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# Bikerowave, a communal Eastside bike shop, lets riders repair their own bikes
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/self-service/
- Published: 2007-05-30T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T00:53:30.000Z
- Author: Kevin Herrera
- Tags: Education, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*Riders are doing it for themselves at Bikerowave store*

EASTSIDE Inside a small building hidden behind Santa Monica Studios, Jaime Silber and roughly a dozen or so cycling enthusiasts twist metal spokes and tighten bolts on bicycles ranging from an old-school 10-speed to a new-school beach cruiser fitted with a battery powered motor.

Silber is looking for ways to transform his top-of-the-line racer into a more modest community bicycle, one more fitting for running errands than running down the competition.

“I’m trying to become more of a paperboy, be more functional, kind of like an Amish bicycle,”Silber said while eyeing his $250 han-dlebars,planning the best way to remove them so he can sell them on e-Bay.“With the money I make selling these I can pay for pretty much all the modifications on the bike.”

A little more than a month ago, Silber wouldn’t have dreamed of stripping down his racer on his own — too many parts to play with. But thanks to the help of fellow cyclists at Bikerowave, a communal bike shop, Silber is now able to make modifications without worry.

The brainchild of Alex Thompson,Yolanda Hodde and Zack Beatty, Bikerowave allows riders to make repairs and alterations for just $5 an hour or $100 a year. The shop, which is located in a small building tucked away behind the Santa Monica Studios, has all the tools one would need, as well as expert mechanics to help every step of the way. There are also supplies on sale as well as spare parts and old frames donated by other riders.

“Bike shops are typically really expensive, even for minor repairs, and if you don’t know how to do basic maintenance, your bike breaks down over time and that can cost a lot of money,” said Thompson, as hip-hop boomed in the background. “Unlike cars where you need a diverse skill set, bikes are relatively simple and it is feasible for everyone to learn how to fix them.”

Thompson, who began riding with earnest a few years ago after he realized his politics didn’t mesh with his actions, estimates that it takes the average rider about 8 to 10 hours to completely learn their own bike and how it works. Beach cruisers are naturally easier to master than a 10-speed or other high-end bikes, but more or less a few hours is all it takes before someone can adjust their own brakes or fix a flat.

“I guess I do it just for the love of the bikes,” said Michael Wilkerson, a volunteer and expert mechanic at Bikerowave who now builds watches for a living.“I volunteer about three times a week. The great thing about it is that nothing is typical. When you work at a bike shop, you get dozens of flat tires every day and that can get pretty monotonous. But here, people are coming in with all sorts of repairs or modifications they want to make and that keeps it interesting.”

For Silber, it is people like Wilkerson that makes Bikerowave so enjoyable.

“The best thing about this is the spirit of the people,” he said. “They really help you learn how to respect your bike, which makes you want to ride it more.”

That is the ultimate goal, Thompson said. He and his partners would like for Bikerowave, which is just about breaking even financially, to gain in popularity and eventually become a center for biking on the Westside where people could congregate, plan events and keep the movement pedaling. Thompson said many bikers head to Silverlake and Echo Park to ride and hang out because that is where the established community is. Critical Mass and other events have helped create a movement on the Westside, but it could be stronger, he said.

“We want to help push the biking culture forward,” said Thompson, while he was building his own wheels, bending spokes to fit his rims.

Bikerowave is open Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Directions and other information can be found at www.bikerowave.org.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/053007-09_01.jpg)

of Franz Ellers (Photo: Photo courtesy)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/053007-09_02.jpg)

of Franz Ellers (Photo: Photo courtesy)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 30, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/053007.pdf?ref=smdp.com)