Anyone who rides a bike regularly should have an amount of basic knowledge about its maintenance. Even a basic understanding will make your bike safer, more pleasurable to ride and a smaller drain on the purse strings. You can get all of that just knowing when to take it the bike shop for repair or service. Bicycle maintenance is mainly prevention rather than cure and spotting things before they get out of hand can prevent damage to more expensive components.
I taught myself through trial and error as a teenager out of necessity, racing bikes to finally represent Australia. You don’t have to do it the hard way making what could be costly mistakes because you don’t completely understand the videos you watch. Instead or as an added extra, you can have one to one sessions personally tailored with a tutor who has a lifetime experience in bike mechanics at the highest level. There is no substitute for face to face learning with practical application and someone you can ask questions of, walking you through the right way to do it.
One of the beauties of riding a bicycle is it gives the rider a sense of freedom. Remember when you were first allowed to go out on your bicycle as a child? I still get the feeling of being able to go where I want when I want without a care in the world.
Becoming competent at basic bicycle maintenance opens the door to having the confidence to go out and conquer the open road in the knowledge a mechanical problem can be sorted out unaided. You can detach yourself from the worry of having to rely on someone else if things go wrong. There is freedom in independent cycling!
The nicer your bike runs the more likely you are to get out on it because the experience is mentally and physically more satisfying. Whether it’s for riding to work, the shops and the pub or to get out of town and take in some fresh air, having your machine working at its best makes the experience all the better.
We all like to save money, right!?! Knowing when and how to replace small cheaper parts like brake pads and a chain will stop or at least significantly slow down wearing out of more costly parts. Learning how to do a systematic check of your bike on a regular basis is important to keep it running well and safe. It is also financially sensible whether you learn to do it yourself or at least know when to take it to a professional to have the work done.
Ultimately, the most important thing is your vehicle is safe. Most of us first get on a bike when we are children. I believe this gives alot of people the misunderstanding a bike is not a serious vehicle. It is a serious vehicle, just as dangerous (if not more so) as a car if not checked regularly and maintained properly. Whatever level of maintenance you want to learn you can feel safe in the knowledge all my training courses cover being safe as the most important objective.
Everyone has their own goals for what they want to achieve from being able to work on their own bike. That is why I offer personally tailored sessions for each individual and only do one on one sessions. Doing the sessions this way allows for the training to be tailored to each individual’s personal requirements whilst making sure you have my full attention to help you confidently develop your skills. There is a great satisfaction in knowing you can do work on your own bike to a level you are happy to undertake.
You tell me why and what you want to achieve. I will structure it around your needs. Sure, everyone has to do the basic safety stuff. That’s how I pass on my bike mechanic mantra of nobody gets hurt. Not the customer, not the mechanic and not the bike! You’ll come in a customer and a bike and leave the mechanic you want to be, pain free!
The initial part of each first course will cover basic maintenance and workshop procedures to ensure safe working. All repairs and component fitting will be taught at a professional level to give you the confidence to keep your bike in shape between servicing and keep you out of trouble should the need arise. You will be working on your own bike so you may well be getting jobs done in the process.
Each course will run for 2 hours with extra time allotted if required to ensure each attendee understands all of the elements. Course price is £100.
To book a session or for more information please fill in the form further down stating what your perceived level is and what you would like to learn. Below is a list of training ideas. If you have a good mechanical knowledge of bicycles more advanced classes can be arranged at request.
COURSE IDEAS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER
- Bicycle Maintenance Safety
- Carry out a systematic cycle check
- Wheel removal and fitment
- Repair a cycle puncture and replace inner tube
- Indexed gear adjustment
- Brake adjustment
- Replacing brake pads – rim type or disc type (separately)
- What we like to call ‘A Final Bolt Check’
- When to take your bike to the shop for servicing or more technical jobs
- Wheel Truing
- Wheel Building
- Bike Building (Theory – Advisory)
TESTIMONIALS
Ashley is an amazing bike mechanic – he has been looking after my bikes for many years – and also teaches bike maintenance classes which I would highly recommend for anyone who cycles! I had a 1-2-1 session with him before a cycle tour last year and learnt lots of pro tips and gained confidence in being able to sort out small bike issues on the road myself.
Laura
I’ve been enjoying cycling more and more, having discovered it through starting doing triathlons, but my willingness to go out for training rides by myself has always been limited by my lack of knowledge about how to deal with a mechanical issue if it was to arise. I’d recommend a session with Ashley to anyone who feels the same way as after 2 hours of his patient tutelage I feel so much more confident about heading out by myself. Ashley asked me what I wanted to learn about, answered all my questions, never made me feel silly about my lack of (really basic!) knowledge and explained everything in a really clear way. Lots of hands-on practice embedded the learning about changing tyres & basic safety checks – enough to keep me riding and get me home. Thank you very much for a really helpful session.
Mary
Ashley has looked after my bikes for decades now, and always does an amazing thorough job. When he offered bike maintenance classes I jumped at the chance because I knew they would be brilliantly informative, not patronising and fun. It was certainly all that, and from a starting point of a complete novice I am equipped to deal with small issues on the bike when out for long rides. I’m looking forward to getting a follow-up course next year to reinforce the first lesson and learn more about keeping my bikes in top condition
Martin
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