New Bikes and More Hours

Today was a big day. We got 4 new bikes (one lasted all of 30 min) and sold 3 of last week's. The two that sold but never made it to the site were a Woman's Specialized MTB and a Men's Trek 820 MTB. Both of these were in store specials. If you notice the side bar I've added 2 new BMX bikes, a Torker and a Mongoose. The Torker needs a chain but the Mongoose is done AND FUN TO RIDE! If you came by the shop you might have seen me tooling around on it.

As for new hours, some sort of sports event is cancelling all my normal commitments. I'll be at the shop 12-3 (unless I get a call about some new bikes). If you want to take a look at what's there today, come on by!

SOLD: Diamondback MTB

This bike is a Diamondback men's mountain bike. It's a 18" bike with 26" wheels. This was originally purchased from a bikeshop and is solidly built. This is a bike that's great for both trails and arround town.

The bike is considered "green" as it is priced at only $75. I'm still trying to remove the lock (the previous owner lost the key) so the purchaser may have to wait for me to figure out how to remove it or remove it themselves.

The bike is available by appointment (email thegreenbicycleproject@gmail.com) or on Saturday during normal shop hours (10am-2pm).

SOLD: Classique Velo Sport

This bike is a Classique (A Canadian company) Velo Sport men's hybrid bike. It's a 20" bike with 27" road bike wheels (skinny tires) and a nice comfortable wide seat. This bike is great for anyone who needs a light weight bike to get around town comfortably.

The bike is considered "green" as it is priced at only $75. Rear rack, watter bottle holder and flashing rear light are included.

The bike is available by appointment (email thegreenbicycleproject@gmail.com) or on Saturday during normal shop hours (10am-2pm).

Where have all the bikes gone?

If you've been emailing me in the last week or so you may have noticed that I'm a little overwhelmed at the moment. Work + School + moving the GBP are taking up all my time. This makes fixing and posting new bikes a little behind for the week. To make up for this, I will be hosting a GBP open house at the new location (see the location bit in the intro) this Saturday from 10am-2pm. At the open house I will be doing free bike Tune-ups and unavailing a brand new bike! Don't want to let the cat out of the bag, but it's a gorgeous road bike that you really need to see to appreciate. There will of course be tons of bikes (some ready to go, some not) for you to look at as well.

I hope to see you all there!

New Bikes, New Location!

Today was a big day at the GBP. The much anticipated move has begun and we collected our consignment of new bikes! First off, we have moved into a semi-permanent space at the US Storage facility at the corner of Mahan and Capital Circle NE (right down from bikechain). While we await the clean out and refurbishment of our storefront, we are temporarily operating out of the large storage locker at the end of row P. As we have a location, we will also now be holding REGULAR HOURS! Every Saturday from 10am-2pm we will be open for you to come and take a look at our bikes for sale and our projects. We will also continue to show bikes by appointment.

As for the new bikes, I'm excited. There are 7 very sturdy men's 19" mountain bikes that are within a shout of being ready to go. There is a further 3-4 bikes that need some TLC and may eventualy become every day riders. Also, in the lot are two very nice hybrid bikes. One is a midrange 19" men's bike with some cosmetic rust on the front fork. The other is a relatively high end 20" men's cruiser with a cateye computer and a back rack. Also included in the lot was a Schwinn road bike (painted yellow at the moment) that I have not yet measued for a size. That bike is in need of some TLC so it won't show up on our list for the moment.

As this is a long weekend, I plan on spending tomorrow morning moving bikes and equipment into the space and perhaps getting one of those MTBs road ready.

Comming Soon...

I made a deal this week to buy a consignment of bikes from an old summer camp. There are potentially 13 bikes coming out of this deal including 2 hybrid cruisers, a road bike, 9 men's MTBs, and one woman's MTB. As I haven't gotten any of them onto the repair rack yet I have no idea how many will make it back to the road, but rest assured, the GBP will have bikes for weeks to come!

Also, in an effort to expand, we will be moving to a new location (TBD). The additional space allows for two things. First, as soon as we're settled I will be holding saturday repair clinics. Come learn basic bike mechanics and help get bikes back on the road! Second, the additional space will allow for EVEN MORE BIKES! I already go on "hunting" trips but I also take donations, trades, or buy. If you have an old bike that wants to get ride of it or know of someone who does email me at thegreenbicycleproject AT gmail.com. Remeber, the GBP is a not-for-profit not a charitable organization. I can not give recipts with donations. To lean more about tax rules for donations consult this link.

SOLD: Road Bike

Yet another road bike sold before it hits the website. This one I've had for all of 24 hours. They're selling like hotcakes so if you want one let me know quick!

SOLD: Roadmaster Mt. Furry (Huffy) MTB

Today's bike is a 17" Roadmaster Mt. Furry (made by Huffy) woman's MTB. The bike is in great condition and looks to have been ridden about 6 times in it's life. This bike shifts very cleanly with the rear derailer being a 7 speed and indexed while the front is a 3 speed unindexed shifter. That makes for a 21 speed bike. I've tuned the bike and found no problems. This bike is great for someone under 5'6" in need of cheap tranportation!

