In my travels around the world wide web I’ve come across a number of bike repair tool lists for the person looking to set up their own home shop. The Pedal Wrench will soon post our own version of such a list. The one item I find absent from most of these tool lists I’ve seen is a shop apron.

When I think about what an apron does for me when I work on bicycles, I might place it in the highest priority tier of bike repair necessities. While an apron won’t loosen a pedal that’s been installed too tightly, it will provide you with many benefits while you perform the task. The evil chain ring monster is always looking to leave it’s mark on clean clothes and they tend to be permanent scars. Alleviating the concern for grease stained clothing is a huge advantage in the situation of a tight pedal because you get to focus on the pedal itself.

Walking up to a bike in a bike repair stand with all of the tools to complete the task at hand is an enormous time saver. Let me give you an example, a new chain installation. Before I leave the work bench I will put the new chain, master link, chain tool, rag, and lube in the pockets of my apron. I walk up to the bicycle and remove the old chain with the chain tool. I measure and cut the new chain to the proper length, again with the chain tool. The old chain and chain tool go in my pockets. After I install the new chain on the bike I take the master link out of my pocket to connect the ends. The rag is used to remove the sticky goo that comes on the new chain and wipe off the excess lube after it’s applied. At the end of that simple task the apron saved 3 or more trips to the workbench. That efficiency gain is huge over the course of building a complete bicycle or many repairs.

Go buy a plaid apron with ruffles from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. It will keep your clothes cleaner and it has pockets to hold small items and tools. While this apron would offer some of the benefits I’ve discussed, over time the shortcomings would become more apparent. So what makes a bike mechanic’s apron more functional? Durability, comfort, and performance are the three aspects that I look at in an apron.

The durability is very important, but harder to judge at the time of purchase. Some aprons fall apart under normal use, some withstand the affects of everyday bike shop life, but disintegrate when washed, and some stand the test of time. Generally, the pockets and straps will fail first.

As heavy bicycle tools fill the pockets and the hours wear on in the bike shop, the comfort of an apron becomes an issue. Most “high end” shop aprons have gone to a criss cross strap design that better distribute the weight of the apron and tools on the bike mechanic. This design sets the straps wider on the shoulders and almost completely removes the weight on the neck. The simple two strap design that can be seen on the previously mentioned plaid apron is not what a bike mechanic wants. Trust me.

How does an apron perform well? For me, it’s all about coverage and containment. The more area an apron covers the more shorts and shirts I save from grease and grime, and that saves money. The pockets of a shop apron should hold a generous amount of bike tools, and most do. The key is for those bike tools to stay put until needed and be easily accessible when needed. I have nightmares of an apron that would throw my tools all over the floor in a loud metallic discord each time I bent down. It made me the laughing stock of the bike shop which has probably scarred me for life, not to mention all of the time I spent picking up my tools.

Now I’d like to introduce you to the Fox Wrench Apron from Fox Racing Products. This apron has been my friend in the bike shop for almost a year now. The cotton construction has withstood the test of time and multiple trips to the washing machine. The pockets of the Wrench Apron are well thought out and hold everything you need regularly and then some. They very rarely spew bike tools and bike parts on the floor of the shop, saving me time and face. It even has a beer pocket and bottle opener for after all the repairs are finished. The inside hand pockets allow me to put my keys, wallet, or cell phone away without sticking my greasy hands in the pockets of my shorts or pants. While the apron is as comfortable as they come, the pockets are large enough to excessively overload, so remember to empty them every once in a while or the back and shoulders will suffer.

Up until this point, the only aspect I’m not psyched on is the graphics, but those don’t really matter, and they are unique. At around $30, this apron is a great value for a great product and will probably be the last apron you buy for your shop. It also works great for BBQing.

• 100% Cotton.
• Screen printed graphics.
• 4 large pockets, 1 pocket w/ flap, 4 smaller pockets for tools, 1 pen pocket and 2 hand pockets on inside.
• Special side pockets sized to fit a beer bottle; also comes with a custom Fox head bottle opener.

The outdoor concerts a Deer Valley Resort on Wednesday evenings are a Park City locals’ tradition. The typical Park City summer evening is perfect for sitting in the grass, basking in the sun, and listening to live music amongst friends. Blankets cover the green ski slope above Deer Valley’s amphitheater as people pull out all stops for their picnic spreads.

