A new program in the West Hill area for kids is about a lot more than learning to fix bicycles.
Michael Rozdolski knows how far a set of wheels can take you.
“I started riding bikes when I was very little,” says Rozdolski. “My only means of transportation was a bicycle to and from college.”
And he knows the power that comes with the ability to fix them.
“Since ’85, I’ve been fixing my own bikes, and when I retired 10 years ago, I started picking up bicycles that people left in their front yard for the trash man to take, and I’d take those home and fix them and donate them,” says Rozdolski.
Now, Rozdolski is bringing his mechanic skills to West Hill. He’s one of the trainers with Wheels Up Urban Mountain Biking Initiative, teaching five young adults from the area everything there is to know about repairing bikes so they, in turn, will work with neighborhood kids to fix their bikes, too.
“You give a bicycle to a kid who lives in an inner city area, it doesn’t have to be a new bike, it just has to be a bike that you tell them it’s theirs, and all you see is smiles,” says Rozdolski.
In a partnership with the Eden’s Rose Foundation, Wheels Up is working to address factors that contribute to gun violence, poor mental and physical health.
Once the young adult training is complete in the coming weeks, the kid’s bike program will be held at the Community Corner at First and Quail streets. In the spring, they’ll offer group rides at a trail that will be built through a 36-acre forest accessible from the West Hill neighborhood.
Through the bike program, idle time is replaced with knowledge, socialization, and exercise. When group rides begin, kids will learn about nature and participate in trail maintenance.
Albany County’s Department for Children, Youth and Families has partially funded the program, but organizers are hoping to raise an additional $10,000 to expand and help as many kids as they can.
To get involved, visit the group on Facebook or email Wheelsup@edensrose.org.
