The Bike Bee

So I promised you all I'd blog Velomutation... and I will... but first I want to talk about something that is a little more time sensitive - the bicycle bee!




What is it?
The Bike Bee, scheduled for the weekend of OCTOBER 20,21,22 2006 will be a community building and peer learning event focused around... well, bicycles!

Bryce explains the root of the 'bike bee' name, and how it applies to what we'll be doing over the weekend:
The idea intended to be evoked refers to the importance of quilting bees in the past. As many of us know, women would get together & work on a quilt together.
Often the quilt would go to someone who needed it. New wives could be introduced to a group, and get to know the place they live. While quilting, any and all kinds of useful information would be passed back and forth, from solving a pesky family problem (many minds work better than one) ... to family herbal lore ....
The [bicycle bee] idea [functions in a similar way] -- a way to foster communication, take bike repair and building out of the sometimes offputting workshop, and into the hands of anyone who has, or wants a bike. ... Instead of a quilt, the project is a bike, but the process is the same.

What we want to do is to take you - yes, all of you - and bring together the knowledge and skills that we all have in order to teach and help one another, while weaving our community together more tightly.

In order to do this we will be hosting a three-day (well, 2 day/ one evening) event that will include the following:

Bike Build-a-thon: Don't have a bike, but need one? Come down to the Bike Bee, and make use of the used parts and bike knowledge of your peers to build one up over the weekend!

Chopper building: The same as above, but with art-bikes as the outcome!

Workshops Galore! Spread over the course of the weekend we will host a variety of workshops, from art-making, to bike mechanics and safety, to guerilla biketevism! Confirmed workshops include the following:

oO Bike Anatomy 101
oO Fix Your Flat
oO Bike Repair Basics
oO Car Re-education Workshop
oO Anti-theft Techniques and Devices
oO CarFree Cities Conference Presentation/Forum (from the recent conference in Bogota, Columbia)
oO Bike Art & Jewlery making with Victoria's Recyclistas
oOBike Ornaments (jewelry, xmas tree, paperweight applications)
oOForum: A Vancouver Bicycle Hub, what is it and do we want it?

With LOTS MORE TO COME!

But wait, you ask, what if I want to get involved? I'd like to host a workshop, to volunteer, or to help plan the event!

WELL KIDS, HERE'S YOUR CHANCE! The next planning meeting/ potluck is to be held TOMORROW, Wednesday October 4th, at spartacus books (319 w. hastings, 2nd floor (between homer/hamilton, near dressew). bring finger food to share, your own cup/dish/cutlery if possible. & bring yer bike upstairs! This is the BIG ONE...there will be a mini orientation for newcomers, workshops designated, more logistics, tunnels dug...

If you have a workshop idea, please consider the following:
1. what your workshop is about, & what it could be titled.

2. how much space you would need, with what facilities (e.g. small space, workcounter, access to a tap, bike stand/s).

3. what is the maximum number of people you would be able to accommodate during your workshop? (this number could relate to available bike stands for example, or to the amount of one-on-one instruction you intend to offer.)

4. approximately how long would your workshop be (e.g. 1 hour, 2 hours, 1/2 day etc)

5. what materials you would use. what supplies you can provide yourself, & what you might need help with (e.g. tools, fabric, inner tubes). while we encourage workshoppers to bring as many of their own supplies as they can, it is also possible for us to help with this, either by gathering them though the community, or offsetting the costs of getting them. we encourage you to be as resourceful as possible, & we can help finding ways of sourcing supplies without purchasing them new.

6. what safety concerns might there be? what safety equipment might you need? (e.g.e proper ventilation for paints? safety glasses?). safety also includes a comfortable, inclusive, supportive working environment. we will have safety marshalls on hand at all times, as well as helping "rovers" who will assist all participants in the bicycle bee in having a great experience.

please remember that workshops will be by donation; therefore we are asking workshop organizers to keep their costs to a minimum ($0 costs provides you with access to limitless hugs).

Thats it for now - check back soon for Velomutation & more!