There is a moment that happens when a young person finishes a build. The bike is done, the work is real, and suddenly it exists in the world in a way that other people can see.

On March 19th, at Bikes & Bow Ties, some of our youth will have their bikes on display. Earn-A-Bike builds, personal projects, work they did with their own hands. If you come, and I hope you will, take a few minutes to find those bikes and talk to the kids who built them. Ask them what was hard. Ask them what they changed. Watch what happens when a teenager explains something technical to an adult who is genuinely listening. That is not a small thing.

The Earn-A-Bike program works because young people have to earn it. They learn to fix bikes, they put in the hours, and at the end they have something they built and something they know. The bike on display at Bikes & Bow Ties is evidence of that. It is not a symbol or a metaphor. It is a bike that did not exist before this kid showed up and did the work.

Bikes & Bow Ties is also one of two fundraisers that keep our programs running. Good food, good people, and a room full of bikes — it is a genuinely good night. We need the room full and we need your support to keep doing this work. Tickets are available now.

Come see what these kids built. Bring someone who has never been. Their presence and your generosity is the best thing you can do for us right now.

If you can’t attend, support us by purchasing some raffle tickets. You could win a stay at a Château estate in Saint-Émilion, France. See details at the button below.

Sometimes, you have to drive somewhere.

Wayne Bingham runs Mel Pinto Imports out in Purcellville — bike shop, farm, and general repository of things you did not know you needed until you see them. Wayne is the former owner of Velo Classique and has been in this industry long enough that talking bikes with him for an hour feels like the most productive thing you could do with an afternoon. (Or shall we say, most fun. We are biased.) Mel Pinto itself goes back to 1958, when the original Mr. Pinto became one of the first importers of European racing bikes in the country. Wayne is the keeper of that legacy now.

Beth Permenter, our Youth Program Manager, made the trip out to see him this week. He sent her home with a box of tire levers, patch kits, and shop tools, lent us a couple of vernier calipers for Beth’s demo at Philly Bike Expo, and helped get tickets for our youth to attend. He will have a booth there himself.

If you are going to Philly Bike Expo, and I assume some of you are, find him and say hello.

The joy of learning to ride a bike is contagious. Some of us on the staff have a background in teaching kids how to ride, and we did just that with some of our Earn-A-Bike graduates. A double win! A new bike and the skill to use it.

Coming out and supporting us at Bikes & Bow Ties is a good way to get out in the community, and help us out. Who knows, it might be a photo of you that gets featured here!