When to Call in the Pros

​A well-maintained bike is a beautiful thing.  You will be able to ride further and with less effort, and the bike will last longer between mechanical issues.  Regular maintenance will reduce the likelihood of a catastrophic failure that might leave you stranded, or worse yet, injured.   But according to Christopher Wallace, bike mechanic, educator and speaker at the Feb. 10 virtual meeting of the Chicago Cycling Club, even if you are handy with tools and have the basic knowledge to perform preventive maintenance on your bike, there are instances when collaborating with the professionals at a bike shop is the best thing you can do to keep rolling.  

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Bike Shop Services
From the early days of the invention of the bicycle at the turn of the last century to today, there have been businesses that sell bikes and perform repairs.  Bike shops have traditionally sold new bikes and performed bike service.   But over the years, many modern bike shops have evolved to do a lot more.  Some have branched out into related businesses, like selling (and brewing!) beer, coffee, and food.  Others have expanded into other sports, such as skiing, snowboarding, skateboarding, and scooters.  Those bike shops that have maintained a focus on core bike services may now sell parts, accessories, and tools, rent bikes for adults and children, organize, lead, and serve as a hub for community bike rides for adults and children, and provide classes on learning to ride, and basic bike mechanics.  In addition to all of this, they give advice and share their expertise on anything related to cycling.  Non-profit bike shops, in particular, usually have a strong education mission.  

Expertise of Bike Shops
If you want to keep your bike in tip-top shape, what area would you benefit from taking advantage of the services of the professionals at a bike shop?

• Performing a bike safety check – The League of American Bicyclists has a procedure they call the ABC Quick Check they recommend be performed by all cyclists every time you get on your bike to assure key components are in a safe range.   This is a mnemonic for air, brakes, chain or cranks, and quick releases.   As a cyclist you can learn to perform this check, but from time to time a more thorough inspection should be done.  A professional bike safety check should usually be done annually, but if you are a year-round cyclist or you bike in harsh conditions a more frequent check is recommended.  The ability to identify problems and solutions is usually best done by a professional because it takes experience and the tools to take the measurements and perform the evaluation and know what areas are outside recommended parameters. 
  
  A professional inspection might include:
  • Measure tire pressure, spoke tension, and wear of chain
  • Inspect brake pad wear
  • Determine if the wheel is true and round
  • Validate frame and derailleur hanger alignment
  • Verify that the chain shifts from each cog of the derailleur smoothly and without skipping or chatter
  • Check adjustment of bearings in wheel hubs, bottom bracket, and headset
• The best places to ride – Bike shops often have information centers they fill with maps and brochures about local trails and destinations.  While there are now apps that help you find places to ride, nothing beats the recommendation of someone you know and trust.  Bike shop staff also bike and they can give advice on their favorite rides.  Shop staff often lead group rides that start from the shop. 
• Education – Bike shops often conduct hands on classes that enable you to cut through all the information that is available on the internet and learn how to do things for yourself to keep your bike operating efficiently.  The most popular is a fix-a-flat workshop, but others include classes that teach you how to perform a bike inspection, adjust your bike for comfort, derailleur and brake adjustments, and wheel building.
• Bike comfort – There are best practices for making your bike comfortable such as adjusting the height and position of the saddle, handlebar position, and pedals and a professional at a bike shop can help you make these adjustments. 
• Accessories – Bicycle accessories will make your ride more comfortable and a bike shop knows what products are available and can provide recommendations.  Accessories you need include kickstand, pump, multitool, spare tube, bell, bike clothes, helmet, fenders, lock, lights, rack, bike bag, bottle cage, and phone holder. 
• Performing advanced bike repairs – Order and install parts as needed.

