There's a new shared space in Vancouver for motorcycle owners to maintain bikes
A motorcycle shop has set up a collective space for owners to tinker with bikes and share knowledge
In Vancouver's tight housing market, it's hard for motorbike owners to find a garage to build or maintain a motorbike.
Samson Lang, the owner of Rising Sun Motorcycles, says the cost of renting a shared garage is upwards of $800-$1,000 per month.
"It's just cost prohibitive," says Lang.
As a remedy, Lang helped to set up a shared space in a wing of his East Vancouver shop.
It's called the Vancouver Motorcycle Collective, and the 1500-square-foot space allows owners to work on their bikes, learn from others and become part of a community.
"The real focus is sort of on the education and then providing anything that anyone could possibly need to do their own work," Lang said.
The shop owner told On the Coast host Gloria Macarenko that it provides all the tools, lifts, expertise and there's also a training program that comes with membership.
The Vancouver Motorcycle Collective has four hydraulic lifts and enough space for six to seven people to work at once, according to Lang.
He says people come with a variety of experience levels, and everybody is welcome.
"We get some people that have never done anything, and then we get other people who are quite experienced."
He also said the vast majority of those interested in the education side are female.
"The female demographic of the motorcycle industry in general is definitely the fastest growing segment of the industry," said Lang.
The Vancouver Motorcycle Collective membership is $700 annually and $400 semi-annually.
Listen to the full interview with Samson Lang:
With files from CBC Radio One's On the Coast