Chilled Conundrums, aged Blue Stilton, Caprese Salad, and other savory treats are passed among the crowd as an often forgettable musical act plays for our pleasure. The DV concerts are great evenings of entertainment that many will pedal their bicycles across town for. Bicycles are leaned and locked against anything stationary as you enter the venue. The commute to the concert by bike makes sense. The parking is tough, gas is expensive, and, though still illegal, it’s always safer to ride a bike rather than drive a car after some beverage consumption.

The gradual climb from town up to the Snow Park Lodge and amphitheater is made even more grueling by a backpack of wine or a cooler in the basket of your bike. The ability to bypass that climb is hardly why a small group of people take their bikes on the bus, although that is very nice. The bus these cyclists board is headed for Silver Lake, the mid mountain multi million dollar Deer Valley community that sits about 1000 feet above old town. There the reward waits. Royal Street is a 5.2 kilometer stripe of pavement down the side of the mountain. It winds its way in and out of ski runs and multi million dollar homes that sit empty.

The bike ride is what you make of it. Some cruise, chat, and enjoy the speed gravity dictates for them. Others choose to be a tad more competitive and race out of the gate. Every week is a different crew and has a different vibe. It is always a good time. No matter how you ride Royal Street, you will arrive at the concert full of energy, grinning ear to ear, and ready to consume.

This bike ride wasn’t my idea, but I would like more than anything for it to continue on a weekly basis in conjunction with the concerts. The ride is great and just about anyone, with any bike, has the ability to do the ride. We meet at the Park City Transit Center around 5:20. The last bus up to Silver Lake leaves at 5:30. It’s usually the driver’s last leg of the day and they don’t wait around past 5:30. The short bus ride to Silver Lake only saves about an hour of climbing by bike and once off the bus you have the option to pedal less than 10 times until you reach the bottom.

Bicycle helmets should always be worn and the Royal Street Descent is no exception. Be sure and do a full safety check on your bicycle before the ride too. Hope to see you.

WHEN: Wednesdays 5:20pm (check DV concert schedule)

WHERE: Park City Transit Center (Swede Alley)

WHY: Because riding downhill is fun, and it’s even better when you don’t have to ride up.

As a continuing effort to be every cyclists’ liaison to bicycle information, our bicycle link pages have gotten some improvements. The pages will continue to grow as we add more valuable links. Some key links have certainly been missed and we’ll try to fill the big holes quickly. Please drop a note if you have any suggestions about a link you’d like to see on thepedalwrench.com. Also, stay tuned for the new and improved photo pages!

The Pedal Wrench Bicycle Links

Most Americans would consider bicycling an environmentally friendly activity. And I would agree that going for a bike ride has much less of an impact on earth than taking the old gas guzzler for a drive. But what about the footprint that cycling as an industry leaves on our globe?

Cycling is the most efficient form of transportation, but over 100 million bicycles are produced in the world annually. That is a lot of production and then consider all of the tubes, tires, and accessories that go along with that. Where will these bicycles be in 15 years? Even if half of those bicycles are still being utilized, 50 million bikes is a gigantic pile of scrap bikes. So what can we do with ridable but dated bikes that would otherwise end up abandoned, scrapped, or forgotten about?

Park City is not your hit the boardwalk beach cruiser kind of town. If a bike only has one gear it had better be an easy one. Main Street in Park City is a consistently nagging hill that I live way at the top of. The whole thing is only about a half mile and it’s only a 5% or 6 % grade, but it will leave most short of breathe and looking for easier gears. The ride home from the bar or a gorging at a local restaurant is an especially tough endeavor and you can count on the Main Street trolley to be going the wrong way.

In 2003 an early 90s Mongoose mountain bike was left in the garage of 28 Prospect Ave, my new residence. This bike was destined to spend the rest of it’s existence under the back deck. The Mongoose was not that sweet, even when it was a new bike, and now it was antiquated, rusty, and lacking in all cool factors. The misfortune of a friend turned out to be the saving grace for the old bike. The need for affordable(free) transportation and low impact excercise made the Mongoose an easy choice.

The bike needed some love before it could be ridden. Lube, cable, and housing would bring the bike back to functional status, but it seriously lacked in style. The solutions were considered and then applied to the ugly bicycle. Ape hanger handlebars were installed giving the rider a relaxed and upright position. The 26″ mountain bike wheel was taken off the front and a 20″ BMX wheel was substituted. Since the front brakes were useless with this new front wheel the brake bosses were ground off of the fork to give a cleaner, sleeker look. A Mexican flag color scheme was sprayed on the frame and fork to cover the scrapes and scars accumulated over the years. Since small details can bring the level of the bigger picture up, a “Little Homie” was zip tied to the head tube and the Sexy Mexi was born.

