With four to six thousand cyclists on campus, Lily Wilcock, active transportation coordinator, created a free bicycle maintenance class.

Simon Pokorny, junior in Architecture and instructor of the class, said that what he usually teaches during the class is basic knowledge about bike maintenance.

“The class makes more simple cycling maintenance available to students who might not normally have time to devote to learning the material. Additionally, it promotes a more mindful and safe cycling community,” Pokorny wrote in an email.

During the free bicycle maintenance class, students learn about brakes, bike chains, signaling and campus rules for bicycles. The instructors then give everybody an inner tube to teach them how to fix a flat tire on the road by themselves.

“The campus bike center had a lot of classes being taught by volunteers from the community, but we didn’t have any classes that were for bicycle beginners,” Wilcock said. “The volunteers generally only want to teach something they are personally interested in but not the basics about bicycles.”

The bicycle maintenance class is paid for by a stipend of $500 each semester by the Student Sustainability Committee.

Wilcock said the goal of the class is to teach cyclists how to be safe.

Juan Diego Núñez Morales, Ph.D. student in Engineering, said people in general overlook the importance of maintaining their bikes.

“A lot of people here buy cheap bicycles, so they don’t care about it. But since you are riding a vehicle, you don’t want to have an accident just because you didn’t check your braking system,” Núñez said. “For example, there’s a difference between hydroponic braking system and mechanical system, and you need to make sure it works properly … You don’t want to ruin your bike because you didn’t give the maintenance.”

Everybody who rides a bicycle on campus is supposed to register with the University.

Wilcock said there are normally four to six students in the class weekly.

“For this year, we just want to see how successful it is and how many people we can educate,” she said. “Because we were not sure if this was the best way for us to spend a thousand dollars, if it goes smoothly, then we can start pursuing more permanent sources of funding.”

Most of the attendants were graduate students, and Wilcock said she wants to see more undergraduate students in the class.

“I’ve seen, personally, some people get really good experience. We had a lot of graduate students to participate in, but we didn’t have very many undergraduate students, which I think that’s kind of what’s missing in our advertising for the class,” Wilcock said.

 There are around three bicycle shops in Champaign-Urbana, and the average price to maintain a bicycle is $40 for a regular check.

Núñez said he would expect to learn how to make sure a braking system is working properly in the class. He said he thinks that’s one of the most important things when you bike since it can save your life.

“I know people just come here and buy a $100 bike and that’s it. They never fix any problems they could possibly have,” Núñez said. “Maybe they take their bicycles to a shop and they get charged for $150, but they didn’t even know the main problem of their bicycles. I think it’s important for you to get to know what’s going on whether to get a maintenance or not.”

The bicycle maintenance class lasts from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. and is located in the Campus Bike Center, 608 E. Pennsylvania Ave., Urbana, on Mondays.

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