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.  

  

This entry was posted on Monday, July 9th, 2007 at 6:14 am and is filed under Tools, Repair Tips, Mechanical Hints, Industry News, Daily Rant. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.