In an ordinary-looking Hopkins warehouse, bikes of all shapes, sizes and colors move through an assembly line, where their tires are re-inflated or replaced, their cranks or pedals are tightened and their seat collars are greased.
What looks like a bike-repair shop full of mechanics is actually headquarters for the local nonprofit Free Bikes 4 Kidz, whose volunteers -- aka Santa's elves -- are in the process of restoring thousands of donated bikes.
It's all in preparation for this Saturday, when 5,000 bikes will be given away to new owners at 23 Free Bikes 4 Kidz giveaway sites throughout the metro area.
"The bikes need anything from just adjusting to total rebuilding. Some of them look okay, but the frame might be bent or the chain kinked. You have to look beyond the cosmetic and check every nut and bolt," said Mark Hoffman of Plymouth, who has volunteered with the nonprofit for two years.
Many of the volunteers -- more than 1,000 total over a six-week period -- have experience fixing bicycles. Hoffman, for example, put himself through college repairing bikes.
But there's room for others who simply want to help. They're put to work scrubbing frames and shining tires.
"I love bikes; they're just a great form of exercise for kids and a great activity for families," Hoffman said. "But not everyone can afford a bike."
Hoffman's sentiments are similar to those of Free Bikes 4 Kidz founder and executive director Terry Esau of Orono, who had the idea to collect old or outgrown bikes, fix them up and give them away to kids in 2008. An avid biker himself, he involved his Saturday biking group in the project.
