See you next year!

Thanks for a wonderful first year. We look forward to seeing you back at the Wheelhouse in March 2009!

November 15 Java Junket Ride

On November 15, Detroit Bikes! will host its second annual Java Junket bike ride with stops at Good Girls Go to Paris Crepes, the Detroit Welcome Center in Mexicantown, the Mercury Coffee Bar, Cafe 1923 and
the Woodbridge Pub.

Nice touch, finishing off at pub (with a huge bike rack, natch).

The rides starts at 9 a.m. in Grand Circus Park. It’s a 15-miler.

Rouge Park trail work 11/2

This Saturday will be a day of trail work at Rouge Park on the bike/hike trail developed a couple of years ago. It’s short but sweet and it is great that there is mountain biking in the city! Saturday, work will begin to double its length to approximately 4 miles.

Meet at the northeast corner of Tireman and Outer Drive at 10 a.m.

One more week :(

Well folks, this is our last week of operation for 2008. We’re open Wednesday, October 29 through Sunday, November 2 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. So come see us one last time this year!

We will reopen in March 2009. We’ll miss you!

Haunted Detroit Bike Tour

Detroit Bikes! is hosting its 4th Annual Haunted Detroit Bike Tour on October 25. Sites include the Majestic Theater, Orchestra Hall, the Masonic Temple, the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Historical Museum, Wayne State University, The Bonstelle Theatre, The Fox Theatre, Grace/Harper Hospital, The Riverplace Grand Heritage Hotel and Elmwood Cemetery. It begins at 10 a.m. at the Millennium Bell in Grand Circus Park.

The 16-mile ride is free. Contact dialogue@detroitsynergy.org for more info or to volunteer as a mechanic or tour assistant. Helmets are mandatory.

Congrats to our friends + bailout for bikers

Congrats to our two (other) favorite Metro Detroit bike shops, Continental and The Hub, for being named 2008’s best by Metro Times staff and readers, respectively. Kudos!

Wheelhouse was mentioned as part of “Detroit’s Best Step Forward” category, which the RiverWalk won.

Once a terribly neglected resource, Detroit’s riverfront has been transformed into a true gem — we’d say a sapphire, given the sparkling blue waters now easily accessible because of the lovely promenade constructed in recent years under the guidance of the nonprofit Detroit RiverFront Conservancy. When completed, the walkway will stretch from the Ambassador Bridge to Gabriel Richard Park (just past the MacArthur Bridge leading to Belle Isle). The first phase has focused on the 3.5-mile section that starts at Joe Louis Arena and continues east; nearly 3 miles of that portion are complete. New features added this year at the Rivard Pavilion — site of the Cullen Family Carousel — include the Wheelhouse Detroit, which provides bike rentals and tours, and RiverWalk Café. If you haven’t walked the riverfront lately, now’s the time to check it out. You won’t be sorry.

Cool! Read more of the MT’s Community Chest picks here and The Glories of Capitalism here.

Buried in the fine print of the economic bailout package is good news for bike commuters: a tax credit for commuting to and from work. It’s not a lot, up to $20 per month, but maybe it’s a start. From treehugger:

It allows for a “qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement” for “reasonable expenses incurred by the employee during such calendar year for the purchase of a bicycle and bicycle improvements, repair, and storage, if such bicycle is regularly used for travel between the employee’s residence and place of employment”- your bike expenses, up to 20 bucks a month, can be covered by your boss as a benefit tax free.

Read more here.

Last weekend for tours

We have our final two neighborhood tours this weekend: Saturday we’ll explore Eastern Market and Sunday, Southwest Detroit. Read more about them and sign up at wheelhousedetroit.com/tours.

Our last several neighborhood tours have gone really well! We did Boston Edison a couple of weeks ago…

…and you can read about it here, at a blog post from one of the tour participants.

Last week, we did Creekside (no pics yet) and the Conner Creek Greenway. Todd from m-bike led that ride and has a re-cap and photos up on his site.

Join us this weekend!

As the world turns…

We are only open for three more weeks this year! We will miss all of our loyal friends and customers over this cold, harsh, dark winter.

Our last day of business in 2008 will be November 2.

Use these last few weeks to pick up fenders, lights, gloves, or anything else you might need to keep biking through the winter!

This weekend’s tours

Wheelhouse goes eastside this weekend with two great tours.

Saturday, we’ll take off from the shop at 10 a.m. and tour the lower eastside community of Creekside. There are amazing riverside parks, charming houses, meandering canals, brick streets and some new developments as well. The ride is about 15 miles and we’ll be back to Wheelhouse by 1 p.m. including a rest stop.

Saturday’s ride is being dubbed the Colin Hubbell Memorial Ride; Colin was an avid cyclist and was on the board of Creekside CDC, our community partner for the ride.

Sunday, gear up for a tour of the Conner Creek Greenway. The 25-miler will take in the Better Made Chip Factory, the existing and proposed segments of the Greenway, Norris Town and the Dorais Velodrome; lunch at the historic Two-Way  Inn is included. (Read about Norris Town and the Two Way here and about the velodrome here.)

Read more and sign up at www.wheelhousedetroit.com/tours!

Tricentennial Park Expansion

Just to our east, the state of Michigan has begun construction on the wetlands that will expand Tricentennial State Park and will include pedestrian and bike paths. It’s quite exciting on a couple of levels: we’re going to be next-door to wetlands (seriously, how cool is that!) and the RiverWalk will extend yet farther east. m-bike has some pics. Good news for the city and the state. And we can all use that these days.