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The Iowa City Bike Library invites everyone along for the ride

Kelly Danaher and Emily Janio work on their bike cables at Women/Trans/Femme night at the Iowa City Bike Library.
Natalie Dunlap
/
Iowa Public Radio
Kelly Danaher and Emily Janio work on their bike cables at Women/Trans/Femme night at the Iowa City Bike Library.

A rainy evening looks like poor weather for a bike ride, but great conditions for tuning up a bicycle in the Iowa City Bike Library’s garage. Folk music plays overhead as a Bike Library staff member offers boxed wine to attendees of Women/Trans/Femme Tuesday — a night dedicated to creating a welcoming environment for that community to roll up to a bench and work on their steed.

Emily Janio is replacing the cables on a bike she found for free online. She's planning to upgrade all the parts before taking the bike on RAGBRAI.

The library has a hands off wrenching policy: the library staff will show patrons how to fix their own bike, rather than doing it for them.

“Our culture is ... to empower you to know how to do it yourself and just expect that anyone can learn the skills you need to maintain your bike,” said Clarity Guerra, a board member with the Iowa City Bike Library. “... Changing that dynamic that, ‘Oh, we're gonna have to go take it to a dude mechanic who's the only person who can fix this,’ and putting that knowledge in your own hands.”

The Iowa City Bike Library stocks up on 500 bikes each spring which patrons can check out for up to six months by putting down a deposit.
Natalie Dunlap
/
Iowa Public Radio
The Iowa City Bike Library stocks up on 500 bikes each spring which patrons can check out for up to six months by putting down a deposit.

The Iowa City Bike Library was founded in 2004 with the mission of making cycling a primary form of transportation in the community. The nonprofit's main service is allowing patrons to “check out” bikes for up to six months, but over the years has added more programs aimed at welcoming cyclists of all identities to the bike library.

Mujeres en Bicis, which translates to Women on Bikes, connects with Spanish-speaking women in Iowa City for meetings once a week during the spring and summer months.

“We want to have a space where particularly Latina women, who spend so much of their time caretaking — they're working, they're taking care of their children and their homes and their partners — we want them to have a space just for themselves,” said Aliese Gingerich, a volunteer with the program.

Aliese Gingerich, a volunteer with the Iowa City Bike Library, and Mujeres En Bici participant Mayte Flores pose with 'Talk of Iowa' host Charity Nebbe.
Samantha McIntosh
/
Iowa Public Radio
Aliese Gingerich, a volunteer with the Iowa City Bike Library, and Mujeres En Bici participant Mayte Flores shared their experiences with Mujeres En Bici on Talk of Iowa.

The library provides bikes and lessons to learn how to ride or do a social ride. Those who participate for six weeks earn their own bike from the library.

Mayte Flores, a Mujeres En Bici participant, had never ridden a bike before she learned about the program. She said it was helpful to be alongside other women when trying something new. Child care and snacks are provided at the meet-ups as well.

“We will kind of get together at our meeting point, and then go with our children over to the park, which is honestly also really beautiful — having our kids with us and that they can bear witness to us kind of showing how if you set your mind to something, you can achieve it,” Flores said, speaking through a translator. “And there's not an age limit to being able to learn new things.”

A poster board shows different bike related art and information about bike ride events and teams in Iowa City.
Natalie Dunlap
/
Iowa Public Radio
Their main program at the bike library allows patrons to “check out” bikes for up to six months, but they also host rides, have free bench space to work at and teach people how to maintain their bikes.

The bike library also started its own chapter of Cycling Without Age last year. The worldwide organization was founded to make cycling accessible to people with limited mobility.

The library has been using a trishaw owned by Legacy Senior Living in Iowa City to take seniors on rides since August 2024 and just purchased its own, which the library will use for community rides starting in June.

The trishaw is an E-bike with a bench in the front that two passengers can sit in while the “pilot” pedals the bike behind them. The set-up encourages passengers to observe nature and spark curiosity about their surroundings.

Michelle Voss is a volunteer at the library and the co-founder of Iowa City’s Cycling Without Age chapter. In her professional life she's a neuroscience researcher. She said the shared cycling experience combats social isolation and promotes positive brain function for aging adults.

When Voss pilots the trishaw, she notices seniors make comments about the road they are on and share memories of what used to be there, which exercises their memory.

"I can just feel the hippocampus lighting up,” Voss said.

Cindy Wilson adjusts the brakes on a children's bike. She doesn't ride herself, but she started volunteering at the library after her granddaughter died in a biking accident.
Natalie Dunlap
/
Iowa Public Radio
Cindy Wilson adjusts the brakes on a children's bike. She doesn't ride herself, but she started volunteering at the library after her granddaughter died in a biking accident.

Some people have made the bike library their social hub.

Lee Thomas brought his bike into the garage a year ago and kept coming back for the company. He provided sneakers for the library staff, using shoes from his business.

Cindy Wilson doesn’t ride, but she started spending time at the library after her granddaughter died in a biking accident. She said she’s always liked fixing stuff, as she tinkered with the brakes on a child’s Schwinn bike.

Another woman got her bike from the library after a life-altering mental health episode. The Domestic Violence Intervention Program (DVIP) connected her with the library to provide a mode of transportation, which has changed her life.

“The bike library is a rare, intergenerational, bilingual third space that collapses class boundaries,” said Kate Wiley, fundraising coordinator at the bike library. “And it just feels really rare that you're in community with everyone that's living around you.”

To hear more about Cycling Without Age and Mujeres En Bici, listen to Talk of Iowa, hosted by Charity NebbeSamantha McIntosh produced this episode.

Natalie Dunlap is an award-winning digital producer and writer for Iowa Public Radio. She holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa. Since 2024, Dunlap has worked with IPR's talk team to bring news and features to IPR's digital audience.
Samantha McIntosh is a talk show producer for Iowa Public Radio. She holds a bachelor's degree from St. Cloud State University. Since 2022, McIntosh has worked with IPR's talk team to bring news and features to IPR's listening audience.
Charity Nebbe is the host of 'Talk of Iowa'. She also hosts IPR's podcasts 'Garden Variety' and 'Unsettled'. Since 2010, Nebbe has interviewed, conversed with, and shared ideas from guests of all backgrounds and locations, and has helped listeners better understand, appreciate, and explore their state and the world around them. Nebbe has a bachelor's degree from Iowa State University.