MacKenzie Hardt is part of the community, whether it’s flipping pancakes alongside his wife, Abby, at Winter Bike to Work Day; leading a bike bus to a school; or running a Kidical Mass event. The Hardts host 40 free events a year. Now the community is stepping up to help them in return.

The reason for the support, nine thefts in two years; overnight burglaries and robberies during the day. The most recent crime happened in early March when 15 bicycles were stolen from Hardt’s warehouse in northwest Aurora.

“They’re fast,” MacKenzie explained, sitting in his shop Wednesday morning. “It takes two minutes. They bust a high window, drop someone in, get the door open, and they’re gone.”

He added, “They know exactly what they’re doing. They only take what they can resell.”

Front Porch has previously talked to Hardt about thefts, his visit from Aurora Mike Coffman, and a custom bike taken in broad daylight. His story has now gotten more attention from local media.

After each crime, he’s added security, but  “cameras can only do so much,” he said.

“We reinforced the showroom, and we got the shop locked down really well, and then they hit the warehouse. So, now we’ve reinforced the warehouse. Recently, we’ve been cased at night a few times with people looking into our building to maybe break in or come back to break in.”

The crimes are always on Hardt’s mind, as is the financial cost—including $10,000 spent on extra security in the past two years—as well as the mental impact. He said he’s lost almost $150,000 in total from these break-ins and damage. Insurance covers some of the cost of the lost bikes, but not all of it.

Hardt is not the type of person to ask for financial help, and he said he likely would not have asked for himself—that’s where the community has stepped in.

Friends have started a GoFundMe and hosted a neighborhood barbecue on Sunday, April 19, at the family-owned shop at 10255 E. 25th Ave.

The fund is currently set to raise $30,000, the net loss from the most recent robbery. “Not everyone can donate,” Hardt said. “And that’s OK.”

There are other ways to support the small business, he said. “Word of mouth is the biggest one. If you’ve had a good experience here, tell people. Leave a review. That matters more than people think.”

Those reviews also matter to Hardt’s staff, who he called the best techs around. He wants to be able to keep paying them and to keep up with growing service appointments at the shop. “There just aren’t enough bike shops to meet demand,” he added.

Other bike shops in the area have closed, and the cold winter months the staff has typically used to catch up on work that didn’t happen this year, he said.

That spells more work and more pressure for Hardt, who welcomed customers as he talked about his business. And as difficult as things are right now, he said he reminds himself, and Abby reminds him, about the relationships and the community they’ve built.

“We’re not the wealthiest bike shop in Colorado or the world. We never will be. But that’s not our goal. You know, our goal is always to be a better bike shop and a community builder.”

“We’re here because these are our neighbors,” Hardt said. “This is our family.”

And he added, “If you do good work, it comes back to you. Especially when you need it.”