“Miss Kerri, this won’t come off,” said King Woods, who was working on a Dunelt bike.
“These old bikes, it’s always a tight fit with the forks,” Kerri Martin replied, handing the 14-year-old Woods a screwdriver. “Wiggle it down.”
The wiggling worked, and Woods continued on his repair job.
“I’m a bike doctor,” explained Jack Pitzer, who was working on an Electra Townie 7D. “I’m taking bikes and giving them a second life. I give a diagnosis, get them treated and send them home.”
He smiled. “We never lose a patient.”
At Second Life Bikes on Main Street, the patients are bikes, and they all have stories. The 38-year-old Martin, who started fixing bikes once a week in a church garage four years ago, now presides over an operation that includes 10 volunteers, scores of kids and 1,000-plus bicycles.
The 12- to 18-year-olds, most from Asbury Park, Neptune City and Neptune Township, come in after school to repair bikes. When they put in 15 hours of work, they earn a free bike.
…
Second Life Bike’s philosophy is stated on a pamphlet: “We rescue bikes. We fix bikes. We sell bikes. We earn bikes. We ride bikes. We love bikes.”
…
About 200 children have worked at Second Life Bikes this year alone. Some put in a few hours, never to be seen again. Others, like Woods and Dajon Williams (pictured above), are determined to get that free bike.
“When I get my bike,” said the 11-year-old Williams, thinking ahead, “I can come here and fix it.” (emphasis ed.)
Props to Kerri Martin and her organization — every kid should have a place like this where they can go. You can learn more about Second Life Bikes at their website: thebikechurch.org
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Photo by Noah K. Murray
Very cool. Bike Works (http://bikeworks.org/) is a similar program in Seattle.