Mechanic Monday p/b Abbey Bike Tools

#mechanicmonday honors Marzhel Pinto

​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!