Saturday, December 13th, 2008
12-4 pm
The Clothes Rack

2618 W. Cary St.
Richmond, VA 23220

Come get a cheap bike for someone in need,  and get some free books!! And shop at The Clothes Rack!
This event is open to the public.

The holidays are coming up and we would like to do a few things to prepare:
1.Organize our books
2. Donate books to local charities
3. Donate our bicycles to local charities

And we could use a little help!

On

Sunday December 7th
from 12-4 pm

Books on Wheels will be in the

Ukrop’s Parking Lot in Carytown
(3255 W. Cary St.)

organizing our books to donate to local charities and taking any book donations that people have. What we are asking of people is this:

If anyone knows of any local charities that want loads of books or children’s bicylces (or a few adult bikes) PLEASE contact us!! We have a bunch to give this season
If anyone would like to come out and help organize the books to donate, PLEASE come hangout on this Sunday. We promise smiles, maybe some hot drinks,good conversation, and lots of cardboard boxes.
If anyone has any books to donate, this would be a great time to drop them off with us! Or, as always we take donations all the time at Chop Suey Tuey in Carytown (across the street from the Byrd Theater) during their open hours
If anyone wants to come say hi, check out the buses (both with be there), buy a t-shirt, or just stand around in a cold parking lot on your day off, you are more than welcome!!!!

I will be teaching a bicycle maintance and repair workshop at the zine fest. Bring your bike if you have specific questions. This is super basic level stuff, so if you have at least ridden a bike, it should suit-

I will talk about what ever is interesting to the crowd!

11 Am-12 PM

October 11th

at the Richmond Gay Community Center

http://www.diversitythrift.org/index.htm

Featured in the episode “Chop Suey”:

http://www.vcutvhd.vcu.edu/shows/local/chop.html

Books on Wheels – free books and bike repairs, too

By Shelly Briggs

My friend ward and I started Books on Wheels in January 2007. We drive around in a bus and give away books and do free bicycle repair. The bus is called the “MobookMobikeMobile.” It is filled with books, bicycle parts, and tools. Our mission is to promote literacy and alternative transportation. We provide our services to anyone, but we concentrate on working in low-income neighbourhoods.

I had been working on bikes for a few years, and always liked the idea of mobile bicycle repair, since people who really need their bikes probably don’t have another way to get to a shop. I was in a car accident in January 2007, and left with a settlement cheque. I figured I would buy a bus and try it out.

Ward and I were hanging out at my house one day soon after this, and he noticed I had circled a bus in an auto magazine. I told him what I was thinking, and he said he had always wanted to have a bookmobile. Ward owns a used bookstore in Richmond, Virginia, called Chop Suey, and always has plenty of books. We agreed to split the cost and bought the bus the next day. We gutted it, painted it, and started asking for book and bike donations.

We get every type of book, but mostly children’s books, which is perfect because those are always the ones in highest demand. The majority of the books are taken to schools that are poorly funded and without a lot of books.

We do bicycle repair at our events. We set up anywhere: parks, street corners, restaurant parking lots. We park the bus and unload our bike stands and tools. We decide on locations based on where people we know live or work and can put posters up in the neighbourhood to let people know where to bring their bike on a certain time and date for repair. The most common type of repair is flat tires. After that, people always need brake work.

Look up Momentum for the pdf file or to order one online!

Check it out at www.urbanvelo.org
Download your free copy!

Full article available online on September 1st:
www.urbanvelo.org

Due to scheduling conflicts, Books on Wheels will NOT be attending Thursdays event at the VCU Commons. Apologies to everyone, this came up very short notice for us all. But, feel free to still attend and have your bike registered and get a tune-up and some find out about great things going on in the biking community around Richmond!!  

The VCU Bike Round-Up 
Thursday August 21st
VCU Commons 

What a busy Friday Night Richmond youth is going to have. When you get off work that day, know that tonight is going to be good. Anyone who still has a love for the summer, parties, and mayhem, is going to love August 1st. So, once you get off work, put some air in your tires, get your buddies together and ride your bike to Monroe Park (to the corner of Laurel & Main) for a sweet ass bike ride through the city with give-aways and prizes.

 the route:  1.Start at Monroe Park 6:0pm, and head up Main St. all the way to Lombardy.  2.Take a right on Lombardy and head to Broad St., take a left on Broad St.  3.Take Broad St. to Boulevard and take a left on Boulevard.  4.Take Boulevard to Ellwood Ave. and turn right.   5.Take Ellwood Ave. to Ellwood Thompson’s Natural Market and meet up in the parking lot. Here you are gonna get drenched with FREE Ice Cold Vitamin Water to quench your thirsts, hooray for Vitamin Water and corporate sponsors. Once everyone is ready, ride through the parking lot and the Vitamin Water van (which has exterior speakers) will escort the riders down Carytown and Cary St.   6.Take a left on to 2nd St. and take 2nd st. to Broad St.  7.Turn left on Broad St. and ride through the First Friday’s Art Walk.  8.Turn right on to Henry St and ride over to Leigh St. 9.Turn right on Leigh St. and end at the City Park, or end wherever you want.

Summer Tour went really well! Check out stories about it on our blog at

www.booksonwheelsrva.blogspot.com