NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — If you’ve been cycling via the Ghent vicinity of Norfolk lately, you may have noticed something new at the sidewalks.
“It’s genuinely cool to see a more cycle-friendly city,” stated Tyler West, who works at East Coast Bicycles, which has a store along Colley Avenue.
New bike restores stations with air pumps and a variety of equipment — some thing you need to repair your motorcycle in a pinch — have popped up along Colley and Llewellyn avenues.
Gail Newman, who’s the assets supervisor for The Palace Shops & Station, said, “God forbid you to have a breakdown otherwise you lose the air in your tires or something occurs. Right here on Llewellyn Avenue, proper out of doors of Decorum Furniture, you have got a motorcycle station to help with maintenance.”
The stations are a part of an industrial hall undertaking supported using Ghent companies who are hoping that being extra motorcycle-pleasant will deliver extra humans to the vicinity.
“We have so many people that trip up to our restaurants and stores, they can simply pull proper in, now not have to worry approximately parking a vehicle,” said Newman. “It’s simply this kind of exquisite neighbourhood for it. There are such a lot of humans now with the residences coming in that just attempt, and again, we are very massive about being environmentally pleasant. The less you may be for your car and the greater you could be on a motorbike or strolling, the better.”
West says the brand new stations have been useful for the biking community.
“After store hours, it’s quality to have the air pump out here, so earlier than you get rolling you could test your air strain,” he said. “A region in which you can dangle your motorbike so in case you need to apply any of this equipment, you may come down here and pull them proper out of right here and use any of the equipment.”
Each restore station expenses more or less $1800.
May is motorbike month within the City of Norfolk. Visit its website for more information.
If you have never purchased a bike repair stand before, the cost is something you may be unsure about. A repair stand is a speciality tool that you will use to make your bike repair work easier. If you have done a little research already, you will have noticed that a bike repair stand can range from $30 right up to $1000 for professional styles. So how much do you need to spend on your own bike repairs to be happy with your purchase?
Below is a summary of what you will generally get for your money:
Under $40
If you are Tim the tool man Tailor, like my Dad, and know what you are doing with welding metal or screwing in clamps, you may be able to make a good stand out of parts for $30 or under. There are many Tim the tool man Tailors out there online who are happy to share their knowledge with you and I admire them all. This is do-able for some, but certainly not for everyone. The homemade versions typically are not very portable and can sometimes make your repairs even more of a hassle.
Remember you will get what you pay for so beware of the real cheap models. A bike repair stand is to help make your bike repairs easier, not more difficult and you don’t want it unstable or useless.
$40 – $80
You also have to beware of stands within this price range. If this is your budget, then read some reviews before you buy. For this price, you will find that the bike stands are not perfect, but they will be semi-useful. The biggest risk in buying one at too low a price is that it may not be very steady so be sure to look into that before buying.
$80 – $120
This price range is do-able. You can get an okay bike stand to meet the basic needs of repairing your bicycle. If you are just starting out in bike repairs and don’t want to spend too much, or are not sure how much you’re going to really be working on your bike, this can be a good price to look at. Do your research and read some reviews to make sure you are getting one that will work for you. You won’t get anything fancy, but that’s okay, the key is that it works! You can also get a bench mount stand from reliable brands for this price.