This makeover was a fresh breathe of life for the bicycle. The Sexy Mexi could be seen all over town, at all of the hippest hangout spots. The bike was the perfect townie. It had a distinct creative style, a full range of gears, and a price tag that allowed it to be left unlocked in front of most establishments around town.

When, Sophia, the owner of the “Mongoose” approached us about the bicycle she had left behind years earlier, I was shocked. The Sexy Mexi was reluctantly turned over, but it didn’t care. Sophia quickly gained a deep appreciation for her resurrected ride and she could be seen pedaling it about town, it even made the trip to Burning Man with her. The bike became a beacon for locating Sophia and friends.

A new problem faced 28 Prospect, we no longer had a townie. Kris Gray and I started building our new town cruisers immediately. We learned from our experience with the Sexy Mexi and allowed friendly competition to inspire our new designs. Soon we were riding around town on some new recycled bicycles. Our new generation of townies were even cooler, more functional, and more stylie. Within no time people were approaching Kris and I about getting their own recycled bikes.

So it began. The Park City Bicycle Recyclers was born to meet the need for affordable geared townies in our community. The bonus for us is the ability to use bicycles and bicycle parts that would otherwise end up wasted in a landfill. As we continue, we learn new ways to reuse different parts which makes for a constant evolution of our recycled bicycles. Our bicycles are consistently unique giving them an artistic quality appreciated by our clients.

The Park City Bicycle Recyclers offers an alternative to the overpriced townies you find at the bike shop. Besides that, we are able to cut down on the waste from our supposedly green sport, even if just a drop in the very large bucket. Remember, Earth day every day!

Keep an eye out for the website and other PCBR happenings.

If it’s one thing I’ve learned about competitive cycling, it’s 71.2% mental.  A competitive cyclist’s psychological approach to situations, both racing and training, can make or break careers or races.  The ability to climb on the bike when it’s too hot, too wet, too cold, or too windy is part of it, but knowing their physical limits is also key.  Sense of when to obey the boundaries that the body has instituted, when to push past them, and for how long. 

These basic examples are just the tip of the iceberg when talking about what a racer’s head must sort through in order to be as fast and efficient as their fitness will allow.  The top race teams will ensure their top pros have nothing to worry about but going fast.  Subaru/Gary Fisher Mountain Bike Team’s Willow Koeber told me the only things on her mind were picking up imaginary gold coins from the race course (kind of like in Super Mario Bros.)  and causing change in the earth’s rotation with each pedal stroke.  Probably why she’s such a great short track racer.  We should all be so lucky.  I think most of us have at least the slight thoughts of utter suffering on our brains in race situations, no matter what.  I’m sure Willow and her teammates rarely go into a race with a bike that is less than mechanically perfect, which is why riders on that caliber of a team have learned to not even consider skipping gears at start time.  They are well aware that they have a strong team backing them and doing what it takes to make sure they can focus on riding bikes fast. 

Which brings me to the point of this post.  The Pedal Wrench is offering pro team level race and ride support for cyclists that don’t want to worry about the chain not dropping from the middle to the small ring.  I for see the endurance racers, namely 24 hour racers, truly benefiting from this service.  The Pedal Wrench has a complete mobile shop that can be set up anywhere in the western United States.  Besides tools, we offer a pop up tent, generator, significant outdoor lighting, espresso machine, and a long list of other race pit necessities.  We can even arrive stocked with the parts your bike may need over the course of the race.

Prices will vary by event, location, and job description.  To give you an idea, a 4 person team at the 24 Hours of Moab mountain bike race will cost in the ballpark of $800.  That’s only $200 per racer, a small price to pay for mechanical piece of mind on race day.  That rate includes all the labor/bike repairs and we’ll even make sure the bike gets sent home shiny and happy. However, any bike parts used would be extra.

This is an opportunity to gain one of the huge advantages the pro teams have over the rest of us.  Seems to make sense!  Input on the value/price of this service is welcome.  

  

In a perfect world bicycle tubes would grow on trees. They would be free and have no environmental impact. Maybe they wouldn’t go flat at all and you could use a tube throughout your whole life and even pass it on to generations. But tubes do go flat and aren’t free and they don’t just disappear from the face of the earth. That is why The Pedal Wrench suggests patching tubes. However, I rarely patch tubes on the trail. Having a spare ready to go is fast and courteous to your riding company.

