Mountain biking is a beautiful sport. It’s hard to beat the rush of adrenaline and euphoria felt while bobbing and weaving through the trees on fast singletrack, cleaning a tough technical section of trail, or finally working up the balls … Continue reading
Category Archives: MTB Repair
How to Replace Disc Brake Pads
To replace your disc brake pads you’ll need a pair of needle-nose pliers, a clean dry cloth, some rubbing alcohol, and a flat-sided tool like a 10mm wrench. For this demonstration I’m using Shimano hydraulic disc brakes but the procedure for most … Continue reading
Topeak PrepStand Pro, JoeBlow Ace Floor Pump, and PedalBar Review
If you’re really into riding (and the fact that you’re reading this tells me you are), you’re already familiar with the Topeak brand. As a techy kinda guy who does all his own bike work (and work for close friends), … Continue reading
Mountain Bike Spring Cleaning, Part 3: Headset Maintenance and Final Details
This is the third and final installment in our series on spring mountain bike maintenance. You can read Part 2: Drive Train, Frame, and Brake Maintenance here. Headset Maintenance After a year of riding in the muck and dust you will … Continue reading
Mountain Bike Spring Cleaning, Part 2: Drivetrain, Pivots, and Brake Maintenance
This is a continuation of our series on spring bike maintenance. Click here to read Part 1: Washing, Fork Maintenance, and More. Drivetrain Maintenance After cleaning your bike and maintaining your fork, it’s time to tackle the drivetrain, frame pivots, … Continue reading
Emergency Prep for Mountain Biking
Mountain bikers often take for granted the fact that we’ll return safe and sane from our jaunts into the backcountry—even those that take us twenty miles or more from the nearest town or main road. I think we get this … Continue reading
Mountain Bike Spring Cleaning, Part 1: Washing and Fork Maintenance
So you did the unthinkable and forgot to clean up your bike for the coming riding season. Now you’re stuck, and the shops are all backed up for weeks. Well you could panic, cry, curse… or all of the above. … Continue reading
Trailside Repairs: Fixing A Broken Chain
A broken chain is a surefire way to turn an epic ride into an epic hike. Fortunately, with the right tools, it is a quick and easy fix, getting you cranking again in no time. What to Carry The only … Continue reading
Trailside Repairs: Fixing A Flat Tire
Whether you run tubes or tubeless, eventually you will have a flat out on the trail. A surprising number of riders, including Lance Armstrong, don’t know how to fix a flat tire, so here is everything you need to know … Continue reading
Schwalbe Racing Ralph Evo 29er: Grip is Hip
So I’m biased: I work for a Very Large Bike Company that makes its own tires. When these pretty things arrived, I had to keep them hidden from my coworkers. The Schwalbe Racing Ralph 29X2.25″ tires showed up right before … Continue reading
Powder Coating: New Life For An Old MTB Frame
I had always pictured powder coating as something done to Jeep bumpers and wrought iron fences. I knew it could be done to bike frames, but the ones I had seen looked unimpressive, and they were expensive. This past winter, … Continue reading
Having Fun on a Mountain Bike Without Spending a Fortune
How much does it cost to go for a bike ride? If you’re like me, you remember tooling around your neighborhood as a kid on a hand-me-down Schwinn, or riding your bike to the park to play ball with your … Continue reading


