Hypebyke Corpus Christi Expands Cycling Community's Access

Hypebyke Corpus Christi Expands Access Through Downtown Location

Hypebyke Corpus Christi expands cycling community's access through expansion into new downtown location.

Photography by Ben Zaragosa

“When I’m cycling — it’s just me, my bike and the road,” said Hypebyke Corpus Christi owner Melanie Salinas.

Hypebyke was created after Salinas stumbled upon the need for a simple bike repair near the Corpus Christi bayfront. Enjoying a new-found love for cycling at the time, she had been somewhat stranded by her road bike’s flat tire, with no bike repair shop in sight. She immediately saw a need for downtown access for others, and now Hypebyke is located three blocks from the Selena Memorial downtown. It’s Salinas’ hope to expand her love of cycling to the community by focusing on an appreciation for its mental and physical health benefits.

Hypebyke offers cycling gear, bicycles, e-bikes and bike sizing services. It also offers a free public workstation to make minor adjustments or add air to tires. Hours of operation are 1-8 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

From the boardwalk cruiser to the motivated triathlon enthusiast, cycling is a tool that can be utilized by many, Salinas notes. Hypebyke’s offerings include road bikes, folding e-bikes, e-tricycles (yes, for adults), stretch cruisers and BMX bikes, alongside higher-end adventure bikes.

Upon opening her doors, Salinas also gained a greater awareness for transportation needs for disabled individuals as well as the unhoused. “I hadn’t known about their needs with transportation,” she said. “Filling a need that they’ve [had] has been a big win.”

Hypebyke also offers five self-paced virtual training stations as well as personalized fittings. As she noted at Hypebyke’s inception, it would only be appropriate to house a free bike repair section in the shop; Salinas said it’s available for cyclists to fix their bikes and get back on the road.

Helping Corpus Christi become more of a cycling community and advocating protective measures in bike lanes for cyclist safety continue to remain priorities. “It’s about safety, getting out on a bike ride and finding the joy in it,” Salinas said.

“The businesses downtown have all been so helpful,” Salinas said. “Once we start sharing ideas, we are unstoppable.”

In her downtown location, patrons include police officers on bicycles, which has helped Salinas cultivate new ways to inform the public to be more mindful of riders. One fun and safe way Hypebyke promotes cycling awareness on the road is through participation in night rides. The group CC LED leads the evening charge with brightly colored neon light wheel attachments to increase visibility of riders on the road.

Corpus Christi’s downtown businesses and the local bike community have helped Salinas and Hypebyke find a seat at the table as a new company.

“The businesses downtown have all been so helpful,” Salinas said. “Once we start sharing ideas, we are unstoppable.” 

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