Patching tubes is something I do in my spare time in the comfort of my home. I’ll typically have a few tubes in the rotation and will sit down and patch multiple tubes in a patch session. The lack of debris, time constraint, and stress makes the task much easier to deal with and boosts the success rate.

My life is filled with bicycle tubes. I deal with them all the time. Something I’ve learned to do to save myself time and frustration is to tie a knot in punctured tubes. This is an obvious reminder that the tube does not hold air and it needs to be patched. Trust me, it helps a lot.

While I’m on the subject of patching I’ll run through some helpful pointers on getting a tube patched successfully.

1. Locate the hole. I usually inflate the tube and listen/feel for the hole or holes. Your lips are very sensitive and can feel the slightest leak of air.

2. Deflate the tube completely. Remember to keep an eye on the hole, you can mark it with a marker.

3. Apply glue. A thin coating in a circular motion around the hole. Too much glue is messy and doesn’t help the patch stick any better. Make sure the area of glue is larger than the patch being used. Try and keep the hole in the center of the glue circle. This will help you center the patch.

4. Let the glue dry 60%. This is the step that usually gets skipped. People are in too much of a hurry. If you applied the proper amount of glue it should only take a few minutes.

5. Press the patch on. Place the tube on a hard surface and use a rigid cylinder to roll the patch on. This gets rid of air bubbles and helps the patch bond with the tube.

6. Let it dry more. This shouldn’t take long. If you’re in a hurry you could probably skip this step.

I tend to leave the plastic covers on patches so the outside doesn’t stick to the tube as I fold it for storage. The plastic can also keep the glue from sticking to the inside of the tire. I’ve never experienced any problems from leaving the plastic on, but let me know if you have.

Good luck. Earth day every day.

One more thing. Cut the tubes that can’t be patched into rubber bands. They are great keeping spare tubes wrapped tight and bundling $$. There is probably at least 500 more uses, let me know what you come up with.

There are a few tools I use more than any others, and until just a moment ago I would have listed the 5mm hex wrench and my homemade spoke poker as the top two. As I write this I realize that my repair stand is actually used more than any other tool in the shop. I’m actually using it now and I’m not even working on a bike.

A bike repair stand is the mechanic’s way of having a stable platform to clean, inspect, build, and adjust a bicycle. Most repairs would be possible without the use of a bike stand, but struggle is often the case. The repair stand will stabilize the bike and articulate to give the mechanic the best view of the part of the bicycle needing attention. The ability to bring the ailing part of the bike closer to eye level is a huge advantage. You can also use a bike repair stand as a fancy kickstand when you just need to store a bike.

For someone that’s never used a bike repair stand it’s hard to know what to look for in a stand. There is more than likely going to be some compromise when deciding on a stand to aid in fixing your bicycle. Price is always a consideration, but what else should influence the decision? In my opinion, durability, portability, and stability are the key factors. Most repair stands will hold a bike with no problem, especially if you go for an established brand. How well and how long are where stands start to differentiate from one another.

The Ultimate Support Pro Elite Repair Stand is a top contender in the portable bicycle repair stand world. The 13lb repair stand folds down with the flip of a couple quick release levers and slides right into it’s own little duffel bag. No need to make special arrangements transporting the Pro Elite Repair Stand from place to place, it’ll fit just about anywhere. Folded down, the Pro Elite Stand is as compact as any other stand I’m aware of.

The ease of transport is irrelevant if the stand doesn’t make working on a bike easier. The first thing I noticed when I removed the stand from the box was the newly redesigned clamp. Ultimate improved on the knob that tightens the clamp around the bicycle and added a large release button for easier removal of the bike. The Ultimate claims “industrial strength”, and I definitely had zero problems over the course of weeks of use and hundreds of bikes. It even handles tandems and downhill bikes that weigh upwards of 60lbs with no problem. Besides being burly, the clamp is about the easiest clamp I’ve used to date. Getting it properly adjusted with one hand was no problem. The release button was a nice feature too, the clamp is instantly loosened once you hit the button. You just have to be careful about hitting the button while working on the bike. I fell victim to that once, but once my awareness was raised it wasn’t an issue again.

The set up of the Pro Elite Stand is as easy as th break down….maybe easier. The tripod easily opens every time and secures with a quick release lever. The height adjustment is also secured with a quick release and offers short to as high as I would ever want. The clamp arm is secured with a knob and let you adjust the angle of the clamp and how the bike is positioned. If I had to guess, I would say the total set up takes about 20 seconds. That’s darn quick.

