By Michael B, West Town Bikes, NFP
The nice thing about it being frigidly cold outside and only one quick month away from busy-bike-shop season is that we have had plenty of undisturbed time for finishing up important shop construction projects and training our new shop apprentices!
We’ve just completed a big expansion to Ciclo Urbano’s shop, adding some much-needed floor-space to our retail area!ย We are working hard to put the finishing touches on the final paint and detail work, as well as getting all of our stock ready to show off in the new space.ย Soon you’ll be able to peruse our expanded selection of used bike clothing and shoes, along with a new area displaying used panniers and bags.ย Please stop by soon to check out how great everything looks!
We’d like to give a warm welcome to Deorey and Hector, both of whom have been coming around to West Town Bikes for several years. Deorey came to us through a Bickerdike youth development bike program way back in 2005 – when he was just 10 years old! During his first time in the bike program, he was the only one in his group to achieve a proper hub adjustment on his first try. Little did he know he was well on his way to becoming a pro mechanic…
Hector has been with WTB since 2010 with the Bike Club, and with us he brings his awesome skills and knowledge as a BMX rider and devotee during the past four years as he has worked his way through our apprenticeship program at Ciclo Urbano. Hector’s knowledge and enthusiasm for BMX riding has enabled us to increase our expertise so we may better serve fellow BMX riders like Hector, in the community.ย Hector also happens to be skilled with automotive mechanics, which has certainly come in handy for everyday tasks and activities we find ourselves busy with here.
Hector and Deorey are both extremely hard working, and they certainly know their way around bikes.ย Most importantly, however, they have both quickly learned the difference of what it’s like to be working on their own bikes during Bike Club and the responsibilities of working in a high-quality professional repair shop like Ciclo Urbano.
There’s no doubt that we’ll all have our work cut out for us as we get closer to the official start of Spring – especially with more and more of our fellow Chicagoans learning just how great our city is for those (like us!) who love bicycling!ย Come by and visit us in the shop soon!