BikeShare
Photo Story by Simon Tan
RRNCBikeShare places rebuilt bikes in local communities where they have the highest & best use
Our program helps “build community” by putting free bicycles directly into the hands of at-risk and underprivileged children, and to adults who are without reliable transportation, thus removing this barrier to their being able to maintain steady employment.
We abide by the credo “one person’s trash is another’s treasure.” By repairing discarded bikes, making them safe and rideable, we are not only keeping valuable items out of our landfills, but provide free bikes to children who would otherwise not have access, and to adults for whom reliable transportation is a barrier to employment, thus reinforcing the activity of biking to help foster community.
Our goal is to answer the question, can sharing free bikes provide tangible incentives for communication within a community? Can free bike sharing act as a catalyst to achieve cross-silo mentality while providing platforms and spaces created for organizations to intermingle, openly communicate, and share resources? As such, relationship building is the primary purpose of our program. Developing a bike culture, supported by diverse businesses and nonprofits, ultimately creates a beneficial transportation alternative and improves personal health and happiness, which in turn leads to better quality-of-life within a community.
Kids grown up and you're left with bikes and helmets left unused? Let's work together find a a home for them!
Please be aware! Due to safety reasons, we can only accept helmets still in the box.
If you live in the Saxapahaw area, are in a pinch and need a bike donated to your child, let us know!
It does take time for us to source a donation from one of our donors, so please let us know what you need WELL in advance.
Please be aware, we have to limit requests to one full bike per family per year. Smaller requests such as helmets, kick stands, wheels, etc. are also available, but in limited numbers.
Since 2011, RRNCBikeShare has sourced donated bikes from local retail shops that are in varying states of disrepair, and most often are available as a result of a trade-in on a new bike. Michael “Dr. Mike” Holland, a RRNC executive team member, is a qualified bike mechanic who has a longstanding relationship with these local vendors. They contact him on a weekly basis to pick up their “unwanted” or "unusable" bikes for donation to RRNC. Dr. Mike donates his time to sort the bikes into usable (that he repairs) or recyclable, that go to the metal scrapyard. Usable parts needed for repair are removed from bikes prior to being scrapped.
Funds obtained from selling metal scrap, or the occasional high-value bike, are plowed back into the program to subsidize ongoing costs for chain lubricant, innertubes, tools, etc., as well as minimal marketing costs for booth graphics and other printed materials. RRNCBikeShare is a SBU that truly runs on a tight shoestring. Out of pocket costs are minimal, both consumables for repair and marketing materials, and are underwritten by selling donations that do not fit within the scope of the organization. This includes bikes that cannot be repaired that are sold for scrap (after removing usable parts) and high end bikes that are too “temperamental” to be donated to a recipient that could not afford to maintain them.
Need Parts and/or Repairs?
Consider shopping with our local BikeShare partners:
