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April 11, 2024
What is the Bike Club?
The Pirate Gang Biker club here at MBHS is a group of bike enthusiasts who ride trails and go on epic adventures, or sometimes a more simple outing, such as going on the trails on South Bay Blvd or down Hazards at Montaña de Oro. Other trips are more elaborate, such as exploring abandoned trails at Caliente Mountain, or 100+ mile bikepacking trips. The purpose of the bike club is to “get more kids on bikes more of the time,” said Mr. Gade, the club advisor. “Not just kids, people. To get humans riding bicycles.”
Progress
Gade describes his role as “a stoker, which is a person that gets people stoked.” He gets people excited to ride trails and get moving around instead of “riding the couch (car)” all the time. Currently, the club has a custom-made logo with a Pirate head surrounded by tools. “We’ve got a logo that my friend designed,” Gade said, “and we turned that into stickers which we’re tagging the universe with.” There has already been a fundraiser through the sale of 20 bike light bundles (including a front and back light). This allows for some spending money on other things such as the stickers and other materials.
Eventually, the club will retrofit the interior room at the science wing to be a repair shop. This will be another purpose of the club. Gade says the goal is “to teach kids to fix bikes and to build bikes for kids that don’t have them.” This includes basic repairs such as fixing punctured tires and adjusting derailleurs. There will also be more advanced repairs that can be made such as replacing the cassette. Gade also wants to find sponsors for various tools to ensure that bikes can be repaired.
Stem Caps
One of the projects going on as of right now is custom-made anodized aluminum stem caps. Almost every aspect of the design process has been done by me, with Mr. Gade, Mr. Elliott, and the other members of the club as advisors on the design. Mr. Wendorff has also assisted with the manufacturing portion of the project. After a broken probe and many headaches, multiple working prototypes have been made and the process has been optimized. Mass production is very close to happening, with only a few more headaches to go.
Members / Bikes
The gang bikers themselves are also unique. Gade believes that “people in the club tend to be active. People that like to move rather than sit.” Every Friday, the bikers from Los Osos wake up early and ride the trails on South Bay Blvd to school. It is great for beginners who take it slow and enjoy the early morning views while the more experienced riders can climb the uphills and shred the downhills. Sometimes, the bikers enjoy a pastry from the cafe on the Embarcadero and socialize with other members.
You can also join us in this incredible club! This club is held on most Thursdays to discuss anything bike related. It could be about sharing what happened on a bikepacking trip or future plans for the club. If you love bikes and want to be with people who also love bikes, feel free to join!
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