Lightning partners with Onbikes to build 100 bicycles for kids

TAMPA, Fla. (FOX 13) - At the Vinik Family Boys and Girls Club in Tampa Tuesday, the task at hand was large: Build 100 bicycles in less than two hours.

Tampa Bay Lightning employees, however, put the pedal to the metal, standing in long assembly lines to get the job done.  

The team joined forces with OnBikes to donate bicycles to children who need them. 

"The 100 bikes, once built, will be loaded on the trucks and delivered to a number of local non-profits, Boys and Girls Club, Starting Right Now, Heart Gallery, and a Kids Place," said OnBikes executive director Sarah Breseman. 

Every part of a bicycle, from the handlebars to the wheels, were carefully attached. 

"My job is to manage the front end," said Derrick Brooks, a member of the Buccaneers Super Bowl XXXVII championship team. "Get everybody their parts, make sure the pedals are in, and keep us going and don't try to hold the line up." 

Brooks and Dave Andreychuk, who was on the Lightning's 2004 Stanley Cup team, were also a part of the bike build. 

"We love the program," said Andreychuk. "As kids, we all wanted a bike, and now we're able to provide that for them. A smile on their face is a good thing." 

Quickly the bicycles added up. Each one of them will bring a smile to a different child's face, not just now, but hopefully all year round. 

"In order to be able to contribute bikes to the community throughout the year, we rely on community bike builds such as this one to be able to give a steady stream of bikes to children in need throughout the community, all year long," said Breseman. 

"The joy that you bring to someone else, and the joy you bring to their life, knowing you did something good for a good cause, if we can each take a small step in that direction, that makes the world a better place," added Brooks. 

A small step -- or pedal -- goes a long way here.