Hello Friends of Freewheel! We’ve had our hands full with spring and summer season at the Madison Bike Center, so it’s been a long time since we’ve written to you. It’s time to catch up!
Some things have changed, but a lot’s still the same. Here’s a quick overview of what we’ve been up to, and how you can get involved with us.
Location
After many years on S Park St, Freewheel has completely relocated to the Madison Bike Center (MBC) at 202 S. Pinckney St. The MBC is Freewheel’s only location. The for-profit bike shop on S Park St is no longer affiliated with Freewheel.
Donations
Freewheel accepts donations of bikes, parts, and accessories in any condition. To donate a bike to Freewheel, please drop it off at the Madison Bike Center at 202 S Pinckney St. We do not accept donations at any other location, and only Freewheel staff or explicitly designated representatives are authorized to accept Freewheel donations. If you have any questions about this, please call us and ask: 608-698-9205.
Because we don’t currently have access to a reliable vehicle, our capacity to pick up bikes is extremely limited. We hope to remedy this situation soon!
We’re also currently trying to puzzle out how to handle large donations of bicycles. We still welcome small donations, but mass donations of more than 10 bikes pose a serious logistical challenge to us right now, because we don’t currently have the space to store many bikes on site at the Madison Bike Center. (If you’d be interested in donating storage space to us, please drop us a line.)
As always, your donations to Freewheel (whether of money or of bikes, parts, vehicles, or storage space) are tax-deductible. Please ask us for a receipt for your taxes when you donate!
Retail
Refurbishing used and vintage donated bikes and selling them to fund our operations has been what’s kept us afloat during the pandemic. We’re proud to have a big selection of refurbished bikes to choose from.
Because we receive our bikes as donations, we can’t guarantee that we have a particular size, make, or model of bike in stock. (Think of us like a thrift store.) But we do have a constantly rotating selection of high-quality used and vintage bikes that we’re tuning up and selling.
So if you’re interested in a new-to-you bike, drop by the MBC and we’ll show you around! If you see a bike you love that’s not tuned up yet, don’t despair — let us know which bike you’re interested in, and leave your name and number. We’ll prioritize tuning it up and we’ll give you a call when it’s done.
We also have a limited selection of new parts and accessories, including grips, tape, pedals, and inner tubes. And we still have our famed bins of used parts, available by donation. Come to our shop and we’ll help you out!
Volunteering
We have plenty of opportunities for volunteers at the Madison Bike Center! We’re always looking for help with tasks like:
- stripping parts from bikes
- hauling scrap (you’ll need a vehicle)
- tuning up donated bikes
- cleaning and organizing our shop
- teaching classes
— and more. We sometimes schedule volunteer days, but if you’re interested in helping, just drop by during normal business hours (9 AM to 5 PM, Monday through Friday) and we’ll happily set you up with a task.
Volunteering is a great way to get involved in the Freewheel community, and many volunteer tasks double as terrific ways of learning more about bikes. Speaking of which…
Instruction
We’re still hunting down volunteer instructors to teach regular classes, but in the meantime we have plenty of educational opportunities!
We’re currently offering instruction in the form of one-on-one appointments at the Madison Bike Center. Making an appointment ensures we can give you the time and attention you deserve, during our busiest season!
Give us a call at 608-698-9205 to set up an appointment. Bring your bike with you to fix it up, or learn essential mechanical skills on one of our bikes awaiting tune-up.
We’re also occasionally holding open shops and classes on a one-off basis. To stay current about these and other developments around the shop, we recommend following us on social media or emailing us to get onto our contact list.
MBC Memberships
The vision for the Madison Bike Center has always involved welcoming members to our facility, and we haven’t forgotten about that! Facility members will be able to take advantage of all of the Madison Bike Center’s amenities, including 24/7 bike and item storage, showers and changing rooms, and our bike wash.
Unfortunately, covid delayed our plans to open to the public (and with delta flaring up, we’re monitoring for developments, but cautiously optimistic). Right now we’re working to install the infrastructure we need to welcome members. Right now we don’t have a date set for our grand opening, but we hope to have updates on this in the next few weeks. Follow us on social media (Freewheel or Madison Bike Center) for updates, or email us to join our contact list.