On a budget? Local nonprofit groups offer low-cost cycling options

This story first appeared in the 2024 Cycling Guide, a new annual special section distributed in The Gazette aimed at telling the stories of the businesses, people and local efforts that have made The Corridor a cycling destination.

On a tight budget, or just unsure how much you’ll be riding? There are low-cost options available through three area nonprofit groups.

“You can easily buy a used Giant or Trek for less than you’d pay for a bike at Wal Mart,” said Rick Paulos, treasurer and store manager for NewBo Bikes. “We’ve got endless parts, we’ve got frames, we’ve got wheels. If they want to build a bike from scratch, we’ve got all the parts here.”

“I hear this story a lot,” said Drew Boss, lead mechanic at Iowa City Bike Library. “‘I biked when I was a kid, but I stopped when I was 14 and I haven’t biked since,’ and they’re in their mid-twenties. They have the memory of how to do it, but they don’t know what they want.”

ICBL maintains a fleet of “check-out bikes,” donated and refurbished for six-month, $50 rentals.

“We do a full tune-up on them, we replace any worn out or damaged parts,” Boss said. “We only pick commuter bikes, so they’re friendly for city streets, they can hold racks, they can hold fenders. That’s the best deal in town. It works great for pretty much everybody: saving up for a nicer bike, want to have summer transportation, you’re a student, you’re a traveling nurse.”

That’s the basic idea for a new Cedar Rapids organization. Chain Reaction Bike Hub plans a May 1 opening for its shop at 1010 Third Ave. SW, executive director Evan Schmidtke said.

“We’re just going to copy and paste, because it’s been such as successful model,” said Schmidtke, who works at Goldfinch Cyclery. “It started with a small group of us, with Linn County Public Health and passionate cyclists in the community. It just kind of took off last fall.”

While CR Bike Hub is just getting rolling, NewBo Bikes has served bargain-hunting riders since about 2012. Sales of donated bikes and parts financed the purchase of its shop at 39 16th Ave. SW. Volunteers staff the shop, which is open Saturdays.

“We’ve got a couple of mechanics who are real good at it,” Paulos said. “They can earn credit toward unrepaired bikes they repair themselves. Most people think you can fix a bike in a couple hours, but I’ve been doing it for 50 years now, and I’m still learning.”

ICBL’s “rent-a-bench” offers new cyclists the chance to learn bike maintenance from experienced mechanics for free.

“They will do the work, but we will give them the education on how to do it,” Boss said. “Something as simple as fixing a flat: you buy and inner tube from one of the local bike shops, you bring your bike and you bring your tube here, and we’ll give you the tools and the knowledge on how to fix that.”

ICBL stages weekly group rides around Iowa City, a feature CR Bike Hub plans to adopt.

“We do a Friday-night ride that’s just ride for an hour and a half or two hours around town, very slow pace,” Boss said. “On Wednesday evenings we do a similar format, just another option for people to get out and explore the city. It’s very beginner-focused.”

“Bike to Work Week is mid-May, so we’re going to catapult off that,” Schmidtke said.

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