We made bios to share with you! Learn more about the crew behind the scenes at Key City Bike below.

It’s time for the Annual Member Meeting and you’re invited! This meeting is open to the public and Key City Bike Members. KCB is member-controlled and we need your voices and your votes! Join us as we recap (and celebrate!) the 2017 season and share our ideas and hopes for 2018.

Check out our Annual Report by following this link: 2017 KCB Annual Report

The meeting will take place at The Eagle’s Club Ballroom located at 708 N Riverfront Drive.

Meeting Agenda –
6:30-7:00pm Membership registration** and social
7:00 -8:00pm Voting, 2017 Accomplishments, 2018 Goals, Site Visit

We will be voting to accept two new board members;
Joe Madson, Member at Large
David Sieberg, Treasurer

There are additional open positions on the board if you are interested in getting involved. Please email toddskitchen@keycitybike.org with your letter of interest by March 21 to be considered for the voting ballot.  Board meetings take place the 2nd Monday each month at 8pm.

This year, KCB Board Members and volunteers screen-printed the member t-shirts by hand to support our friends at the Mankato Makerspace. These are one of a kind t-shirts made with lots of love!

**Membership is open to everyone. Each member receives a t-shirt with their annual renewal or first time membership, as well as, a vote at the member meeting.
To become a member:
• First year – $25 one time investment
• After that –  $20 annual voting membership

Becoming a member of Key City Bike means you believe in our mission to Recycle, Reclaim, Empower! Membership is one of our main sources of funding. Your support helps keep the lights on and the bikes rolling.

Key City Bike is run completely by volunteers. Sweeping, scrapping, hauling, fixing, organizing, inventory, teaching, bookkeeping, outreach, fundraising, providing customer service; you name it, at Key City Bike it’s done by a volunteer.

Why volunteer at a community bike space?
It’s an awesome way to give back to your community.
You’ll learn about bikes; maintenance, mechanic skills, bike culture and safety.
To gain experience in nonprofit work.
To support environmental sustainability.
To fulfill school or community service requirements.
To meet new friends.

Do I have to volunteer to use the shop?
Not at all! During open shop hours the shop is open to anyone who would like to use the space and tools to work on their own bike.

How do I track hours?
Once you have signed up at the shop to be a volunteer, you will log in using your telephone number and hours are tracked through our software program.

Why track hours?
Tracking volunteer hours helps Key City Bike obtain funding for grants.
Volunteer hours can be reported to employers, schools, and probation officers.
Some volunteers choose to participate in the Earn-a-Bike Program. In the Earn-a-Bike Program hours are exchanged for credits towards a refurbished bike.
Key City Bike also offers a Volunteer Purchase Program, currently being revised.  Details will be shared soon!

How do I sign up to volunteer?
The first time you volunteer, just show up! We will get you signed up and put you to work.  If you are under the age of 14, you will need to have a parent sign a waiver and be present with you while you volunteer.  If you are 14 – 17, you will need to bring a parent for your first time to meet our Lead Volunteer and to sign a waiver. 18+ need to sign a waiver before starting to volunteer. Volunteer Orientation takes place every Wednesday at 6:00pm.
After that first time volunteering, you will use Signup.com to sign up.  CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP.

What if I can’t volunteer for the entire shift?
General Volunteers can volunteer for any amount of time that works for them.  Sign up through the link and leave a comment including the time frame you plan to volunteer. Sign up HERE.

Volunteer Opportunities and Needs

Greeter – greet people as they enter KCB, help new volunteers get registered in our system, assure volunteers get signed in, introduce volunteers to the Lead Volunteer in the shop, give tours of the shop and direct customers looking for parts and bikes to the “retail areas”, assist with office duties (filing waivers, organizing merchandise, general cleaning, etc).
We need at least one greeter per shift. (Wednesdays 5:30-8:30pm, Saturdays 2:00 – 6:00pm). Sign up HERE.
Age Requirements: 18+ with a signed waiver

General Volunteers – assist with tasks assigned by the lead volunteer. These tasks are to keep the shop running but are also meant to empower people through learning about bikes. Tasks include scrapping, repairing retail bikes, cleaning bikes, organizing and labeling parts, etc.
We need all the general volunteers we can get! (Wednesdays 5:30-8:30pm, Saturdays 2:00 – 6:00pm). Sign up HERE.
Age Requirements: 14+ with signed waiver from parent, if under 14 must be accompanied by a parent

Lead Volunteers – help manage and train general volunteers, assist with sales of used parts and bikes, assist community members with bicycle repairs, organizing the space (sorting tires, labeling parts, sorting bikes, etc), open and close the shop.
We need at least 1 Lead Volunteer per shift.  Lead Volunteers must complete training with the Executive Director before signing up for shifts. (Wednesdays 5:30-8:30pm, Saturdays 2:00 – 6:00pm). Email or visit with Acacia, our director, if you are interested – toddsktichen@keycitybike.org
Age Requirements: 18+ with signed waiver

Earn-a-Bike Lead Volunteer – help manage Earn-a-Bike (EAB) program participants: guide EAB participants through online registration, teach scrapping skills, tire changes, chain cleaning and lubrication, proper seat height, teach bike safety and rules of the road, maintain EAB folders with participants’ progress.
We need at least 1 lead volunteer, per 3 Earn-a-Bike participants. (Tuesdays 5:30-8:30pm). Email or visit with Acacia, our director, if you are interested – toddsktichen@keycitybike.org
Age Requirements: 18+ with signed waiver

FTW Lead Volunteers – Women, transgender, femme, two-spirited, non binary identifying volunteers to lead other FTW volunteers in bike repairs and camaraderie; assist with and teach bike mechanic skills, help with programming and events, open and close the shop.
We need at least 1 lead volunteer per shift. (Mondays 5:30-8:30) Email or visit with Acacia, our director, if you are interested – toddsktichen@keycitybike.org
Age Requirements: 18+ with signed waiver

Build Night Volunteers – mechanically inclined volunteers to help repair and prep bikes for sale.
We need all the volunteers we can get! (Mondays 8:30-11:00pm) No signup needed, just show up.
Age Requirement: 21+ with a signed waiver 

Key City Bike has relocated to our new space at 204 E Vine St, Mankato, MN.

