7 Essential Trailside Maintenance Skills You Need To Know

Looking after your bike is an important skill to learn. These maintenance skills could last you a lifetime, and help both you and other riders in need. Anna Cipullo has created a list of 7 essential trailside maintenance skills every rider should know. Using these skills will also help keep you safe, save you money on big repair bills, and help get you home!

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⏱️ Timestamps ⏱️
00:00 - Intro
00:23 - Fixing a loose headset
03:17 - Fixing a bent rotor
05:55 - Adjusting a derailleur
09:06 - Adjusting spokes
11:11 - Remove your chain
13:59 - Fix a broken chain
19:28 - Lubricating chain

Useful Links:

Do you have any maintenance tips and tricks that you think are essential? Please share them in the comments below! 👇

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[Nein_doch_oooh]

I live in the hottest region of Europe in Spain. Right now, we have boiling temperatures. The thing is, we basically have no shade here. Trees are a rare sight. It never rains and everything is dry like in a desert. When I go solo biking in the mountains, every mistake could be my last one. So I really have to be prepared. Most of the guys here go biking in the morning or in the evening, when it's only 35 degrees or something. 😂 Last time I had to push my bike back to the car. It was a 10ish kilometer hike back, with temperatures of 42 degrees. I broke my handlebar, so I couldn't ride my bike back to the car. It was horrible. Simply terrifying. On my hike back to the car, I've haven't seen a single person, ...

[Turbalt]

Just want to say these are solid videos, approachable, basic but absolutely critical. Must watching for any rider new or old.

[AmvC]

Babywipes are a nice addition to the ridepack to clean up you hands afterwards. That, and nitrils, of course :) burning eyes can lead to dangerous situations.

[charlesb]

I bought a Topeak alien 3 mulitool years ago, one of the best tools I've ever seen for cycling. You could pretty much build an entire bike, ground up with the exception of refacing bearing surfaces lol

[royvandijk]

Really recommend (hot) waxing your chain. Not just for the performance, but also for much less messy hands when you need to do some tinkering on the go

[MrMORITU]

I say YES to Anna and Her social programming skills, haha :D

[semadragun]

These tips were fantastic thanks so much.
Loved how you disconnected the chain with a rock! 😃😎

[theanimaster]

I love the H for hardest and L for largest explanation! I ALWAYS get this mixed up when using “high” and “low”

[IslandFilmMaker]

Good refresher for me, and picked up some really good NEW TIPS! Glad you decided to do it out on the trail. You should get a free manicure from GMBN for this 😘 Well done Anna!

[Emtbtoday]

My brand new 203mm ice techs are doing that rubbing front and rear (Brand new bike) but has to be the callaper on the new bikes slightly off job for Sunday I'll be having a fun day of it! 😂

[smithandshortdogs]

Alternative to the rock trick for those less dexterous:

Lace a string or zip tie around the quick link. Slide a stick through the string. Twist the stick like you are toghtening a combat torniquet. Link will pop open.

Way less chance of missing and gouging up a sideplate, your crankset or your fingers if you have my levels of coordination.

[ChristianPareATLAS]

Good video. Didn't knew the rock trick 😅

[reefbloke]

Little bit of visual confusion there with the link direction as although Anna points towards the direction of forwards travel from her perspective she’s pointing towards the rear of the bike from our perspective so don’t watch the direction she points to just point the link arrow towards the forks when it’s at the top of the chains travel ( above the chain stay ) .

[Jarymut]

I have a more important question. At 2:55, Garmin mount, what is it? Do you like it? Would you recommend it?

[JonLong]

Great tips! However, the directions for a headset adjustment seem like a good way to over compress the headset bearings. You will over compress the bearings way before you start to pull the star nut out of the fork. You want to tighten just to the point where you no longer feel movement or hear knocking when testing the headset as described.

[LaurentiusTriarius]

If you have a TRP derailleur and you want to rock strike your chain don't forget to open up the "hall lock".

[smithandshortdogs]

Unless you are at a mechanical level where you do not need this video DO NOT do the limit screw adjustment trail side if you have an electronic grouproupset. There is a better than even chance you will burnout your derailleur (possibly also the battery) if you switch into the last gear and the servo fights to move against the limit screw.

[Velo]

I have never heard of replacing a rotor if you have to bend it back into shape. And I have reshaped mine without ever replacing it.

[OriginalTrev]

13:27 Anna doesn't wax her chain?? Luckily she carries blue roll on the trails

[TommiHonkonen]

my disaster atm is that i bought myself some cool new 1x10 cues stuffs and then im like 😐😐 because i have a fatbike and the bottom bracket is wider so the cues crank set dont be fitting. Managed to botch it together with the old crank though. Looking to extend the cues crank if i cant find a suitable set otherwise.