Free bikes make children very happy
By Eliav Appelbaum eliav@theacorn.com

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers TAKING IT FOR A SPIN- Bryan Avendano, 13, of Newbury Park zips around the parking lot of the Newbury Park Bicycle Shop on his brand-new bicycle during a giveaway event last week.

Justin Frank was doing wheelies with his brand-new bike in the Newbury Park Bicycle Shop parking lot. And the Sequoia Middle School eighth-grader was sporting a new helmet, too.

Justin was one of 50 kids from the Boys & Girls Clubs of Conejo and Las Virgenes who received a free new bicycle last week, courtesy of Conejo Valley Cyclists (CVC), the Newbury Park Bicycle Shop and Giant Manufacturing. For many of the youngsters from Sequoia, Redwood, Los Cerritos and Colina middle schools, it was the first new bike they'd had in years- or ever.

"It's absolutely awesome," said Karen Anthony, director of programs and operations for the local Boys & Girls Club chapter. "It's just a wonderful treat for these kids."

Conejo Valley Cyclists, a nonprofit recreational and racing club with about 110 members, was the catalyst behind the donation. Giant sold the bikes to CVC at a discount, and the group paid the Newbury Park bike shop to assemble them. The bike shop gave each student a free helmet and CVC paid for student transportation.

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers THE FUN BEGINS SOON- Paula Ortiz, 11, of Newbury Park gets a little help finding a bicycle that's her size from Conejo Valley Cyclists member Geoff Smith of Moorpark at a bike giveaway event at Newbury Park Bicycle Shop. The cycling club teamed up with Newbury Park Bicycle Shop and manufacturer Giant Bicycle Inc. of Newbury Park to provide 50 members of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Conejo and Las Virgenes with new bicycles and helmets.

The cycling club has given away about 200 bikes to Conejo Valley Unified School District students in the last three years. It plans to give away another 50 bikes to the Boys & Girls Club this summer and 20 more to elementary school students over the next few months.

"We're just trying to promote bicycle riding and hope kids will get involved with the sport later on," said CVC member Jeff Vranesh.

CVC treasurer Peter Madnick agreed.

"It's a healthy activity," he said. "It's good for the community. We get cars off the street. This is something that helps everybody."

The cyclists and Boys Scouts of America Troop 753 host the Cruisin' the Conejo bike race every year, and that fundraiser enables the group to donate bikes to students. This year's Cruisin' the Conejo will be Sat., May 10.

The students enjoyed taking a spin on their new bikes, which are streetmountain hybrids with shock absorbers. The youngsters first picked up helmets inside the shop, then were helped by CVC members to select a bike outside. Kids on bikes rode around the parking lot with wide smiles.

"I like mountain bikes a lot," said Diego Luna, a Sequoia seventh-grader. "I like to go up hills."

Justin Frank seemed very comfortable on his new set of wheels.

"It's nice, it's really smooth," Justin said. "This is a nice bike."