On Sept. 18, the Center for Sustainability’s Sustainability Council—a group of faculty, staff and students committed to increasing the University’s efforts to become more sustainable—hosted the first Bike Mechanics 101 course in Nagel Underground. It was the first of several classes scheduled to take place throughout the quarter with the goal of educating students about ways to maintain and service their bicycles.
According to Chad King, DU sustainability coordinator, these classes are new to campus this year and began in an effort to make the University of Denver more biker-friendly. The Sustainability Council has partnered with The Bike Depot, a non-profit organization that works to provide bikes to people in need of transportation, according to King.
The Bike Depot has similar classes available as the classes now being offered on campus through their own organization. According to King, the partnership allows the Sustainability Council to borrow material for the classes rather than creating them from scratch. King said volunteers from the Bike Depot have also been assisting in the classes now hosted on campus.
“The first class was Thursday night in Nagel Underground where our offices are and mainly covered the basics of bike mechanics,” said King, “The class next Thursday will be more focused on actually learning how to do everything else, such as rebuilding their bike if they have to.”
According to the class itinerary, the class taught students about bike anatomy, basic brake and derailleur adjustments, essential solvents and lubricants bikers should have in order to keep their bike running smoothly.
According to King, the classes are very informative, and some students who have taken classes similar to the ones now being hosted on campus have gone on to work in bike shops.
“We have several classes planned for the rest of the quarter, including a class for commuters,” said King, “It covers what kind of gear they will need, what tools they should have to make slight repairs and how to inflate tires.”
According to King, the turnout for the first class was not as big as he had hoped, but he remains optimistic that they will generate enough interest to add more classes as the school year continues. There were only a few students who attended the class, according to King.
The Sustainability Council encourages people to ride and maintain their bikes and offers free tune ups on bicycles in Nagel Underground for students, according to King.
“The only difference, starting next quarter, is that students will be required to register their bikes through Campus Safety,” said King. “But it’s pretty easy to do online.”
The second class, Bike Mechanics 102, will focus more on in-depth bike skills class and is scheduled for Sept. 25. According to the class itinerary, the second class will cover the inner workings of the cable systems that control the brakes.
The commuter class is scheduled for Oct. 2 from 4:30-5:30 p.m.
