Ever wonder what a typical night at the Green Chile Bike Bank looks like?

Once we open our doors at 6:30pm on Tuesdays, our core volunteer mechanics will bring in clients and their bicycles for repairs. Sometimes it will be a quick one, like changing out a flat tube. Sometimes it’s a big repair that our clients have patiently been awaiting parts for, on the night we finally get them back on their bike. Most often, it rolls through the door as a small repair but, upon closer inspection, we find something unsafe that needs more attention, or find that the bike could run even better with a few small tweaks.

Some of our amazing volunteers are current or former clients of ours as well who know first hand how important this work is to the community. They not only help with repairs, but help us keep the shop clean and organized, and hand out snacks or drinks we might have that night.

On the nights we see new faces come in, or returning clients whose bikes have been destroyed or stolen, we will head into the back of the shop and look for something we might be able to fix up by the end of shop hours for that person. We use our collection of donated bikes and parts or parts taken from bicycles that could not be salvaged.

If you’re wondering how to help the GCBB run smoothly for a night, consider visiting https://gcbbpueblo.org/our-needs/ for more information.

Opening the doors on Tuesdays means paying our rent. Our tools, from big like stands to small like screwdrivers, can wear out. Despite our big selection of parts, there will always be that one that we don’t have and need to order. And even the most common inventory items of tires, tubes, reflectors, and seats need to be replenished. Plus, we can always use more bikes in decent condition. This is how your kindness helps us, and if you’d like to see it in action, come down to the shop on Tuesdays from 6:30-8:30pm!