New year, fresh gears: Why winter is prime time for bike maintenance

PARK CITY, Utah — We’re all guilty of riding our trail bikes and then putting them away dirty. As with any endeavor in our lives, on and off the trail, maintenance can be a struggle to get on the calendar (and doesn’t always mean the work will get done), which is why March is the first, and last, repair stop for many enthusiasts.

In a rush, the bike appears from cold storage with excessive chain lube and Cedar City road-salt deposited 4 months earlier. Arriving at the bike shop, snow falling outside, there’s a queue of trail-loving, fun-havers thinking the same thing: “My bike needs love and I can’t ride it like this.”

That’s when the momentum blurs to a stop. Instead of packing for Southern Utah, bikes are lined up with countless others at the shop, which is still on a winter skeleton crew. Along the Wasatch Back, many bike technicians are still mounting skis and prepping next season’s Super G race boards. It’s a challenging time of year for bike shops and bike owners alike.

Look for Winter Deals

At Trek Heber City, they maintain a winter special, according to Manager Tori Broughton. Last year’s was a $50 savings on certain maintenance packages, so look for that at your favorite shop. If you can get ahead of the curve on repairs in January or February, the shop guys will be grateful for the work, and you’ll be grateful your bike is 100% come March (and not on a 2-3 week queue) as you pack up for Richfield’s red-dirt.

A host of bike technicians, who ride and fix bikes (and eat bike-shaped cereal for breakfast) would love to see more repairs when it’s snowing. Mickell Nagel, a Trek Mechanic and Utah native, recommends to riders that, “Winter storage starts with a full tune minus tire sealant,” indicating that it’s best to add sealant when the riding starts. Mickell added, “A lot of bikes need a fifty-hour suspension service at the end of the season, and that’s one of those things they could do going into winter, as well as a tune.”

While You Were Skiing Pow

End of season tunes help identify problems that could be remedied during the off-season, so it’s already done. For instance, if you have a Specialized Epic Brain, the rear suspension unit cannot be serviced many places. This can take months during the riding season. A broken or frayed cable, or a dead battery, could ruin that first ride on the trip south!

While they bring the machine to life, lubricants break down and cause problems. Over time, they become waxy, and the tiny moving parts inside shifters, hubs, and suspension that rely on oils and grease to work smoothly, begin exhibiting internal stickiness. Shimano shifters can altogether stop working and will need service.

Suspension degrades and can make for rough rides. Some of you may remember the squeal from Mavic’s rear hub at high speed, the result of a dried-out, waxy oil seal.
Seals also oxidize and break down, secreting an oily mess. In our dry climate, seals can easily have a shorter service life. Remember, if oil is getting out, dirt and water are getting in.

Taking it one step further, and technically not a lubricant, hydraulic oils found in forks and brakes thicken and oxidize rapidly from factors like pressure and heat. Blackening is a characteristic mechanics have seen during a Shimano brake system flush. It indicates increased corrosivity. As a result, infrequent brake bleeds on these systems can destroy the seals that allow pressure accumulation, which is required for braking.

Winter Slumber

While the bike should be clean, and a tune-up would serve it well, I recommend tucking your bike into its winter quilt having freshened up hydraulics to avoid internal damage from degraded fluid. Ask your mechanic to note anything else you ought to do, because there is often a lot more. You’ll get ahead in the off-season, riding smooth, quiet, and worry-free in the on-season.

Put the bike first this New Year.