The lightweight aluminum construction does have a bit of flex, especially with the heavier bikes. The amount of flex was certainly acceptable, and compared with other manufacturers designs, is well worth the exceptional weight savings. Besides that, care should be taken in positioning the tripod legs to the bike. One incident with the wind caused a bike and stand to fall over, but again, my raised awareness kept that from being an issue again.

The Ultimate Support Pro Elite Bike Repair Stand receives a 5 of 5 rating from me after a significant amount of use. Portable stands will never be as stable as the 300lb shop stands and they don’t need to be. The price of the Pro Elite stand is makes it a decent value and works at least $100 better than most of it’s competitors. The customer service department at Ultimate Support is easy to deal with should there be an issue with the product.

The Pedal Wrench highly recommends the Ultimate Support Pro Elite Bike Repair Stand and is claiming it’s the best portable or stationary home mechanic’s stand on the market today. Check it out.

In this line of work, I have quite a few opportunities to ride bicycles of various designs, manufacturers, and part specs. The down side is I usually don’t get to ride said bicycles long enough to form an educated opinion about them. One ride is just a taste of what a bike has to offer. Getting the suspension and fit dialed in are key to really knowing what a bike has to offer.

That said, I did have the opportunity to ride and dial the 07 Cannondale Carbon Rush Team over the course of a couple of weeks. This bike is deemed as an all mountain endurance bike with the weight of some of the nicer x country bikes on the market combined with a non abusive ride that lets you sit comfortably in the saddle for hours upon hours. The bike weighs in at a feathery 24.5 lbs, pretty dang light for a ride with 120mm of rear wheel travel. The carbon frame saves 200 grams over the aluminum version, but the stunning weight is helped in part by a build that considers weight and efficiency throughout.

As soon as I put my foot to the pedal I was in awe of the weight. The Carbon Rush is about 9 lbs lighter than my Giant Reign 1 trail bike. The suspension did a good job eating up the bumps once I set them a touch softer than the manufacturer recommended. The suspension design in conjunction with the Fox Float RP3 climbed hills with little feedback or flex. The only flex I noticed was while climbing out of the saddle in gears harder than I should have been in. I left the rear shock in the fully active setting for the most part ans I felt very little efficiency loss.

I really only ride up to ride down, so the down is where I tend to completely make up my mind about a bike. Once I had the tire pressure, shocks, and brakes adjusted properly it was on. Anything the bike lacked in quickness because of the geometry was made up for by the weight and the Rush’s superb ability to track where you aim it. A solid 20 minute downhill had me giddy as a school girl and the pedaling capabilities had me inspired to ride up and do it again. Six hour rides were finished with little upper body fatigue leaving me fresher to ride the next day.

The ballpark price of $6500 is a touch out of my price range, but I think it to be a wise choice for the cyclist competing in endurance events. Some of the Cannondale pros use this bike in XC events over the lighter Scalpel and Taurine bikes. Also a good choice if you’re not competitive but have some extra dough to play with. In my opinion, the other down was the Avid Juicy Ultimates‘ 4″ rotor on the rear. The brakes are sweet, but the small rotor has me on the front brake more which leads my front wheel to wash out in the loose corners. A simple brake adapter and rotor swap had me singing a new tune. I’d be interested to get anyone else’s’ feedback on the 4″ rotor.

My overall rating for the Cannondale Carbon Rush Team is a solid A. The lack of an A+ is due to the steep price. The rest of the bike performed beyond my expectations and the manufacturers claims. But as a broke ass bike mechanic I have to look at value. Not really Cannodale’s fault, they don’t control the price of components or materials, nor am I the demographic they are marketing this bike to. The bike

There are Cannondale demo trucks driving around the country as we speak. Check with your dealer to see when you can ride one. Go to www.cannodale.com for more info on the demo program.

Supporting benefit rides is just one of the many outlets I use to practice my bike repair skills. The opportunity to volunteer for the AIDS Lifecycle 6 came about with phone call from Cannondale’s Bill Rudell. As the official tech sponsor, Cannondale was responsible for stocking and staffing a mobile bike repair giant for the almost 600 mile ride. The ride would take nearly 2800 cyclists 7 days to complete as it wound south down the coast of California.

