Ohio City Bicycle Co-op

OCBC can help any group or organization present any kind of educational bike event, from a lunchtime bike commuters' pep-talk, to an on-going, "satellite bike co-op" program.

Our Earn A Bike program for kids, or adult Bicycle Driver's Education course require large commitments of time and other resources, so we offer a range of shorter programs to suit various needs.

Our short programs are designed for larger groups, in shorter time frames, usually "on site" at a location other than the OCBC.

Here is a list of standard programs we offer:

Bike rodeos

We have presented many short bicycle skills courses (usually known as bike rodeos) for neighborhood groups, scouts, etc. These one- to four-hour events give children (and, preferably, their parents) basic traffic concepts and bike-handling skills, with a chance to practice them in a parking lot setting. There's a very detailed guide for presenting a bike rodeo from Cornell University that can help to plan this popular program. Our Rodeo Outline explains our service, and will help in training volunteers, so please print and distribute it to them before their training.

We will take care of all aspects of presenting a bike rodeo, except promoting the event and enlisting volunteers, which are the responsibilities of the client organization. Our fee to provide a certified instructor and all necessary equipment is $100 per hour, for a minimum of two hours, to allow for one hour of volunteer training, set-up, and tear-down. This includes insurance coverage, for which client organizations can be named as additional insured. Loaner bicycles are available if needed. Awarding helmets and bike locks to kids who complete the course is a great idea: those can be purchased from OCBC (at a discount for group members, below) and delivered to the event, or obtained from Safe Kids Coalition or other groups. We can bring loaner helmets, but this necessitates additional precautions.

Assemblies and other large-group presentations

Presentations to large groups should be scheduled early in the year if a specific time is needed, or one month in advance if not. A computer projector and screen are helpful but not required, and a PA system for groups larger than 50 is required. OCBC's minimum charge for this program is $200 for up to two hours, with scholarships available for qualifying groups. Standard school assemblies usually address K - 3rd, 4 - 6th, and 7 - 8th separately.

Pre-ride safety talks

For bicycling events held on open roads, as most are, it is important for the safety of the riders — and the liability of the organizers — that participants understand their rights and responsibilities toward other cyclists and traffic, and take responsibility for the mechanical safety of their bikes. OCBC has extensive experience providing this information in a fun and engaging way. These short talks are very much part of our mission, so our fee is minimal, based on travel distance to the event.  Safety talks should be scheduled early in the year, and require a PA system for greater than 50 riders, or enough time to schedule a series of smaller groups.

Customized programs

We are often asked to present bike safety education as part of a larger program, such as Active Living by Design, Safe Routes To Schools, or Bicycle Friendly Communities. A good example of this is the Steps to a Healthier Cleveland program, which we have taught to fourth grade students in ten Cleveland schools, and will continue under the Cleveland Safe Routes to Schools program.

In designing the Steps Bicycle Ed program, we were challenged to leave the most meaningful impression on the greatest number of students in the shortest amount of time, so this program is presented in a series of only three visits: an assembly, an in-class lesson, and an on-bike skills course in the school parking lot. In this setting it was also important for what we taught to relate to standard curriculum, so we customized the program to do that.

Other examples of customized short programs we have designed and presented are large-group safety orientation for charity rides, volunteer training for a community free-bike project, and workplace wellness programs on bike commuting.

We also provide consulting services on safety, mapping, and logistics to organizations presenting bike rides or other events.

 Training for staff and volunteers

We are not going to teach every bike education presentation in the Cleveland area —  there are already more events than we can attend -- so our ultimate goal is to "train the trainers." We can schedule special presentations at OCBC or at other groups' locations; or offer special group rates for our regular classes. If your organization would like more extensive training for staff and/or volunteers to present ongoing bike education programs, please see the Group Membership section of our Membership page.

All our programs can be adapted to your needs: please call Jim at (216)830-2667 for more details, or email Education@OhioCityCycles.org