Bicycle Kitchen

The Bicycle Kitchen is a non-profit community bicycle space in the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, dedicated to educating the community on bicycle repair and maintenance and promoting a velo-centric way of life in America's most car-dominated city.

History

The Los Angeles Bicycle Kitchen, also known as "La Bici Cocina", was originally created in 2002 by Jimmy Lizama, a local bicycle messenger, in the kitchen of an unused apartment at the Los Angeles Eco-Village. The Eco-Village community was supportive of the project as the local bike shop but soon others joined in, among them Ben Guzman, Aaron Salinger and Randy Metz. In the following year, the bicycle kitchen became a community resource and a local spot for bicycle enthusiasts.

By the winter of 2004, the small space could not accommodate the number of people attending, so the loosely organized group of volunteers decided to find a different space and become a collectively run non-profit organization.

Bicycle Kitchen mission

The Bicycle Kitchen is a non-profit learning space run by volunteers who believe that bicycles are an ideal (and fun!) mode of transportation. Their mission is to promote the bicycle as a fun, safe, and accessible form of transportation, to foster healthy urban communities, and to provide a welcoming space to learn about building maintaining, and riding bicycles.

Organization

The Los Angeles Bicycle Kitchen is entirely run by volunteers, also known as "Cooks". The board of directors is selected among them. As of 2007 the board of directors is composed as follows:
* Chair: Joshua Moody
* Vice-chair: Charles Haine
* Treasurer: Ramona Marks
* Secretary: Emily Ramsey
* Kelly Martin
* Marissa Bell
* Ben Guzman
* James Singer
* Jimmy Lizama

(Edited 10/07 to reflect board changes)

Programs

The Los Angeles Bicycle Kitchen offers an Earn-A-Bike kids program and a program called "Bicycle Bitchen" which is a weekly ladies only night.

Bicycle Bitchen

[http://www.bicyclekitchen.com/gifs/bitchen.jpg]

Mondays 6:30-9:30 pm

Bicycle Bitchen is a weekly ladies-only night at the Bicycle Kitchen. We encourage women of all skill levels to experiment and explore while learning bike mechanics and maintenance in a comfortable atmosphere. Come experience the satisfaction and joy of building, fixing or souping up your own bike with a group of women who love bicycling.

Earn-a-Bike

Earn-A-Bike is the Bicycle Kitchen’s outreach program for our 12-18 year old community members. Bicycles can be expensive and we remember being young and broke. So, for a waivable $20 donation, interested 12-18 year olds are invited to participate in our 8 week Earn-A-Bike program. At the end of 8 weeks, participants will have a bike of their own (to keep!), basic bike building/maintenance skills and the knowledge to ride their bikes safely.

Participants meet twice a week. Thursdays 3:30-6:30pm are “wrenching days” and the EABer’s have the bicycle kitchen space all to themselves. EABer’s select a bike frame from our stable and, with the guidance of our volunteer adult mechanics, build it up as their own. Saturdays 11:00am-3pm, EABer’s learn bike safety, rules of the road and how to combine biking with public transportation. The program culminates in group bike rides to the farmers’ market, local art centers and local parks.

Alumni are invited to future sessions as junior mechanics and junior mentors.

Under the guidance of Program Director Somerset Waters, EAB has been wildly popular with participants and parents alike. In 2005, Children's Hospital Los Angeles awarded EAB a grant and in 2006 REI awarded EAB a grant to further it’s mission of giving our young community members increased access to physical activity.

For more info write to [e-mail].

Organizations with similar names and mission

* [http://sacbikekitchen.org/ Sacramento Bicycle Kitchen]
* [http://www.bikekitchen.org/ The Bike Kitchen] - A cooperative Bicycle Shop in San Francisco
* [http://www.thebikekitchen.com/ Bike Kitchen] - A project of the UBC Bike Co-op in Vancouver, BC
* [http://sophia.smith.edu/bikekitchen/index.html Northampton Smith College Bicycle Kitchen] - A bicycle repair program organized by students
* [http://www.bikerowave.org Bikerowave] - DIY bicycle shoppe in Santa Monica.
* [http://www.bikeoven.com/ Bike Oven] - Community group promoting cycling and DIY bicycle shop in Northeast Los Angeles.

External links

* [http://www.bicyclekitchen.com Official Site]
* [http://www.bicyclekitchen.com/wiki Bicycle Kitchen Wiki]
* [http://www.myspace.com/bicyclekitchen Bicycle Kitchen on mySpace]