This bike is a "Teal" (read: green) bike and is priced accordingly at $50.

SOLD: Schwinn World Tour Road Bike

This bike never even made it to the site. If you're looking for something check the right hand "In the Shop" section and let me know you're interested. I'm perfectly willing to speed up the completion of a bike if someone is waiting.

SOLD: Schwinn World Sport Road Bike

The first complete road bike offered by the GBP is a 56cm Schwinn World Sport road bike. It's a lugged steel frame, 10 speed, shift on the neck, bike that is very light. The bike shifts like a dream and has very good breaks. It even has sissy handles (the ones that let you break from the middle). The wheels are 700s with gumwall tires and schrader tubes. This is a higher end bike as evidenced by the rear derailer being mounted on the frame (not on the axle) and it's surprisingly light weight.

Options: The seat shown is one of 3 you can choose from at the time of purchase (no charge). The buyer may also choose to add a set of mid-range Bontrigger tires for $20 more.

This bike is being sold as a "premium" bike to help finance the rental of a workspace. As such it is priced at $200.

NB: I'd like to thank Jim who traded this bike for one of the MTBs that was listed earlier on the site.

GBP is heating up!

As the days get longer and the weather gets warmer, demand for bicycles skyrockets. For every bike I post there are 5-10 people lining up to buy. This causes a problem. To satisfy the demands of the masses I can either increase prices and lower demand, or increase supply and sell more bikes.

As my goal is to provide inexpensive transportation for everyone the first option is impossible. That leaves the second option, finding, repairing, and selling more bikes. To expand the GBP will require the help of the community. I will begin selling the stock of road bikes (the one's you've been drooling over in the right sidebar) this week as "premium" bicycles. These are still priced below the market rate but they do bring in money beyond cost. This extra money is being put aside for one of two major expenses the GBC is going to need in the next few months. The first is a truck to transport these bikes (my Jetta's incurred several very expensive scratches and dents while transporting some of these bikes). I anticipate we'll need $1500 for a good old diesel truck. The second and more pressing need is for additional space to repair bikes. As I haven't found a place yet I can only guess at the rent. I will be adding a ticker on the right hand column to show the progress to our goal.

In a related subject. The GBP has not yet applied for tax exempt status and thus can not give receipts for donations. We need a permanent (or semi-permanent) location before we do so. While we will still accept help, please understand that the GBP isn't the Goodwill and if you need that tax break donate to them. [As a side note: the Goodwill is a wonderful not-for-profit but not so good at bike repairs. I encounter a lot of Goodwill bikes that were bought by people who wanted to fix them up and just didn't understand what they were getting into. If you want your bike to get back onto the road, talk to me or any of the other bike activists in Tallahassee, not Goodwill]

Thank you all for your support. With your continued help, I know the GBP will grow to the level that "Bigger" cities have enjoyed for years with other similar projects.

SOLD: Woman's Timberland Urban Express MTB

Bike #2 of 2009 is a woman's Timberland Urban Express bike. It's an 18", 21 speed, fixed frame bike. This bike has the upright handlebars that makes it ideal for commuting and the indexed shifting makes it a joy up and down hills. The usual overhaul and drive train cleaning has been done and absolutely everything was perfect.

The bike is considered "green" as it is priced at only $60. This bike is a great deal. To sweeten the pot, the origional owner is throwing in a helmet and "anything else" she can find. I assume I get to keep the kitchen sink (as we happen to share it).

SOLD: Silver Magna Zanzibar MTB

The first new bike of 2009 is... a 19", Men's, Silver, Magna Zanzibar. It's a 15 speed with 26" wheels. This bike isn't anything fancy, but it's a solid frame and very light weight. Great for commuters and (reasonably smooth) trail rides. I've done a full overhaul and cleaned the drive train as usual. The bike rides great!

This is most certainly a "green" bike as I'm pricing it at $50!!! Don't mind the "!!!" as i'm just excited to have a nice men's MTB up again. It's a wonderful bike and I know the person who buys it will enjoy.

SOLD: Cruiser

Yesterday I saved a beautiful old woman's cruiser from becoming a lawn ornament (it was literally going to be buried in the ground and have flowers planted around it). The bike is in rough condition (read: rusted) but all the parts are still in working order. I'm going to apply some good ole elbow grease and restore the chrome and maybe paint the bike. Assuming it only needs the good cleaning and lube I think it does then my guess is $40 for the price.

PS: I'll take requests on the color, no deposit needed.

Green Bikes in 2009!

Hello all. I'm sorry about the long duration of silence. I was able to take two weeks off from my day job (sometimes an economic crisis works out well when you're out of vacation days) and decided to take an impromptu trip. I'm back now and back to work. Several of the bikes that are "projects" are nearing completion. With the help of a brand spanking new work stand, donated by a friend of the GBP in New Jersey, these will be available soon. If you can't wait, there are still several bikes available from November and December (see the bikes in the shop list to the right). I've listed the complete ones with the current GBP prices for your convince.

On a separate note. The GBP is growing in preperation for the spring biking season. We're looking for a new home for the new year aswell as more voulenteers. If you know of a spot or want to pitch in let me know. Remember, GBP is not for profit so reasonable sugestions only please.