 |
Bikes
for Tykes comes to the North Shore. |
James Wilson of North Vancouver's Dizzy Cycles has initiated a great program
for turning unused kids bikes into great Christmas presents. I asked him some
questions so we could get the word out about the program.
Cam - So James - what is the "Bikes for Tykes" program about?
James - It was started in Naples Florida in 1987. The founders realized there
are tonnes of unused kids bikes collecting dust that could be better used by
less fortunate kids who can't get decent bikes. I heard about the program, contacted
them, hooked up with North Shore Outlook and Family Services of the North Shore
and we are now we are working together to get this running.
Cam - "Bikes for Tykes" is a great name - but it's an existing
program. Are the originators cool with you using the name?
James - When we contacted them they gave us an outline, offered us the use of
the name for the Vancouver area, asked us to stay in touch, thanked us and said
"have fun with it." I mean they seemed so cool and really they
are. There are no costs to use the name. We are obliged to do a good job fixing
the bikes and The children can not be charged a cent for the bike.
Cam - Dizzy Cycles,The North Shore Ripper, Bikes for Tykes,you seem
to like unorthodox ideas, what is the common thread ?
James - The common thread is returning something to the sport I so love.
Cam - Tell me about your first bike.
James - My first two wheeler was the real deal. I was the 3rd or 4th owner,
it was too big for me, it had terrible brakes, multiple paint jobs - I think
red was the original. It was a beater. However in hind sight I can say it started
something great. My play area went from a few square miles to about twenty square
miles .I could get anywhere I wanted!
Cam - How does "Bikes for Tykes" work
James - You can bring a child's bike (no 26" wheel adult bikes please)
to our store in North Vancouver www.dizzycycles.com before December 19th . We
will repair the bike and forward it to Family Services of the North Shore familyservices.bc.ca
They will set up a little Ripper with the newly reno 'd bike. We are
replacing tires, grips and cables if they need to be replaced .We are safety
inspecting the bikes. We are cleaning them really well so the rider can feel
great about their new bike.
Cam - Does it matter what condition the bike is in ?
James - Well we don't want to be a drop off centre for junk but I think at this
point we would like any kids bikes. In some cases we will be able to
take two or three really bad ones and make one great one.
Cam - You just started this program what has the response been so far
?
James - I'm floored, keep in mind we just fired this up on Thursday the 8th
, We now have about 16 bikes to give out.
Cam - Sounds like an awesome deal for kids , and it doesn't cost them
anything?
James - That is THE deal, the bike costs the child nothing.
Cam - Where do you see this program going ?
James - I imagine it will grow to the point where we can get local teenagers
involved in fixing the bikes. This may lead to some sort of job training for
our community's teens . The program"Bikes for Tykes" has been going
on since 1987 and some of the early groups have had huge success in this regard.
You can check bikesfortykes.org
for more info.
Cam - Nice work getting this up and running James. Have a Merry
Christmas.
James - Thanks - You have Merry Christmas as well !
If you live in the Lower Mainland check your garage, ask your friends and do whatever you can to help make Christmas a little nicer for some local kids.
