​A new week means a brand new Mechanic Monday feature to share! Today we are excited to introduce you to Matt Merullo of Riverside, California!
 
For those of you who are unfamiliar with PBMA’s Mechanic Monday series, this is where we feature one mechanic each week who is chosen randomly from the pool of nominations that we receive. Mechanic Monday is all about mechanics supporting fellow mechanics, and we are proud to partner with Abbey Bike Tools, Cycling Industry News, and People for Bikes to share these great features with you.
 
Matt Merullo got his start as a bicycle mechanic by helping out in local shops in his home state of Connecticut as a teenager. After college, Matt literally worked his way across the country, going bike shop to bike shop, until he ended up as the Service Manager at Jenson USA in Riverside, California. A journey like that doesn’t come without stories – and we are happy to let Matt share his with you in his own words!
 
 
PBMA:  How did you become involved in cycling and/or cycling mechanics?
 
MM:  At any early age I remember my Dad bringing home clapped-out mountain bikes that he picked up free at the local drop off center. These bikes were in rough shape much of the time; however, they were some of my first victims. I would swap parts, ditch parts, or add parts, [and I would] just mix and match trying to piece the together the raddest assortment of random parts. I say “rad” but what I really mean is 3x8, freewheels, bar ends, and caliper brakes. My Dad took me mountain biking for my first times, and from there, the progression of riding and wrenching never really stopped. I was always a tinkerer with things a kid and bikes were no different. As I got older the toys got bigger: RC race cars, Jet skis, Jeeps, and bikes never left. Getting my driver’s license meant I always had a ride to the bike park. Diablo (now Mountain Creek New Jersey) was the closest to me growing up in Connecticut. Life was snowboards in the winter and either bikes or the lake in the summer, and that’s how it was for a long time. Then I went and got a Bachelor’s Degree in Outdoor Education and Johnson State College in Vermont. During those four years, I spent each summer working at various retail shops with in the resort town of Stowe. I loved being the “shop guy.” The final summer, I was fortunate enough to get my break in the bike industry.
 
From the earliest days walking into the bike shop with my Dad, I could picture myself working behind the service counter. In the spring of 2014, I reached out to all the bikes shops in town hoping to land a job. Well, with no bike shop experience on the resume it was a challenge to be considered. Then a buddy referred me to the owner of the Nordic Barn in Stowe. They had a rental fleet of Jamis hybrids that got heavily used during the tourist seasons in town. What was super exciting is they had just hired the best mechanic in town [as a] partner, and had a new bike shop on bottom floor of the building. With the new shop came new brands; Intense and Rocky Mountain bikes were flooding the shops that summer. With good recommendations from various shop owners in town, I was hired on as one of two bike mechanics of Mansfield Cycles. I was greener then green, but I listened, observed, followed instruction and had the best experience of my working career that summer. From there, I moved across the country and began working at of the best bike shops in SoCal. It’s been bikes all day every day since then, and I couldn’t be more stoked to work in this industry.
 
 
PBMA:  Do you have a favorite moment or story from your time in the cycling industry?
 
MM:  It’s hard to put a finger on a favorite moment over the past five years in the industry. Something special about being a bicycle mechanic is the fact that you can truly make someone’s day each day you’re at the shop. There’s always the spare part or piece in the back, a labor charge on the house, or the extra ten minutes you can spend cleaning someone’s bike (even if you know it’s going right back to being a garage ornament). It’s the little things that sometimes go the furthest with our customers. Some of these decisions have led to me having great working relationships with so many great members of the cycling community.
 
 
PBMA:  What motivation or advice would you give to aspiring professional bicycle mechanics?
 
MM:  Take advantage of all your resources! Today, so many companies have unbelievably awesome service documents and even videos to help you become an expert on their product. Many of the same [companies] offer technical training at both internal and external events and some will even come to you for a more intimate educational experience for you and your shop. Don’t hesitate to ask questions, call the tech centers, and use your dealer services.
 
The online training modules are gold. I feel this is truly some of the best industry education out there. Take your time with these. Don’t feel like you need to rush through and cheat yourself out answers just to hit your completion goals. These videos and quizzes are in place for you to learn and better your career in the industry, take advantage of that!
 
 
PBMA:  What is your favorite tool?
 
