we're mostly selling it by the pound if it doesn't get taken at Salvage Sunday," they told me. "We're not giving anything away anymore.").
The cheapest used pedals I found that would work for my project cost $15/pr.
I left them in the bin.

Then I wandered around outside to see what used bikes were going for these days.
Tuned-up mountain bikes are now running between $250 and $450 and newer bikes are costing more than that. A used recumbent was selling for over $1,200.

Most of the shop is filled with new products, and used things are taking up far less space now.
It's likely a combination of inflation, smaller supply of used stuff and the higher cost of running a non-profit and paying higher wages. And it all adds up to the fact that, on my very part-time income, I can no longer afford to shop at the CCC.

The fact is that everything connected to bicycles costs more, and has been costing more since long before inflation skyrocketed. 

so I keep looking for old bikes and bike parts and collecting whatever I can find, in order to fix them up and get them back on the road. Sometimes, I will buy a bike for super-cheap ($40 or less), so I can fix it up and flip it. Sometimes, I will find a bike for free and just fix it up to give to someone who really needs a bike.

I'm glad to have more energy again. And when I'm not working on music, I'll divide it between fixing bikes and riding them all spring and summer long.

I'm glad to be out of the bike business, and happy to be able to enjoy bikelove on my own schedule.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Go outside and ride if you can.
Rubber side down, folks!

EXTRA: Portland bikey peeps -- this Saturday, the Ladds 500 returns in full living color.
10 am at Ladds circle (SE 16th and Ladd). Bring coffee, snacks and a bike and take as many laps around the circle as you can. Ride 500 laps and you'll complete an actual century -- that's a hundred miles! See you there!