The Wake

The University of Minnesota is one of the largest campuses in the country. With an area spanning 21.2 million square feet and reaching into two separate cities, getting around is no walk in the park. Luckily, Minneapolis has a booming bicycle community famed as the second largest in the country next to Portland. This means there are plenty of bike paths and routes to get students and other green travelers where they need to go. The city is a perfect place for a good bike ride. So perfect in fact, that many people rely exclusively on their bicycles to get around. Unfortunately, bicycles have a nasty habit of breaking at the most crucial of moments.

Learning the ins and outs of bicycle maintenance is intimidating. Luckily, there are plenty of places around campus to get your bike fixed up and ready to go. From corporate franchises to cooperatives, finding a shop within walking distance is never a problem. Here is a list of a few bike shops in the area:

The Hub West Bank
http://thehubbikecoop.org/
301 Cedar Ave S.

Located just around the corner from Hard Times Café, by Midwest Mountaineering and May Day Books.
The Hub is a bicycle cooperative that offers new and used parts, tune-ups, repairs, and courses in bicycle maintenance. The Hub is a worker-run cooperative and is highly involved in the Minneapolis community. They frequently donate to local organizations and offer the occasional free education seminar. Their West Bank location is one of two shops – the other Hub is located on 3020 Minnehaha Ave.

The Varsity Bike Shop
http://www.varsitybike.com/
1316 SE 4th Street

Located down the main drag in Dinkytown, across from Hideaway. Varsity Bike Shop has been open for just over 13 years. They have recently expanded their store size and are one of the premiere suppliers of electric bikes in the area. They offer plenty of competitively priced tune-ups and have a large selection of bicyclesfor sale.

Erik’s Bike Store
http://www.eriksbikeshop.com/
1312 4th Street S.E.

Located in Dinkytown, a few doors away from The Varsity Bike Shop Erik opened his first bike store in his hometown of Richfield, Minnesota at the age of 18. Since then, Erik’s Bike Shop has grown by leaps and bounds. Today, Erik’s employs over 200 workers in 15 stores around Minnesota and Wisconsin. While it’s more of a corporate franchise than a local bike shop, they offer plenty of great deals to students in the fall.

Freewheel Bike Shop
http://freewheelbike.com/
1812 S 6th St

Take the 16 or campus connector to the West Bank; 6th street is a few blocks behind Hard Times Café. With a new store recently opened along the Greenway, Freewheel has become a respected local bike shop. Freewheel offers both maintenance and repairs and full on new bicycles. The bike shop also hosts cheap maintenance seminars and rents a workshop by the hour at a low rate.