MM:  Someone once told me you can judge a good mechanic by the number of homemade tools they use. My favorite must be my nipple driver. It’s just a black j-bend spoke folded up into a nice ergonomic shape with a brass nipple thread on backward and crimped, leaving just a few threads exposed. It the best for wheel builds!
 
 
That’s all for this week! Thank you for following along with our series and sharing our support for our fellow mechanics. We’ll be back next week with a new feature. In the meantime, we are still in need of nominations!! You don’t need to be a PBMA Member to nominate or be featured! (All that we ask is for no self-nominations, please.) Click here to learn more about our 2018 Mechanic Monday series, and here to learn more about how to nominate your favorite mechanic!

Anthony Trujillo is no stranger to the wrench, working for major suspension manufacturers since the late 90's he's been in the trenches and now produces tools for mechanics with an emphasis on suspension.

How did you get started in the cycling industry?
I obtained my BS in Mechanical Engineering from California State University (Chico) in 1997 and focused most of my efforts for an entry level position in outdoor sports from golf to bike racks. I lucked out having a friend who was doing a summer internship at FOX in the Powersports Division which he had no interest in pursuing.  He gave my info to the Engineering Managers for Off-Road/Bike and Powersports and I went on two-bike ride interviews at the end of '97 and was hired in early '98.  I spent the first year and a half in the Powersports division and then transferred to the bike department after a managerial shakeup.

Bikes on dirt have always been my #1! Thanks to older brothers, I was thrown on the BMX track when I was like 5, in 1977.  Growing up with older cousins and uncles who liked 4x4 camping trips, I grew up happily getting dirty, wheelin', and riding dirt bikes.  I think it was 1986 when I got my first mountain bike.  I focused in on suspension while I was getting my degree because it seemed the hardest and best use of the degree in the cycling industry.  Despite some serious downs, I've been grateful and stoked for most all of my cycling industry experiences.

You have worked (or done work) for some major brands, tell us about the various roles and how they build upon one another.
Yeah, I've seen and done a bit too much to cover it all!  It's been a blessing and a curse what I've seen and done.  Starting my career as an entry level mechanical engineer with close to nine years at FOX allowed me to grow and learn in an environment that required me to wear many hats supporting multiple departments.  I took care of BOM's (a complete build list for a product consisting of all the individual parts, SKU's sourcing...), generated 2-D drawings for all the departments, and was the resident IT guy during the first few years, then adding on circuit and chassis design once in the bike department.

I remember well when FOX bicycle rear shocks were only OEM and still have the internal document communicating to the company that hiring Mike McAndrews (you can read "Mick's" interview by clicking his name) did not mean fox was going into the fork business... HAHA Right!

The direct hands-on experience I had with manufacturing and production departments under the same roof was invaluable.  Working directly with Bob Fox, Mick and John Marking wasn't so bad either.  For most of my time at FOX, there were only two of us engineers for shocks and two for forks.  I learned a lot from those others guys!

Specialized (SBC) had been working on their integrated suspension department for just a couple years before I was brought over to that amazing team.  Mick at the lead with Brian Lampman working solely on SBC forks and Fernando Hernandez as in-house machining and suspension technician.  I came in to essentially fix the SBC brand shocks and design/develop new ones. It was an amazing opportunity to work with a completely new clean slate and with frame engineers.  The micro brain chassis and circuit layout for the Epic is something I'm quite proud of and which SBC still uses today.

SBC was my full court press experience working with Taiwan for manufacturing and production.  It was great to be on the OEM side of the fence to understand that perspective from one of the major bike companies.  These experiences helped me later wearing a sales hat for X Fusion (XF) and Marzocchi.

X Fusion is another suspension name that many readers will recognize.  Tell us about your time there.
My time at X Fusion was a result of a long history with them as a supplier for parts to FOX and being the sole supplier to the SBC brand of shocks.  Their products had slowly improved over a decade and after raising their quality level while at SBC, I was happy to work with them and help move their product to a higher level.  It was great to provide them with a new look and line of shocks and improve their forks so they could compete in the higher end market. I am most proud of designing the Vector Air DH shock while at XF. 

