It was a different type of race for a hobby cyclist in the weeks before Christmas. “I fixed 65 bikes in about two months,” said Chet Wright, owner of Condor BikeWorks, which runs the Bikes for Juarez program.
After seeing spare bike frames discarded in the scrap metal pile at South Central Solid Waste Authority (SCSWA) last January, Wright knew that he could use his skills to fix up bikes to be upcycled for those who could use them again. The SCSWA agreed to work with him to accept old and damaged bikes to be recycled into a new life.
“I looked around and thought, where are the kids with the most need,” said Wright. But, he didn’t know how to get those refurbished bikes into the hands of people in Juarez.
Wright discovered that it does take a village. Every other Thursday he now drives to El Paso and meets up with Jane Fuller. As the executive director of the 501(c)(3) non-profit Siguiendo los Pasos de Jesús, Fuller takes the bikes to Juarez and distributes them where she works with her Juarez team to build not only houses, but also a community.
Wright is now a part of that community. In total during 2017, Wright put together 165 bikes for ages 3 to adults. “The 100th bike was delivered to a man who can now get to work and provide for his family,” said Wright. “We celebrated that one.”
He’s aiming for 250 refurbished and repaired bikes this year. “There’s a waiting list now, so I’m not going to run out of kids,” he said. “I thought I could do this in my spare time and do one or two bikes a week.” He laughed, “Now I can piece together a couple bikes in a day.”
“In Las Cruces, people will sometimes store bikes for years; they don’t want to throw them away,” Wright said. “But if you take them to the SCSWA Recycling Center, we’ll get them into the hands of those who need them now.”
Parts that Wright replaces are chains, grips and tubes, which he buys with any cash donations. He has seen an outpouring of help especially from the road and mountain bike community, which donates when they upgrade their own bikes, and from Outdoor Adventures in Las Cruces, which helps by donating traded-in bikes and gives Wright a reduced rate on bicycle parts.
“There’s a lot of life left in old bikes,” he said. Follow Chet Wright’s Condor BikeWorks https://www.facebook.com/CondorBikeworks or call 575-993-0067 if you have a donation of a bike, parts, or would like to make a financial gift to support his work. For more information on Siguiendo Los Pasos de Jesús, check out www.SPJinc.org or https://www.facebook.com/SPJcares/.
Do you have an old bike or one that needs repairs? The SCSWA Recycling Center at 2855 W. Amador Avenue would gladly hold them for the Wright fix.
Submitted by SCSWA
Green Connections is submitted by the South Central Solid Waste Authority (SCSWA) managing solid waste, recyclables, and working to stop illegal dumping for residents and businesses throughout Doña Ana County. Contact the SCSWA at (575) 528-3800 or visit www.SCSWA.net.