Getting the bikes ready for shipment (i.e. removing pedals, turning handlebars so that they’re in line with the frame).

This way, we can pack the bikes more tightly into the

shipping container.

A sea of bicycles

More bicycles…stored in the basement

The 40-foot shipping container arrives on “loading day”and parks on one of the steepest streets in Ithaca!

Let the loading begin!

So, how do you remove pedals again?

Let’s move the bikes from the backyard out to the front and then into the container

And now, for a game of tetrus – packing the bikes in the container

532 bikes + an uncountable number of bike parts… off to Ghana!

Where do the bikes go now?

The Village Bicycle Project (a not-for-profit organization) arranges for the trans-Atlantic shipping to Accra, Ghana. Once in Ghana, bike mechanics repair the bikes, sell them at subsidized prices, and give maintenance workshops to help people learn how to ride their new bike and fix it up themselves.

More info? Check out

www.ghanabikes.org

So, is that bike sitting in your garage really just scrap metal?....or can transform someone’s life?