Oak Bay will soon be home to four bike kitchens, or bike tool stands, thanks to the Community Association of Oak Bay.
The group is allocating money from the Jill Croft Memorial Fund donating the four bike repair stands to Oak Bay Parks and Recreation for public use at local parks and recreation centres.
“These repair stands provide the tools for cyclists to do minor emergency repairs to their bikes,” said Rick Marshall of the association.
The tools are also capable of adjusting seat and stem heights, brakes and other parts of the bike. There is a QR code on the stand that cyclists can use to quickly stream do-it-yourself tutorials using the specific tools available on the bike stands.
There are many factors that give people the necessary confidence to commute by bike. In addition to having a safe route to travel by is knowing there are tools around town at these bike repair stands, said Martin Farnham, president of Tripleshot Cycling Club, which has a heavy presence in Oak Bay.
READ ALSO: Sausage Fest funds schools, cycling infrastructure
“Cyclists often carry small repair kits, but all of us have – at some point – found ourselves missing something that would help get us home safely,” Farnham said. “Knowing that there’s a repair station close by would be a relief.”
There are other bike repair stands around town in Victoria and Saanich (the latter has nine), especially along the Galloping Goose and Lochside Trail. Oak Bay Firefighters Charitable Foundation purchased one for Oak Bay Recreation Centre.
And now the community association wants to add four they’ve purchased to Windsor Park, Monterey and Henderson recreation centres, and Willows Beach.
“There was extra money in the Jill Croft Memorial Fund and we talked to the family who agreed to buy five of these, which are about $650 apiece,” said Kris Nichols of the community association. “And Oak Bay has shown interest in having these installed.”
The group managed to score the repair stations on sale as they are a discontinued line usually worth $1,000.
“This gift to Oak Bay is made possible by many donations in memory of the late Jill Croft, who passed away two years ago after a sudden illness,” Marshall said. “Jill was a well-known spark of many initiatives to improve the quality of life in our community.”
Jill Croft and her husband Tom were founders of the Community Association of Oak Bay in 2008 and Jill’s bike was her daily means of transportation before she died, Tom said.
Saanich bike kitchens make tune-ups easy with free tools and tire pumps
The community association is also co-promoting Bike to Work Victoria’s plan to offer a three-hour bike skill course for children aged seven to nine. Interested parents or guardians can visit biketoworkvictoria.ca/bike-skills/kids-can-ride-courses.
“We also have one additional bike repair stand available and are seeking suggestions from community members on a suitable site for its installation,” Marshall said.
Ideally, it will be a place with lots of cycling traffic or parking where it will go to good use. Please contact oakbayconnector@gmail.com with suggestions or interested regarding the bike course.
Â
Do you have a story tip? Email: vnc.editorial@blackpress.ca.
Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.
