This year, scholarships will be available to 32 applicants in the U.S, U.S. territories, and Canada. Individuals who identify as women, transgender, non-binary, gender non-conforming, two-spirit, or intersex individuals are eligible to apply. The chosen recipients will further their education in bike mechanics by attending our Professional Repair and Shop Operations Course in February of 2020.  This scholarship and QBP/UBI partnership was born of the belief that the bicycle industry...

 "John Kim created this blog, Virtuous Cycle. He used to live in Los Angeles and loved riding that unexpectedly awesome city for exploration via bike, but has traded in city living for the Green Mountains of Vermont! When he’s not out for a ride, he uses his expertise in Corporate Social Responsibility to help companies do well by doing good. Find him at [email protected], VirtCyc on twitter or instagram, and work John at LinkedIn." How /...

In addition to "commercially pure" titanium (often called “CP” or grade 2), there are two common alloys used in the bike industry; they are grade 5, (often called “six, four” because it’s 6% aluminum, 4% vanadium), and grade 9 (often called “three, two, five” because it’s 3% aluminum, 2.5% vanadium). The use of each material on a frame generally corresponds with their specific properties, or characteristics.   Grade 9 was originally produced for hydraulic systems in the aerospace industry...

Athletes from around the globe were selected by their national cycling governing body to represent their country. Some are supported by trade teams and personal sponsors throughout the season, but this week they ride with their national flag and colors adorning their race kit. Custom paint jobs, custom helmets and one-off gear all make this event even more special. "For me to be selected to work as a team mechanic for USA Cycling, focusing on the downhill athletes is a huge honor." I have had...

Disclaimer: UBI is neither a tool manufacturer nor retailer of tools. The following discussion is not in any way intended to promote any one type or brand of tool over another. All designs have some strengths and weaknesses. The purpose of this discussion is to help identify those when considering if a given tool is right for you or not. Tools (Multi-tools vs. Dedicated/shop tools): A “shop” tool typically lives in the shop and is a dedicated tool with one (or maybe two) functions. Shop tools...

BV: What do you do for work? JS: I am half of the team at Ponderosa Cyclery + Tour, doing more and more wrenching every day, helping to coordinate our monthly campouts, lead a biweekly WTF ride, and be friendly and helpful to the people that walk in the door. I'm also part-time Program Coordinator at the Community Bike Project, a non-profit space with free open shop hours, earn-a-bike programs, and cool collaborations with other local non-profits. In my downtime I get to tinker with...

I drove my truck up Mt Hood about an hour outside of Portland, rolling through potholes, wondering if I’d even know if I were headed the wrong direction. I’m exceptional at getting lost, top notch really. Well, at least the views weren’t terrible! I arrived at the gravel pit, anxious about time, but still 10 minutes early. As other folks started to roll in, I realized that I was middle of the pack, but still had a lot to take care off. As I pulled out my totes with all of my clothes, tent,...

  We all have that moment of selling a bike to a customer and the last thing we want to do is remind them that it needs basic things like charging or service or that they should be mindful of other cyclists. We are all about making sure that they enjoy the ride but many times we do our customers a disservice by not reminding them of these things. I'm still unsure if it's actually our responsibility to do so, being that typically the purchasers in this situation are consenting adults....

E-bikes are not just for Europe anymore. There were a ton of companies from large to small displaying, and test riding, all categories of e-bikes. Bosch, Shimano, Yamaha, and Specialized all have well developed center drive motors with the Bosch, and Shimano motors being utilized by many frame manufacturers. Yamaha has bikes under their own name and supplies motors to Giant bicycles as well.  Specialized has a proprietary system only used on their own brand. It would actually be easier to...

Keep your fork and shock clean. After each ride it is a good idea to wipe clean, the stanchion tubes of the fork and either the damper body of an air shock or the damper shaft of a coil shock. Pay particular attention to the areas around the dust wipers. Try not to let debris build up around these areas as the ingress of contaminants into the fork and shock will accelerate wear not only on the dust wipers but more importantly on parts that will be costly to replace. Routine maintenance should...