As we transition to managing a much larger space, we will be open with limited hours and services – starting February 21st, 2018.

The Grand Opening is scheduled for May 12th, 2018. At that time, we will have full service and additional open days and hours.

Sunday – CLOSED

Monday – WTF Night 5:30-8:30PM An evening dedicated to creating a welcoming space just for women, trans and gender non-conforming friends to introduce the empowering realm of bike mechanics.  If you do not identify as women/trans/femme/non-binary/two-spirited, we ask you do not attend this event. 

Monday – Build Night** 8:30-10:30PM Build night is for repair of our retail bikes. You must be 21+ with bike repair experience to attend this event.  **No build night on the second Monday of each month

Tuesday – Earn-a-Bike Night 5:30-8:30PM If you are earning a bike through our Earn-a-Bike program, this is the evening you may accumulate credit for the program. This evening is for Earn-a-Bike participants only.

Wednesday – OPEN SHOP 5:30-8:30PM  Come one, come all!

Thursday – CLOSED

Friday – CLOSED

Saturday – OPEN SHOP 2:00-6:00PM Come one, come all!

Key City Bike will be celebrating Valentine’s Day by offering our bike space as a pop-up courier agency dedicated to spreading love, appreciation and community spirit by bike!

From now until Monday, February 12th at 6pm, you can order a VELOtine by following this link or by stopping into the shop located at 204 E Vine St on Wednesday, Feb. 7th between 6pm-9pm.

How it works:
1. Submit your message
2. Recipients name
3. Delivery Location

On February 14th, our crew of bike couriers will deliver your note with a smile.

The message you send your sweetheart, friend, business, or nonprofit organization should be written by you.  We will have the message typewritten by Mankato writer and typewriter enthusiast, Allen Tesch on linen paper and delivered by one of our bike love couriers with a chocolate rose.

Thanks go out to Allen Tesch for generously donating his time and talent for this event.  Visit his website: www.allentesch.com or find him on Instagram

Bike delivery must be within 5 miles of downtown Mankato. Minimum suggested donation of $10 per VELOtine.

Ideas for notes for those of you who aren’t quick with a pen –
I wheelie like you, will you be my Velotine?
Roses are Red, Violets are Blue, let’s take a ride on a bicycle built for two.
With this note, comes one free bike ride with yours truly (redeemable in warm weather, of course)
I’m head over handlebars for you.
You really turn my crank. Will you be my Valentine?
You’re the center of my wheel.

A $5000 grant has been awarded by the Mankato Area Foundation to Key City Bike for Board Governance Training and Strategic Planning.

“We are honored to be selected as grant recipients by the Mankato Area Foundation. We expect this project to make a huge impact on our leadership team and our community.  We are proud of our accomplishments over the last year, and we can only imagine the impact we will have once we are equipped with the training and knowledge that we will be gaining through this grant funding.” Acacia Wytaske, Executive Director

Learn more about the Mankato Area Foundation and read the press release here: MAF Announces Grant Recipients.

We are thrilled to announce our Executive Director, Acacia Wytaske, has been selected as one of the recipients for the 2018 Quality Bicycle Products (QBP) Women’s Bike Mechanic Scholarship!

Acacia will be attending a 2 week long Professional Repair and Shop Operations class in Ashland, Oregon at United Bicycle Institute (UBI). Learn more about this scholarship and the other recipients at this link: QBP Women’s Bike Mechanic Scholarship.

Huge thank you to QBP, UBI and the 2018 sponsors for recognizing the dedication of our Executive Director and investing in our community!

Key City Bike is hosting Mankato’s first CRANKSGIVING!

Tank tops commemorating our current space and to raise funds for our new space are now available for sale.  The tank tops are Bella+Canvas in Dark Grey Heather made of 52% combed and ringspun cotton, 48% polyester. Unisex sizing in size S-XXL. On sale for $20 each. Purchase at the shop or online through our donation button and specify size, quantity and pickup/shipping preference. $5 for shipping. Click here to purchase.

Graphic Designer & KCB Volunteer, Mackenzie Keithley, created a digital image of our Key City Bike shop wall.

The wall was designed and painted by Look At This Project in 2015.

Key City Bike is hanging out at the Mankato Moondogs game on August 6th to raise money and awareness for our mission to Recycle. Reclaim. Empower.

It’s super easy to show your support while cheering on the Moondogs, just use code: KCBIKE when purchasing your tickets for the August 6th Mankato Moondogs game and $3 of each general admission or $5 of each VIP/Dog Pound Ticket will benefit Key City Bike!

Everyone that rides their bicycle to the game will receive a free Key City Bike water bottle.

Dog Pound ticket holders will have a chance to win a new bike from Nicollet Bike Shop.

Key City Bike merchandise will be for sale and there will be fun events throughout the game to give you more chances to support the misison of Key City Bike.

This event is presented by Thrivent Financial.

To purchase tickets follow the link below. After you have added your seats to the shopping cart, enter KCBIKE in the Coupon/Promo Code box located in the lower left of your shopping cart screen:

http://mankato-moondogs.northwoodsleague.tv/SingleGame/Tickets/SelectSeats/3660?isExchange=false.