Tell us about OSO, how did this come about?
I started Off Street Only (OSO) in ’11 as a sole proprietor in an attempt to take what I learned from FOX, SBC, and XF to support anyone who would hire me.  It did work out for the most part quite well for six years!  It was the last four years contracting for FOX, while super grateful, I was banging my head against the wall seeing what products were coming out from all the companies in the mtb industry.  The marketing seemed to be above the engineering in many cases and, along with other factors, I had that building energy of ‘WTF, do your own products already!’ and I just couldn’t ignore it any longer.  That, plus the timing of my long-time friend and ex-coworker, Vincent Chen, asking me to get in the bike biz with him. He’s the owner/founder of Racing Bros out of Taiwan and they are doing quite well on the Powersports side of things.  Together I expect we can produce what we know can be achieved with our coupled experience.  I decided to take the leap and go all in and incorporated OSO in ’17. 

OSO is still new with much more to come. Currently the Global Headquarters are happily my garage!  Right now we have a range of fork and shock dyno's that are designed to make suspension work easier at the manufacturer, service and shop levels.

What's so special about a shock dyno?  Why would a shop want to invest in one?
This is something I took for granted, a shock hand dyno is pretty much a must have for every suspension company's R&D lab and production line.  With a trained arm, you can quickly and easily diagnose a shock for errors and or check that it was built correctly.  You will see every service center and suspension race trailer with one too.  I understand if a shop doesn't do air sleeve maintenance, they might not be interested in one for the service area.

If they do, and want to do a good shock review and ever get into the damper, they would need a hand dyno.  Having the shock on a dyno allows you to feel any issues without it being masked by tires, linkage, drivetrain and awkward seat pushes. The shock dyno will also last a long time. My plan is to update mounts to fit new products as they become available.  Having used many variations of a hand dyno for two decades, I thought it was best to offer my own designs to the masses.

What's your favorite tool... you can't say a hand dyno!?
Oh... easy.  Digital caliper.  I am always reaching for my calipers.  Whether I'm designing parts on my computer or putting parts together in the lab.  Always within reach to either measure something or gain a visual reference on a feature.

***PBMA Technical Workshops registration now includes an entry to win a Shock Hand Dyno from Anthony and OSO... click here for details***

​Happy Mechanic Monday, everyone! We are excited to introduce you to this week’s honoree, Paul Dunlap of San Diego, California!
 
For those of you who are unfamiliar with PBMA’s Mechanic Monday series, this is where we feature one mechanic each week who is chosen randomly from the pool of nominations that we receive. Mechanic Monday is all about mechanics supporting fellow mechanics, and we are proud to partner with Abbey Bike Tools, Cycling Industry News, and People for Bikes to share these great features with you.
 
Paul is a California native, but his cycling story has roots all over North America. A software engineer by trade, Paul was a bike commuter for many years before he made the switch to full-time bicycle mechanic. It’s a pretty drastic switch, but Paul pulled it of seamlessly; he identified a need in the SoCal cycling market, and he set out to meet that need – and he is now the proud owner/operator of VeloFix San Diego! Of course there is more to Paul’s story than a spontaneous career change, but we will let him share that with you in his own words!
 
 
PBMA:  How did you become involved in cycling and/or cycling mechanics? 
 
PD:  I've always been a cyclist and had a renewed appreciation/interest in the last 10 years. I commuted by road bike to a software job for 8 years and put in at least 150 miles per week. I had many times where I'd get to work and have a broken spoke, broken component, etc. I thought it would be very convenient if I could have a mobile bike mechanic come service my bike while I was at work. Thus, I reached out to Velofix in Vancouver, BC and worked to bring Velofix to North San Diego County.
 
PBMA:  Do you have a favorite moment or story from your time in the cycling industry? 
 
PD:  One of my favorite stories has to do with my discovery of Velofix. My younger son and I made a habit of riding every mountain stage of the Tour of California the morning of the stage. In 2015, we climbed Mt. Baldy, arriving a couple hours before the pro teams. There was snow surrounding the roadway and it was very brisk at the top. We bought many coffees from the 10 Speed coffee trailer, but kept trying to stay warm. The best way to do this was to do hill repeats up and down the final (steep 15% gradient) 2k of the climb. We kept passing a Velofix demo van that was parked on the side of the road/route. I kept seeing the van and it made quite an impression. Fast forward 6 months and I was a Velofix territory owner!
 
