CMC's Basement Bike Shop

The stairs led down below ground; the door at the bottom landing was closed and it looked dark inside. This was not surprising, I suppose, since it was the weekend and, still, winter break at the Colleges. This story, or at least the photo that inspired it, kind of got buried within a post from a few days ago, but it demanded some follow-up to sort out the specifics. In 2009 Claremont McKenna College installed the campus's new bike shop in the basement of Wohlford Hall. The latest reference to that bike shop dates to just last year so it is entirely likely that the shop is still there - at the bottom of those stairs .

Riding through the campus I spotted the blue Subaru bike featured in yesterdays' Monday Blues post, but not until riding over for a look at it did I notice the older mixte bike or, more correctly, half a mixte securely mounted to the wall. I immediately wondered if the bike was more function than it was art; it seemed like it could have been informative without being an obvious sign, yet there was no doorway at ground level, just the one below with nothing else to indicate a greater purpose. While I thought the bike might indicate the location of a campus bike shop, all the various art installations around the Claremont College campuses left a little nagging doubt that it might also merely be that. That doubt would not be put to rest until returning home to do a little digging around.

"...In a place as compact as Claremont... biking is the easiest way to combine a little exercise with running errands... a campus bike shop will make it easier for people to chose riding over driving... our campus is perfect for bikes in that we experience no snow, little rain, no major hills or obstacles... switching gears to more convenient transportation makes room for other obvious benefits, including environmental ones..." (Excerpts from Switching Gears: New Bike Shop Will Keeps Students Rolling, July 9, 2009)

For interest, info on the CMC bike shop is here, but if you are not a member of the 5C (Claremont Colleges) community fuggetaboutit - taking advantage of some pretty descent prices, that is.