Re-cycling: old Huffy heads to Honduras*

1990's era Huffy bike

Yesterday I said goodbye to an old friend. We first got together in Houston in the early 90’s, and took some fun and scary rides on tough Texas streets before we returned to the Midwest. A few years ago, I got a new all terrain Trek for my birthday. Poor old Huffy didn’t stand a chance next to this comfy cruiser - and was left to gather dust in the basement. 

It was full of cobwebs, heavier than today's bikes, and the tires were flat, but was still "ride-able."

I thought visiting family or friends would take her out once in a while, but that didn’t happen. And it seemed wrong to keep the old bike and not put it to use, so I called Working Bikes and asked them to give Huffy a new home.

Working Bikes repairs and donates bikes to individuals that need transportation in the U.S. and about a dozen countries in Central and South America and Africa.

The organization donates 6,000 bikes every year and has a map of where the bikes have gone so far.

There are drop-off sites around the city and lots of upcoming bike drives (collections, not rides) as Working Bikes is in full Spring Bike Drive mode right now. 

I hit the jackpot: Omar would be in my neighborhood the very next day and could pick up the bike. He gave me his cell number and a time frame, then called the next day when he was on his way. It couldn't have been easier - and I didn't have to even try to squeeze the bike into the back of my car.

As promised, Omar pulled up in his small pickup truck and I handed over my old Huffy. I got a donation receipt and found out my bike would go on the next shipment of 500 bikes to Central America. I like knowing that my bike will find new life abroad and help someone get around in El Salvador (*well, relatively close to Honduras). 

If you have old (or not so old) bikes you no longer use, reach out to Working Bikes via email at donations@workingbikes.org or call the store at  773 – 847 – 5440 --- and get those wheels out of your basement and ‘back on the road,’ where they belong.