If you saw our previous post you’ll know we’re ready to reopen.
February 16th is our soft launch to check that we are ready to go.
The shed is looking great with much more shelving and storage so that the parts will be much easier to find.
We’ve doubled, no tripled, the bench space and will eventually have a wheel building space as well as better access to all the tools.
What’s more you can stand upright and even see what you’re doing in the shed 🙂
While there is plenty of work to do with workstands to be setup, bike racking to be constructed we reckon it’s time to get our volunteers, friends and supporters together to celebrate how far we have come.
If you’ve read this far we’d love to see you on March 2nd to check out the new digs, meet a few people and talk about bikes.
If you’d like to know how we got to here, this is how.
The Hobart Bike Kitchen (HBK) has become an integral part of the cycling community in Hobart, having started in 2009 in a cycle friendly Taroona backyard by 3 keen riders who met at Critical Mass.
Gus, Pete and Mark picked up the idea from the original Bike Kitchen San Francisco.
The kitchen atmosphere of shared activity around the table, of all ages being included and valued, of knowledge being freely transferred seemed like a space we’d want to be involved in.
The idea of getting more people cycling by sharing skills and recycling in a friendly, welcoming way seemed too good to ignore.
Turns out the idea didn’t just appeal to them and the Bike Kitchen quickly outgrew the backyard.
Thankfully they were able to find a supportive partner in The Wilderness Society and were able to set up at the rear of TWS, opening there in April 2013.
Over a decade there HBK has been able to re-home hundreds of bikes and help people repair their own with newly learnt skills and recycled parts.
The Wilderness Society have been great supporters of TWS, but needed to make changes to their site and it became time for HBK to review their options and look at how to continue to provide the service that best engages with Hobart.
It soon became apparent that the Resource Work Collective and Hobart Bike Kitchen share core values – waste minimisation, team driven and community focussed.
The Hobart Bike Kitchen and Resource Work Cooperative have formed an agreement and the cooperative will provide space for storage and workshop activities in the old tipshop building adjacent to the Educational space. Once set up the bike kitchen will operate Sunday workshop sessions from 12-3pm, though it’s always a good idea to check the Upcoming Sessions page.
Hobart Bike Kitchen runs on donations of bikes and money in order to operate, with everyone involved is a volunteer. The aims are to get more people riding bikes as a form of transport, and do this through offering an inclusive space for all people to make this possible, with a good stock of bike parts, volunteers and now also access to Tipshop supplies, we will be even better placed to do this.
There will be a Grand Reopening for HBK at the new site on Sunday March 2nd, 12-3pm.
If you have any questions, would like to donate or volunteer please email hobartbikekitchen@gmail.com
Hobart Bike Kitchen 