[Sports Seoul | Reporter Kim Min-gyu] A free bike-repair program aimed at keeping cyclists safe is reopening.
The Korea Sports Promotion Foundation’s Keirin and Motorboat Racing Headquarters will run a Free Bicycle Repair Center at Gwangmyeong Speedom from the 16th through November 16.
The Free Bicycle Repair Center has been the keirin program’s signature community outreach effort since 2008, drawing strong support: roughly 14,000 people have used the service to date.
The center is located on the first-floor exterior of Gwangmyeong Speedom and opens Sundays at 1 p.m. Each week the staff distribute numbered tickets to the first 50 walk-ins and service bicycles in order. Professional technicians and retired keirin racers with proven maintenance skills conduct careful inspections and repairs.
The program also covers free replacement of nine common parts: handlebar grips, brakes, kickstands, derailleurs, sprockets, inner tubes, auxiliary (training) wheels, pedals, and chains. From April through July and again in September and October, the organizers will operate a mobile “Visiting Free Repair Center” on select dates. The center will be closed during the fourth week of September for the Chuseok holiday (Korean Thanksgiving).
A spokesperson for the Keirin and Motorboat Racing Headquarters said, “We launched the free-repair service to encourage more people to ride bicycles, and we hope it helps residents live healthier lives. We will continue expanding community-focused outreach activities.” kmg@sportsseoul.com
