Polaris OBark

I saw on Trek's website a link to World Bicycle Relief, which says for $165 you can purchase a Buffalo bicycle for someone in need who resides in Africa, and that Trek will match the donation.

Is this legit? Anyone have any experience with this, good, bad or otherwise?

I assume Trek vetted it if they are matching donations, but since I haven't heard of this before, and have a tendency toward suspicion bordering on the clinically paranoid, I wanted to ask...

veganbikes

From everything I have seen and heard WBR is legit. I cannot speak to Trek matching donations but I can say WBR seems to be on the up and up. I believe Cane Creek did a limited edition headset a number of years ago to help benefit them. It looked cool wish I had picked one up but then I probably would have installed it on something.,,

If you trust Charity Navigator, they get a good rating from them:
https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/205080679

I think it is a neat concept because not only is it providing bikes but also training mechanics to work on them and parts and supplies so they are sustainable in the environment they are in for long term usage.

However like any massive charity there are probably issues. It is hard to be that huge and not get to a slightly more corporate level and most large corporations aren't really great for various reasons. So there is a little bad with the good but I think from what I have seen they are more good than bad and I haven't heard any complaints about them.

SurferRosa

Sounds wonderful. I assume they use the hide for the saddle and bones to build the frame. I appreciate they're using the whole animal for planet sustainability.

debade

FK Day along with his wife started WBR many years ago. It is legit and worth supporting. I have worked on bicycling advocacy in Arica and have witness the need for transport that the Buffalo bike can provide. In addition to the bikes, WBR recognized that bikes need repairs. They put in a training program for that as well. Trek and SRAM have worked on other philanthropic efforts including Dream Bikes which I think was discontinued but not 100% sure.supporting them is a good use of your donation money.

jaxgtr

WBR has been around for a long time and I want to say, EF Education, or one or multiple of their predecessor team(s), supported them as part of their racing organization and gave them prominent jersey space. Also if my one man memory serves, Trek has been a long term sponsor of WBR, however I am old, so I could be thinking of another company.

texbiker

I have donated several times. The impact a Buffalo Bike has is huge.

cb400bill

Here is what a Buffalo Bike really is.

Camilo

Litespeed requires a donation to WBR for their serial number lookup service. I've used it a couple of times, and glad to do it.

Litespeed Serial Number Lookup – Litespeed Bicycles

LeeG

I sure am glad they skipped cottered cranks

50PlusCycling

The issue is not lack of bikes, but lack of money to buy bikes. The lack of money to buy bikes is caused by a lack of job opportunities. The lack of job opportunities is caused by a lack of business opportunities. The lack of business opportunities is caused by lack of good social infrastructure (roads, power grid, public education). The lack of good social infrastructure is caused entirely by political corruption.

msu2001la

World Bicycle Relief is an awesome organization. It was started by one of the co-founders of SRAM and is headquartered in Chicago. They are in the same building as SRAM.

I have a friend who recently traveled to Africa with WBR to help distribute bikes and see first hand the impact that the organization has on young girls.

icemilkcoffee 

Instead of giving them bicycles, isn't it better to lend money to these people so they can designed and build their own bicycles? Surely they know their needs better than somebody sitting thousands of miles away.