Bike Blast gives amateurs a chance to shine for schools

Student from the Seven Hills Middle School Bicycle Recycle Project will be on hand Saturday to help with the event.

Around 50 students from Seven Hills Middle School will be among the scores of volunteers working on Saturday, May 15, as part of the Nevada City Schools Foundation Bike Blast. School officials hope the event will raise as much $20,000 for arts, technology and student-support programs.

Just hours before the greatest bicycle racers in the world assemble on Broad Street, the next generation of bicyclists will be working to preserve after-school programs threatened by declining enrollment and California’s budget crisis.

Around 50 students from Seven Hills Middle School will be among the scores of volunteers working on Saturday, May 15, as part of the Nevada City Schools Foundation Bike Blast. School officials hope the event will raise as much $20,000 for arts, technology and student-support programs.

“A little bit of money can keep these programs around for another year or two. You don’t want to lose programs,” said Joe Limov, the school’s principal.

The fund-raising event will give plenty back to those who pay modest registration fees of $10 for children 17 and younger and $45 for adults who want to tackle one of four rides named in honor of Jim Rodgers, who recently died after being struck by a motorist while on his bicycle.

“We’re feeling pretty confident, pretty ready,” Steve Davis, who oversees the school’s Bicycle Recycle Project, said of the preparations for the Bike Blast.

The day’s activities start at 9 a.m. on the Seven Hills Middle School campus at 700 Hoover Lane. They include a bike rodeo for children ages 3 to 9; mountain-bike training for those 10 years and older; and the rides that range from 7.5 miles to 66 miles.

Students from the school’s recycling project will be at the Bike Blast to inspect bicycles and helmets, do tune ups, and supervise the children riding in the bike rodeo, which will present a number of challenges for beginners.

“It’s actually kids teaching kids to ride bikes and that makes it a very, very unique event,” said Rich Looney, an instructor for the Bicycle Recycle Project.

Davis said those who successfully complete the Bike Rodeo will receive a certificate. Mike Bratton, a State Farm insurance agent from Grass Valley, will provide around 100 helmets for young riders who need them.

Older riders will get to test their skills on a mountain-bike training course designed by Looney, who said it will feature a bridge crossing, log crossings, drop offs and rock croppings. It will start on the school’s campus and continue to neighboring trails.

Those riders will be fed by the Lions Club that will also prepare meals for riders who register for one of the four rides that start at 9 a.m. at the school. The rides are Jimmy’s Joyride (7.5 miles), Jimmy’s Jaunt (16 miles), Jimmy’s Jam (33 miles) and Jimmy’s Journey (66 miles).

Those who attend the fund-raiser will get to see plans for the new Seven Hills Bicycle Recycling Center, which should be built this year. Davis said the school’s students will one day take classes in a 2,800-square-foot facility thanks to a $1 million contribution from an anonymous donor.

The recycling center is one of the school’s success stories.

 Davis started the program 10 years ago when 64 students signed up for classes. Now around 500 students a year are learning how to repair bicycles that are then donated to the homeless and organizations like the Domestic Violence Coalition and the Food Bank.

“I think students like the program because it’s not academics and it’s hands on. They are learning skills that they can take home with them,” said Davis, adding that the students have donated around 80 recycled bicycles a year for the past decade.

As of April 28, an estimated 150 people had registered for the fundraiser. Bike Blast organizers are hoping as many as 500 people register for an event they emphasize will benefit a number of programs in the district.

“Like most school districts, we have been hit pretty hard by significant budget cuts and as a result there is no money to fund some of these programs,” Looney said. “This is an effort to try and provide additional money for all of our after-school programs.”

For more information on the Bike Blast or to register for the event, visit www.bicyclenevadacounty.com/bikeblast.html