YT MOB and World Cup mechanic, George Keir, shares his top 5 tips for getting your bike ready for a season of party laps.
It’s finally here! Mountain Bike season is upon us, and we couldn’t be more ready to thrash laps and send trains on adventures near and far. Ok, we know that mountain biking is an all-year-around love affair, but let’s face it, there’s nothing like long, hot summer days finished with ice-cold beers to really oil our gears. But your bike must be shred-ready to make the most of the season ahead, so we’ve asked our very own YT MOB and World Cup Mechanic, George Keir, for his expert advice and top tips.
Having spent years on the spanners building and fixing up bikes, George Keir is one of the latest additions to the YT MOB crew. This year, he’ll leave the dimly lit grotto of the YT MILL workshop and venture overseas to build and maintain the YT MOB fleet as they embark on the hair-raising enduro and downhill race season. So who better to ask for advice on how to get your bike season-ready? Here are our expert’s top five tips:
Brake Pads
Changing over to organic pads when it gets dry and dusty can be a great way to extract more power from your brakes. Organic pads will give you a much sharper initial bite and won’t make nearly as much noise as sintered pads, but bear in mind they do not like the wet and will wear out much faster.
Tyre Choice
As conditions start to dry out and the ground hardens, a good idea is to opt for less aggressive and faster rolling tyres. Aggressive tyres can actually be a hindrance on harder ground as the tyre isn’t able to bite into the dirt, resulting in a much smaller contact patch and less traction.
Sealant
The number of bikes that are probably rolling around with nothing but dried-up crusty sealant bunnies in their tyres is worrying. Take some time to check inside your tyres, top up with fresh sealant, and maybe adjust your pressures.
Service your f*cking bike!
If you look after your bike, it will look after you. Give your bike a thorough check-over as the season changes, or better still, get a trained bike mechanic to do it for you. If you keep up with regular maintenance, your bike will run smoother, be safer, and it’ll be less likely to give you any expensive surprises later down the line.
Beer
A thirsty mechanic is an unhappy mechanic. If you need work doing to your bike, this is probably something to bear in mind!
There you have it! Straight from the beer-kissed lips of our expert.
