Freewheel Bicycle Co @freewheelbikesmadison@sunbeam.city

some local history: "Crazy TV Lenny" banked on the reputation of Italian bikes when he had 100,000 "Firenze" bikes (NOT Italian) produced to give away as an advertising stunt... theyre still popping up out of people's garages and making it to our recycle pile.

He runs an e-bike store these days and we use his secondhand cardboard for shipping :)

This is what we're advocating for downtown

this is what we're advocating for downtown

This is what we're advocating for downtown

😅 there's a lot to do in April, and that's not counting preparing for events in May and June 😰

Tire inventory (new)

Asked a coworker for advice on how to motivate volunteers to sort broken parts they might not even be able to identify yet

"One of these springs could cost $5 new." He says

"So it's about teaching them to value it?" Yep...

Materials don't need to be designed to be reused, to be reused...

We have this many forks because frame and wheel manufacturers have used zillions of competing sizing standards over the years. It's even worse with seat posts, the differences there can only be detected by calipers or "trying to fit it in" #thinkingutopia in a perfect world should all parts be intercompatible??

I don't like this geometry. It reminds me of an overbred German Shepard's weird hips. #mtb

This is Bambi, our littlest mechanic

This is where the money is made... (Shop dog not pictured despite her best efforts...)

Coworker: "he attacked me this morning, he's very aggressive..."

Who are they talking about?

Monday's shipping is ready 2 go... #bikeshop from tire levers to a whole fat bike

It's not terribly pretty but all of this is free.

Image description: wheels on the cieling, boxes of parts on the shelf, a bunch of half assembled bikes on the ground including an exercise bike and a weird ski-bike. Tim is making a box in the background.

Being grown up business owners means we can prioritize installing tunes in the workroom #bikeshop

4 numbers, and the serial number is the one that can wear off? Honestly... #trek

Either there is no local production, or no profit in exporting #bikes to some areas in Africa, so we (and others like us) are the only source. We send mostly entry level mountain bikes, for their low maintenance needs, to partner organizations in a few African countries, to help rural kids get to school.

I tell you what, when I'm loading the Uhaul, I don't always ask where the bikes are going this time. Pictures come back a few months later tho, with details.

Step 0.5 of getting a bike sold... Data collection.

Actually this was the biggest single shipment we've gotten ever... #bikeshop #biking