Equipped with 1300 700c tubes and just about every other part that could possibly break on a standard road bike, Bill and his team of 9-15 mechanics and fit gurus converged on the AIDS Lifecycle registration at the Cow Palace, just outside of San Francisco. For the techs, the registration day was dedicated to getting the riders’ bikes unboxed, built, and working as smooth as possible. This day was my introduction to the massiveness of the event and the diversity of the participants.

Each bike I built was an introduction to a person I had never met before. I would try and find the bike shop sticker on the bicycle that might give me the geographical lowdown on each bike and it’s rider. The conversations were typically focused on the wheres and whys of these people, many of whom had traveled great distances to participate. Besides the prospect of riding nearly 600 miles in 7 days, the $2500 minimum donation showed a level of commitment you wouldn’t see at most other charity rides. I suppose that’s why the 2800 riders raised over $11 million before the start of the ride.

Often the bikes I built were loaners, yet unridden by the person standing in front of me. Other times I would remove bikes from the boxes they had been so carefully sealed inside of at the end of the previous Lifecycle. I admit my skepticism about certain riders’ readiness was high. The comedic highlight came at the expense of a person on a department store bicycle. The seatpost was cut leaving no room for adjustment, the seat was always down, and the frame had a 20lb. U lock around it. I guess you had to see it to appreciate it. You should know he made it all the way to the end.

Each day was a new adventure for this country mouse. The team of mechanics would wake early to have cyclists on the road by 6:30. As the flow of riders would decrease to a trickle, teams of mechanics would race to various rest stops along the way to set up a make shift bike shops before the riders started arriving. As I set up shop at the lunch stop on day one I paused to take in the scenery. The ocean lapped at the sand only a few hundred feet away as the seals soaked up the sun, birds soared, dived, bobbed, weaved, ate, slept, and a multitude of other activities, all for my viewing pleasure. The participants started pedaling in within a short time.

The bikes I saw suffered from ailments of all varieties. Usually it was a simple shifting issue, but I witnessed many broken spokes, broken derailleurs, slashed tires, crash damage, and just about anything else that could go wrong with a bike. The mechanical feat of the week was performed by Murray of Cannondale and Q of Shimano with their zip tie remedy for a lost b tension plate on a Campy rear derailleur. It really opened my eyes to the power of the zip tie, especially since it was still running strong at the end of the ride after breaking the first day. Bill would scurry from shop to shop, sometimes hitting 8 in a day, just to meet the mechanical needs of the participants’ bikes. The proprietary spokes and Italian components seemed to be the hardest items to replace on the road.

Besides tubes and tires, pedal cleats seemed to be in the highest demand. The amount of walking was a cycling anomaly with some riders going through 3 pairs of cleats during the week. The Look and Shimano cleats were definitely the most prone to wear, while Speedplay and Time faired slightly better. The cyclists that showed up with cleat covers and used them religiously were spared the anguish of worn cleats. If I was going to ride in the AIDS Lifecycle I would definitely be using my mountain shoes and pedals. My feelings about common, easy to locate and replace bike parts was certainly strengthened over the course of my repair endeavors. A snazzy wheel is no good if you can’t find a spoke to fix it.

Fortunately for the cyclists with bike problems that weren’t immediately fixable, Cannondale was loaning bikes to those in need. The Cannondale loaner bikes were the latest and greatest and typically an upgrade for the riders needing to borrow them. By the 4th day of the event most of the demo bikes had been loaned out, saving the ride for many participants.

The bike shop would close in the evening when all of the bikes that could be fixed had been. This usually freed us bike mechanics up around 10:30 or 11 at night. The tent cities that formed our temporary homes was impressive both in size and efficiency. The night life was minimal as the staff and cyclists were exhausted, but the portable cities had most of the luxuries of home and left little to want for. Then in the AM they would pick it up and move it to the next spot leaving no hint that these metropolises had ever existed.

Hopefully I’ll be back for the AIDS Lifecycle 7 next year. The people I met and the places I saw made the experience unique and rewarding. The event even had me fixing bikes in a red dress, hopefully all of those photos have been destroyed. A big thanks to Cannondale for the invite and all of the other volunteers I met along the way. Do yourself a favor and meet me there next year.

I just wanted to re share a video I’ve had posted on thepedalwrench.com for years. This represents the hard work and hard riding of many Park City locals and the editing skills of Matt Collins. Much of the footage ended up as bonus material on the Tangerine Dream DVD from Teton Gravity Research. Sick.

Hope you enjoy.