Time’s Up

I actually found one mildly fun ‘Central Park activity’ to engage in – in a park I otherwise scorn. «Time’s Up» is a bunch of bicycle enthusiasts with a lot of different initiatives promoting more avid bicycle usage in New York. One of their events is a weekly (summertime) ‘night ride’ through CP. Starts at 10pm on friday night – meet at Columbus Circle – and its a guided bike jaunt. Bring your own wheels.
Probably the most fun you can have in this poorly-​designed environment. There are moments of coolness if you have a decent bike and can keep up. «Time’s Up» runs a tight ship for this event; they take care of stragglers and stage adequate security.

I went to their bike repair workshop at 156 Rivington. It’s a real cool place to go if you want some fixes on your bike. You will learn a lot. When you step into this basement from it’s only entrance on the noisy, busy, happening Rivington Street, you will be chilled. Don’t expect people there will give you a big hug and warm welcome to the biking family. They probably won’t give you any eye contact. They are just busy doing their own things. But don’t get frustrated. It’s really a cool place to learn tons of biking knowledge and meet some really nice, chill, smart people. You can tell from what kind of music they are playing there!
Few tips of how to get yourself into this biking family sooner:
1. Prepare yourself as a bike savvy by learning the biking typology. I mean, knowing where is the wheel or frame & what’s a cassette is quite inadequate. You should know what and where the rim tapes are… Google helps!
2. Be familiar with the biking repair tool kit. You can find everything you need to fix a bike for free at this workshop and things are kept in an amazing order. You will enjoy working here only if you know what you need, and how to use it. Don’t ask around. People here are busy. If you really have to ask one, go back to Tip #1 before open your mouth. Going to Kmart or bike shops helps!
3. Know what you are doing, be straightforward. Remember, biking is not a recreation, it’s a serious lifestyle.

Yes yes and yes. If you ride or want to ride a bike, this place is a great resource. I attended the free weekly workshop for women about bike maintenance and I learned a LOT. People where nice, I got a cool bike path map for NYC, and again, did I mention it’s FREE?
I’m really looking forward to getting more involved with these people. Things like this just make me love New York.

I first stumbled into this strange place on Houston street a few months ago. It was this chaotic, rundown space and filled with environmental activists making posters and tee shirts promoting bicycle use and an active lifesytle and the need for radical changes in the way we interact with the environment. I don’t really consider myself a radical in any of these regards but I was fascinated none the less. Bemused, I picked up a flyer. Later that night as I was looking it over, I saw that besides outright activism through bike rides and marches and such, the place also sponsor movie nights and socials. All this is probably fairly standard for activist organizations but really cool thing they do is offer free lessons on bike repair on monday tuesday and thursday nights from 6:30−9. They have this entire work space downstairs with every type of bike repair tool imaginable and on the aforementioned days a bunch of bike messengers will hang out and show you how to perform routine maintenance on your bike. All for free! They also have a ton of used bikes that you can buy for fairly reasonable prices. If you’re into biking or looking to get into it, this is an amazing resource and a really non-​threatening atmosphere. And if social activism isn’t your gig, they really make no effort to shove any of that down your throat during the workshops. Extremely cool.
TIME’S UP! is a New York City-​based not-​for-​profit direct-​action environmental group that uses events and educational programs to promote a more sustainable, less toxic city.