HOW CAN I IMPROVE MY BIKE SKILLS?
We pose the burning questions beginners are asking to our team of experts
MATT GRANT, CYCLES MANAGER, ACTIVATE CYCLE ACADEMY
“A Cytech-accredited home mechanic short course covers a range of bike maintenance topics designed to give any bike enthusiast the desired level of mechanical ability needed to tackle everyday maintenance jobs that would otherwise be handled by a local bike shop. It is very much a hands-on course, so be prepared to get dirty. Upon completion, you will be able to undertake basic service and repair work on your bike, as well as have an understanding of the correct terminology, trouble shooting, set-up and adjustment of your bike, what parts are most likely to need regular replacement and how to care for your bike for optimal performance and reliable cycling. The course covers the anatomy of the bike, fault finding, hubs and wheels, wheel truing, brakes (setup and adjustment), gears (setup and indexing), headsets, handlebars and stem adjustment, bottom brackets – different types and the removal and fitting of chainsets, wheel removal and re-fitting and the difference between quick-release and thru-axles tyre and tube removal. A two-day course (completed at a dedicated training centre in Guildford, Oxford or Stafford) costs £299.00. The price includes all course materials and Cytech certification.” For details of your nearest course, go to cytech.training
ANDY CREMIN, DEVELOPMENT PROJECT MANAGER, CYCLINGUK.ORG “Confidence- and skills-boosting sessions are a great idea for those looking to cycle more, particularly in urban environments and for their commute. Any cycling instructor worth their salt will discuss your individual needs before the session starts. They’ll usually ask a bit about your cycling background and what you hope to achieve, from which they can tailor the sessions. In addition to basic skills, instructors will offer bespoke routeplanning rides to help you plot your journey to work, or simply ride with you to offer feedback when appropriate. Your instructor will quickly assess your abilities in a low-/no-traffic environment before moving onto somewhere a little busier to recap some of the essentials of cycling on the road. Basic junction lay-outs and road positioning will be ridden on lower-traffic roads, so that you have a realistic environment without it being ‘too realistic’. Finally, instructors will move onto the more complex road architecture common on nearly all urban cycle trips: roundabouts, traffic lights, multi-lane roads... All registered Bikeability instructors will deliver content derived from the National Standard, with guidance based on practical experience. Initially, certain advice may seem counter-intuitive to some (for instance, riding in the middle of the road), but all have proven logic to them.” To find your nearest instructor, head to bikeability.org.uk/find-a-course
A N Y I N S T R U C T O R WO R T H T HE IR S A LT W IL L DIS CU S S YOUR INDIVIDUAL NEEDS BEFORE THE SESSION