Things to Do in Oakley

As a surfer and cyclist, Marcel Mijares was drawn to the Pacific Coast many years ago; since then, he’s found little reason to leave. A native of Venezuela, Mijares spoke only Spanish when he made the move, but his love of the Bay Area fueled his drive to acquire the English language and graduate with honors from the Lincoln School of Business. Now, as the owner of High Trails Cyclery, Mijares combines his passion with his determination, sharing both with riders in the heart of Russian Hill. He leads a team of cycling experts equipped to repair cycles and perform tune-ups, overhauls, and bike fittings. Team members also share their expertise during maintenance classes, in which they teach students to care for their own cycles and understand the dangers of trying to change a bicycle's transmission fluid.

A lifelong hunter and former police offer and firefighter, Ed Tubbs named his range after center mass, otherwise known as the middle of the target. "It came from how I learned to shoot," he told Danny Bernardini of the Reporter. "I'm old school. I learned to aim for center mass."

Tubbs and his team of experienced hunters and public-safety personnel impart their marksmen expertise on pupils at Center Mass Shooting Range. The facility encompasses three ranges that span eight 17-yard lanes and four 25-yard lanes, each regulated by strict safety rules. In addition to giving shooters a place to refine their gunmanship and say words like gunmanship, the range also hosts pistol training. To better serve their clients and the larger public, Center Mass offers discounted range rates to policemen, firemen, and the military and supports several wildlife-management organizations, including the Mule Deer Foundation.

Imagine Affairs revitalizes the classic murder-mystery template with current-day touches: Scenarios reference the modern nightclub in which the audience and actors gather, and cases are cracked by CSI-style cops, not Holmesian detectives or omniscient robots. Meanwhile, the actors leaven the dire situation with doses of improv comedy and audience interaction, which lets guests become as entangled in plot twists as they want.

Led by former NBA point guard and first-year head coach Mark Jackson, the Golden State Warriors charge into the second half of the season. Veteran guard Monta Ellis blows by defenders with an average of 22.2 points per game while forward-center David Lee muscles out under-the-basket rivals for an average of 9.7 rebounds per game. Rookie guard Klay Thompson keeps opponents guessing with the ability to drop shots from all over the court and the inexhaustible supply of riddles he declaims during commercial breaks.

To promote physical and emotional development, Aerials Academy of Gymnastics and Dance enriches its physical classes with imaginative play and music. Programs are designed for toddlers, adolescents, and teenagers, with a variety of class structures available. Aerials Academy staff leads ballet, tap dancing, and gymnastics while also combining disciplines to create acrobatic adaptations of formal ballet productions. Twice each month, the instructors host Friday-evening play sessions that keep children busy while parents reclaim their free time by going shopping for unexpected holidays.

The friendly mechanics at Everybody Bikes nurture two-wheeled transports of all styles, helping urban commuters traverse city streets unencumbered by a car’s demands. Mechanics perform services such as tune-ups, repairs, and custom bicycle builds amid racks stocked with bikes by Kona, Fuji, and Linus. To educate their customers, they also lead private and group lessons on mechanics, safety, and riding techniques. The mechanics also maintain the shop’s blog, which keeps customers in the know about everything from what helmets to buy to when tricycle mating season starts.