Looking for a few used bikes: Lincoln Bike Kitchen anticipates high demand this spring

The Lincoln Bike Kitchen is to thank for many of them.

In 2022, it donated almost 1,000 bikes to Lincoln area schools, and has already started giving away bikes in 2023.

But there's one problem: it's running low.

So, it's asking for help from the community. Clayton Streich, a member of the Bike Kitchen board, says the shortage is new for him.

"I've been here for seven years," he said. "This is the first time ever that we're this low on inventory."

Streich is asking Lincoln residents to consider donating their old bikes.

In January, the Bike Kitchen gave 19 bikes to McPhee Elementary School students, thanks to the attention of physical education teacher Alex Hyde.

"He knows every single kid, and learns about the ones in need," Streich said.

Schools can request bikes from the Bike Kitchen, and Streich says Hyde has ordered bikes for students in nearly every grade.

Organizations such as Nebraska DEVO, which teaches kids about mountain biking, and the Streets Alive! movement festival, which celebrates fitness across the United States, have received donations as well.

Streich says the group also takes individual requests, and has shared more than 100 bikes that way.

The organization keeps bikes rolling thanks to the help of volunteer mechanics who repair bikes.

There are three different shifts that volunteers can work on bikes, and the volunteers are from all walks of life.

Streich says retirees enjoy working the Monday morning shift, and mechanical engineering students from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln come in on Thursday nights.

Volunteers were plentiful this winter, and the surplus in labor eventually led to the current situation.

"We usually have stacks on stacks of bikes," Streich said.

Nonetheless, he says volunteers are always welcome, especially as donations pick up this spring.

The Bike Kitchen is at 1635 S. First St. and accepts donations 9-11 a.m. and 5:30-7 p.m. Mondays, and 5:30-7 p.m. Thursdays.