PBMA:  What motivation or advice would you give to aspiring professional bicycle mechanics? 
 
PD:  Being a bike mechanic has never been a better opportunity. The days of the bike mechanic being stuck in the back of the shop are slowly waning. With electronic shifting, high tech suspension systems, and bike customization opportunities, a solid bike mechanic is becoming a specialist role. With this comes increased responsibilities and monetary reward. Take advantage of industry training, vendor training, and stay up to date on any new technologies. The bike mechanic is one occupation that will not be replaced with machine!
 
PBMA:  What is your favorite tool?
 
PD:  My favorite tool has to be the Park Blue CP-1 Cassette Pliers. I work a lot of races and organized rides (Gran Fondos, centuries, etc.) and this tool is so handy to quickly remove cassettes for replacement, spoke repairs, and freewheel/pawl repairs.
 
 
That’s all for this week! Thank you for following along with our series and sharing our support for our fellow mechanics. We’ll be back next week with a new feature. In the meantime, we are still in need of nominations!! You don’t need to be a PBMA Member to nominate or be featured! (All that we ask is for no self-nominations, please.) Click here to learn more about our 2018 Mechanic Monday series, and here to learn more about how to nominate your favorite mechanic!

​We are back after what seemed like a far-too-short weekend, and we are especially excited to share our first-ever double-feature Mechanic Monday with you! This week’s honorees are two of the coolest and kindest people in the entire Midwest cycling scene: Rawny Semba and Mary Elizabeth of Chicago, Illinois!
 
For those of you who are unfamiliar with PBMA’s Mechanic Monday series, this is where we feature one mechanic each week who is chosen randomly from the pool of nominations that we receive. Mechanic Monday is all about mechanics supporting fellow mechanics, and we are proud to partner with Abbey Bike Tools, Cycling Industry News, and People for Bikes to share these great features with you.
 
Rawny and Mary were nominated as a couple, but we want to emphasize that they are each a talented mechanic in their own right. We reached out to Rawny and Mary separately and received their approval to feature them together. And we’ll be honest – theirs is one of the most fun interviews we’ve done so far for this series!
 
Rawny is primarily a race mechanic; he works with LOOK Neutral Support during road season and the Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld.com pro team during cyclocross season. He focuses his time on road and ‘cross now, but Rawny’s first love in cycling was BMX as a kid. As he grew up, he took on more challenging adventures in bike touring and camping. Some combination of BMX tricks and camping in the dirt must have helped Rawny develop a special skillset for cyclocross – he is a favorite mechanic of the Cannondale team, and was an integral part of Stephen Hyde’s two National Championship wins in 2017 and 2018.
 
When he’s not on the road, Rawny can be found turning wrenches at Tailwind Cycles in Chicago. Rawny enjoys his time at the shop just as much as his time on the road; he uses each one to refine his skillset for the other. For example, Rawny works with new cyclists and Juniors at the shop, and he applies that “mentoring” experience to support the Cannondale development team during ‘cross season. Likewise, Rawny’s work on the race circuit has taught him an unparalleled level of attention to detail, and he brings that same professionalism and skill to his day-to-day work at the shop.
 
Mary is the go-to mechanic at Boulevard Bikes in Chicago, where she’s worked for the past eight years. Eight years can seem like an eternity in an industry with such high turn-over of service staff, but Mary’s perspective on life in a bike shop is something that even the most veteran mechanics can learn from. Simply put, she “[takes] great pleasure in making peoples’ bikes feel great, whether it’s setting them up to crush a race or overhauling their old touring bike.”
 
Mary is also a race mechanic with LOOK Neutral Support. Her favorite events to support are criteriums, but she’s the first to admit that it’s hard for her to sit on the sidelines (even as a mechanic in the middle of the chaos) and not be out in the field racing. And Mary is a pretty great racer – even if she is pretty modest about her success! She started racing around the time she was volunteering with a bike co-op that eventually hired her as a full-time mechanic. The bike co-op is also where Mary learned “how to make stuff work with limited resources” – a skill that has proved invaluable to her as a race mechanic.
 
