Replacing Gru's Signature Bike

On June 21, 2021, the City of Toronto sent dozens of police and Parks, Forestry, & Rec workers to Lamport Stadium in an attempt to clear the encampment of 20 tents that were residing there, to keep their community members safe from a variety of threats, both new and old.

The day before, at nearby Alexandra Park, a local supporter had been targeted by police for arrest and held in custody for nearly 12 hours before Community Justice Collective was able to secure his release. At Lamport, this same supporter took a backseat role, but still found himself pepper-sprayed by police.

The trauma of these two days, and the immense level of state violence directed towards the community and individuals, led to a certain amount of brain fog for this individual, for weeks following. Early in this timeframe, Gru visited comrades at their home, and in this fog of cognitive decline, neglected to properly secure his touring bike, which had become a signature item at protests, specifically around homelessness in Toronto.

In the months following, life has been busy, but one eye has always been peeled for the bike, on the off-chance that it turned up in some opportune place and time. Of course, as usual, this was a fool's errand, and there has been no sign of the Battleship.

As 2023 begins, Gru is finally housed and beginning to rebuild his life. Home is still in the saddle, though, and putting together a proper replacement for the Battleship will be a huge step for mental health and self-care. He has continued his outreach, advocacy, and activism astride Dolly, a new-ish Soma Fog Cutter who has been able to serve as transportation around the City but cannot go on longer trips for business or leisure.

Most quality bikes are at least a little bit expensive, and the Battleship was certainly no exception. The amazing team at Liberty Cyclery in Dovercourt Village built her up out of a used frame from a co-worker, but the total value of the bike was roughly $4,700, as outlined in the following table:

The two pieces that Liberty Cyclery was not able to provide were the Surly Nice racks, about $150 apiece, front and rear, to carry the gear necessary to undertake multi-day trips, bringing the total build-up to roughly $5,000.

At the current moment, the resources to rebuild the Battleship are beyond Gru's ability to acquire, and so he turns to the community that he has so faithfully stood in solidarity with, these last few years, in the hopes that he has not waited too long to finally ask for assistance.

"I was reminded yesterday afternoon of a wonderful moment with the Battleship, earlier in the summer of '21, where we rolled into the encampment at Lamport around 0700, and immediately pulled out my camp kitchen, and a couple dozen eggs, and proceeded to cook breakfast for the residents of the encampment. I'd truly love to be able to get back to that level of service, and unfortunately Dolly, for all her admirable qualities, just doesn't have the capacity to help facilitate that."