by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
As predicted here the bicycle mechanic is making a comeback and this is rather good to see too. Too many bikes end up thrown – or at least did before the recession hit – because people have no idea of even how to fix a flat tire.
It could be said that in many place Bike Mechanics are becoming the new Doctors in that it is extremely hard to get an appointment with one to get one's bike fixed.
Bicycles are suddenly the in form of transport for many and we are seeing more and more people cycling to work. Most, however, lack the basic skills to fix anything on the bike. Some even lack the skill, it would seem, to clean and oil it.
Hence bike mechanics are stretched to their limits as there are also many poor old bikes being put back into action that have not seen the outside of a garage for many, many years.
In Toronto in Canada the trade association and the Learning Enrichment Foundation are doing something about it now, and have launched the The Bicycle Assembly and Maintenance Program to train out-of-work youths to fix and assemble bikes.
It would be good to see programs like that put in place also in other countries, such as Britain, for instance.
It is estimated that many who leave the training courses proposed will walk right into a job as there are about 50 to 100 openings for bike mechanics each year in the Greater Toronto Area.
It is an eight week program with hands-on training, taking place in bike shops, though, as someone commented "Its a bike. It doesn't take 8 weeks to figure out how to fix a bike."
Such comments, however, show how few people actually understand what it takes to fix a bicycle properly. It is not JUST a bike. I wonder how many have ever done more than repair a puncture who say things like that.
It does take time to teach out-of-work kids how to do handle a job, and you cannot put a bike together in a hurry or learn how to do it properly so that it is true and safe in a rush. It takes time to learn how to do things right.
Most of those that were enrolled were referred by community organizations and schools, but anyone can sign up. Several more course are scheduled.
The first week is an orientation to make sure all of the 10 to 15 participants are serious; then comes the hands-on training.
The students, most between the ages of 18 and 25, will learn the basics such as fixing flats and brakes, and assembling new models – chores that are "bread and butter for stores", so we are told.
May one suggest that other skills are taught too, such as the replacing of crackshafts and crankshaft bearings, adjusting gears, especially the Shimano kind which can, to be honest, a bit of a handful, and do need so knowledge as to how to do it properly.
In addition to that there are many other jobs at bicycles that require more than just a few minutes of watching someone do it. Replacing the rear wheel cassette, for instance, is one of those jobs.
Let's hope we get more bike mechanics via good training courses for the young unemployed – and not just the young ones – so that we can get cycled repaired rather than dumped at the recycling centers for no more a problem than a flat tire.
© 2009
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