The “favorite tool” debate with these two is a tough one to settle, so we’ll call it a draw for now. Rawny didn’t hesitate to call out the EV3 Mulfinger because it makes lacing up wheels much easier. Mary couldn’t decide between her VAR16 lockring tool and her Felco cable cutters. Honestly, you can’t go wrong with any of the three they picked!
 
 
That’s all for this week! Thank you for following along with our series and sharing our support for our fellow mechanics. We’ll be back next week with a new feature. In the meantime, we are still in need of nominations!! You don’t need to be a PBMA Member to nominate or be featured! (All that we ask is for no self-nominations, please.) Click here to learn more about our 2018 Mechanic Monday series, and here to learn more about how to nominate your favorite mechanic!

​Happy Mechanic Monday, everyone! We are excited to introduce you to this week’s honoree, Marzhel Pinto of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by way of Mexico!
 
For those of you who are unfamiliar with PBMA’s Mechanic Monday series, this is where we feature one mechanic each week who is chosen randomly from the pool of nominations that we receive. Mechanic Monday is all about mechanics supporting fellow mechanics, and we are proud to partner with Abbey Bike Tools, Cycling Industry News, and People for Bikes to share these great features with you.
 
Marzhel Pinto is new to the world of race mechanics, but a veteran of the cycling industry. He found his niche in a cycling community while he was in college, and he has never looked back! Marzhel was born and raised in Mexico, but lives and works in Philadelphia today.
 
 
At Marzhel’s request, we are proud to share his interview with you bilingually – in English and Spanish (his native language).
 
A pedido de Marzhel, nos enorgullece compartir su entrevista bilingüe – en Inglés y en Español.
                                                                                                                                                                                           
 
PBMA:  How did you become involved in cycling and/or cycling mechanics?
 
PBMA:  ¿Cómo te involucraste en la bicicleta y / o la mecánica de ciclismo?
 
MP:  When I was in college I joined a rag-tag group of fellow nerds. They had just started to run a bike kitchen out of the farmer's market on campus. Having always been mechanically inclined I joined and was instantly hooked. That lead to my first apprenticeship cleaning floors and parts bins at a shop and, well, now I'm a USAC Certified Race Mechanic. I recently worked for Neutral Sans Frontierès at Tour of Gila. With hard work, dedication, and some luck anything is possible.
 
MP:  Cuando estaba en la universidad, me uní a un grupo de compañeros nerds. Dirigieron una cocina para bicicletas fuera del mercado de agricultores en el campus. Siempre estuve interesado en la mecánica, así que me uní y quedé cautivado al instante. Eso me llevó a mi primer aprendizaje limpiando pisos y papeleras en una tienda. Ahora soy un mecánico de carrera certificado. Recientemente trabajé para soporte neutral en el Tour de Gila. Con mucho trabajo, dedicación y algo de suerte, todo es posible.
 
 
PBMA:  Do you have a favorite moment or story from your time in the cycling industry?
 
PBMA:  ¿Tiene un momento o historia favorita de su tiempo en la industria del ciclismo?
 
MP:  Rubbing elbows with industry veterans at the DC PBMA Clinic is up there. By far the USAC Race Mechanic's clinic is my favorite moment ever. Having Calvin (from Park Tool) sing to us about tubular glue was the best.
 
MP:  ¡La clínica de Race Mechanic es mi momento favorito porque Calvin (de Park Tool) nos cantó sobre pegamento tubular!
 
 
PBMA:  What motivation or advice would you give to an aspiring professional bicycle mechanic?
 
PBMA:  ¿Qué motivación o consejo le darías a un aspirante a mecánico profesional de bicicletas?
 
MP:  My advice to aspiring [people of color] professional bicycle mechanics is to not let the lack of diversity and representation get you down. Don't let the words and actions of misguided individuals lead you astray from your goals. My biggest piece of advice would have to come from Brett Flemming [of EVT] himself. At the DC PBMA Clinic, he told us to always retain the mindset of a student. Always be thirsty for knowledge and don't let your ego get in the way of anything.
 
MP:  Mi consejo es que no dejes que la falta de diversidad y representación te desanime. No permita que las palabras y acciones de personas equivocadas lo desvíen de sus objetivos. Siempre conserva la mentalidad de un estudiante. Busca el conocimiento y no dejes que tu ego se interponga en tu camino.
 