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Essential Bike Maintenance Skills
What are the skills you should develop to insure you bikes operates smoothly?  You can learn what to do from watching YouTube videos or from someone with more experience such as a friend or in a class at a bike shop.  Since there is not a lot of standardization with bikes, professional bike mechanics themselves takes classes and spends years learning how to repair bikes.  But there are basic skills that everyone can learn that will help you keep your bike working its best and save you money.   Skills that are the most helpful for the home mechanic include:

• Fix a flat – road debris, glass and stones, can puncture your tire and result in a flat that will prevent you from riding.  This is the single most important skill because you cannot predict when you will roll over something that will cause your tire to lose air.  You never know when your tire will flat out and you cannot predict it.  While it is true you can take your bike to a bike shop to repair the flat, there might not be one nearby and even if there were, this unexpected detour would impact your day.  Unless it is raining or cold, the easiest path is to carry the necessary tools, get the knowledge and practice to fix the flat yourself.  The tools you will need are a spare tube or patch kit, tire levers, and a pump or inflation source. 
• Clean and lubricate the drivetrain - the part of the bike with the most use is the chain and normal use results in attracting dirt that can negatively impact bike performance and result in more serious issue later.  Knowing how to remove surface dirt and keep all the parts working smoothly will extend the life of your drivetrain and make for a smoother ride.
• Inflate tires – bike tires only hold a small amount of air but they are under pressure so air seeps out naturally, about 3 pounds a week for an average city tire.  Topping off the tires weekly will guard against long term air loss and rim damage when hitting a curb or pothole, make your bike easier to pedal, and increase the life of your tire, saving you money in the long run.    
• Tighten loose nuts and bolts -  but be careful not to overtighten!  Vibrations on the road may result in things starting to rattle.  Check from time to time that all nuts and bolts are secure and prevent something falling off and causeing further damage.
• Adjust brakes to maintain good stopping capability – changes in temperature and wear will change the effectiveness of brakes.  When you find the levers close to bottoming out, you will need to tighten the brake cable.

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Bike Maintenance is Not for Everyone
There are some people who just want to ride and do not want to spend their time working on their bikes.   There is nothing wrong with this, as long as you ride only in the city where there are frequent bike shops, have access to public transit or a friend you can call to get home in case you have a mechanical problem.  You could always ride with another person(s) who has some mechanical skill, and/or you invest in regular preventive maintenance service from the pros at a bike shop to catch and resolve issues before they occur.    Anything other than this increases your risk of an unpleasant experience on your bike.  For more freedom and fun, collaborating with a bike shop will allow you more flexibility on your rides to confidently travel further, knowing your bike is well maintained and if a problem should occur, you have the knowledge and skill to handle it.
 
What You Can Do for a Bike Shop
So far we have talked how a bike shop can help you, but what can you do to get the most out of an interaction with a bike shop?  Here are some tips:

• Do a little research first – customers that know what they want or understand the options before coming into a bike shop for advice will learn more and get to the bottom of their issue faster. 
• Ask questions – it is okay to asks question of the bike shop mechanic or sales person to make sure you understand the advice they are providing and can apply it
• Be open minded – there might be a recommendation you have not thought of, or a creative way of solving a problem, so be willing to listen and consider all suggestions
• Be aware of seasonal and logistical constraints of shops – Unless a shop operates 24 hours per day, it has regular shop hours and busy times and slow times.  In some markets bike shop traffic slows down a lot in the winter, but most bike shops are open year around, so it makes sense to stop in to ask your questions or request time consuming repairs in the off season.  Staff will have more time to spend with you and more time to spend on your bike when business is slower.  Also do not bring your bike in just before closing when staff is working to lock things up and go home. 
• Say hi – staff of bike shops love cycling and are happy when they can help other people enjoy riding as much as you do.  If you are in the neighborhood, stop in to say hello even if you do not have a specific mission in mind.  You might run into a new product you did not know existed or share the results of a recent ride with the staff and help build community and make everyone feel good. 

Being an efficient adult cyclist is a continuous learning process.  Any child can get on a bike and go, but they may not be prepared for what lies ahead of them and make take unnecessary risks.  As adults we learn smarter ways to do things and find ourselves gravitating to like-minded people.  Bicycling is an adventure and can be incredibly fun, and a bike shop can help you with education and advice to allow you freedom to go anywhere you want to go fully prepared for the road ahead.