 
PBMA:  What is your favorite tool?
 
PBMA:  ¿Cual es tu herramienta favorita?
 
MP:  The Campagnolo 15mm "Peanut Butter Wrench" is my sentimental favorite. It's the first tool I picked up and realized how important purpose driven designed tools were.
 
MP:  La llave de mantequilla de maní Campagnolo es mi favorita sentimental. Es la primera herramienta que recogí y cuando aprendí lo importante que son las herramientas especializadas.
 
 
That’s all for this week! Thank you for following along with our series and sharing our support for our fellow mechanics. We’ll be back next week with a new feature. In the meantime, we are still in need of nominations!! You don’t need to be a PBMA Member to nominate or be featured! (All that we ask is for no self-nominations, please.) Click here to learn more about our 2018 Mechanic Monday series, and here to learn more about how to nominate your favorite mechanic!

​Welcome back to Mechanic Monday! We took a two-week break at the end of June to build our queue of interviews, and we are excited to share a brand new feature with you today. This week’s honoree is Lane Herrick of Westlake Village, California!
 
For those of you who are unfamiliar with PBMA’s Mechanic Monday series, this is where we feature one mechanic each week who is chosen randomly from the pool of nominations that we receive. Mechanic Monday is all about mechanics supporting fellow mechanics, and we are proud to partner with Abbey Bike Tools, Cycling Industry News, and People for Bikes to share these great features with you.
 
Lane Herrick is a neutral support mechanic, team mechanic, shop mechanic, and all-around good human. He worked in shops all over the country and with teams all over the world, before finding his home at Win’s Wheels in Westlake Village, California. We caught up with Lane to learn more about his time in the world of cycling, and hear some of his “legendary” stories firsthand. Here is some of what he had to say, in his own words!
 
 
PBMA:  How did you become involved in cycling and/or cycling mechanics?
                                                                                                                                                                         
LH:  Like many other cyclists, I got started as a mechanic by working on my own bike from a very young age. I hung out in bike shops and read every magazine I could get my hands on. I worked in shops after high school and a bit in college, all while racing and working on my own bike. In the fall of '98, my buddy Maynard and I were having coffee and he told me about life on the road with the traveling circus of the racing circuit; I was hooked. I went to the Mechanic's Clinic in Colorado Springs that winter and immediately went to volunteer with Mavic at Sea Otter, Redlands, the Cascade Classic, and Altoona. I was lucky enough to go to The Powerbar Women's Cycling classic with a women's team which stands out as a terrific memory. I moved across country and held positions in various shops in NYC and Brooklyn from sales, to Assistant Manager, to Manager, and finally Service Manager. When I moved back to California I was Service Manager in several shops before finally finding my home at Win's Wheels. It was here that I finally learned how to be a professional mechanic. I've learned more here in the past three years than I ever knew from wrenching in previous positions.
 
 
PBMA:  Do you have a favorite moment or story from your time in the cycling industry?
 
LH:  I was volunteering with Mavic at Redlands on the Fontana Time Trial course in '99. It was pretty busy and it was really my first time working with Mavic; I was fairly excited and nervous. Jeannie Longo came up with a pair of wheels and asked me to swap cassettes for her. I was a bit starstruck and since the cassette she was asking me to remove was on an aluminum freehub body, it was a real challenge getting it off. I finally got it off after fighting and getting more and more nervous because I'm trying to do it efficiently while she was watching me and slammed the cassette on and gave it to her. She very politely pointed out that I had removed and installed the exact same cassette.
 
 
PBMA:  What motivation or advice would you give to an aspiring professional bicycle mechanic?
 
LH:  Take every opportunity to learn something new; there are so many professional educational seminars and classes - jump on it.
 
 
PBMA:  What is your favorite tool?
 
LH:  Enduro Bearings Hub and Pivot Bearing Press Tool BRT-005.
 
 
That’s all for this week! Thank you for following along with our series and sharing our support for our fellow mechanics. We’ll be back next week with a new feature. In the meantime, we are still in need of nominations!! You don’t need to be a PBMA Member to nominate or be featured! (All that we ask is for no self-nominations, please.) Click here to learn more about our 2018 Mechanic Monday series, and here to learn more about how to nominate your favorite mechanic!