Cannoli Friday

If you haven't heard, Fridays are pretty awesome around here. It started months ago when friend, lawyer, local bikelebrity and safe biking enasthusit, Josh, brought a box of cannolis from Modern Pastry to the shop to share. Since then we've been observing Cannoli Friday nearly every week. Except last week.

This week, Cannoli Friday is back, and we're putting it to good use. We'll be collecting donations for The One Fund Boston. Stop by this afternoon (after 4pm-ish) for a delicious pastry and good company and give a few bucks to help our neighbors.

"I can't wait for this week to be over."

You said it, Springfield NBC affiliate reporter.

The last seven days been stressful scary awful. In both a small and big picture way. For me, they started with a broken thumb last Friday (yes, it was bike related and yes, it's hard to work without a thumb). Then Erich broke his arm, reducing the Hub Bicycle Mechanic Team down to two working right arms. I want nothing but to do the best work in the quickest turn-around time. We're still cranking out the same quality service you've come to expect, but at a slower pace that I'm finding difficult to be ok with. All of that seems small potatoes, though.

Sunday night was the wildly fun and successful Midnight Marathon Ride (yes, I rode, broken thumb and all).

Then the Marathon on Monday. My dear friend, Josh, said it best with this post on his website Bike Safe Boston. Sad, unsettling, angering- I can't say it any better than the hundreds blog posts, tweets, and columns that have come out over the last week.

Yesterday I arrived at the shop wicked early to try to get some work done. I looked out the window shortly before 7am to see a CBS news van pull up on Cambridge St. Shortly after that Fox, CNN, AP, NBC, ABC, etc... It was surreal to be watching a live stream of the news shot from a helicopter hovering over the building I was watching the news in. I didn't know the two that lived in the house on Norfolk St, but I did know a lot of their neighbors. I recognized so many faces in the crowd that gathered in front of the shop (many evacuated from their houses, some still in pajamas)- both of folks who are customers and those I see when I walk to the bank, or post office or lunch. I know that this is also not a unique feeling, but this past week reinforced my love for the city and this neighborhood in particular. Some terrible people lived here, but so, so many more good people do, too.

Today the news crews are gone. Many folks have remarked at how well and quickly things seem to be getting back to normal. We're getting back to work, and continuing to will broken bones to heal up fast. So, thanks for your patience, and continue to stay safe out there.

Hey Ladies

This stuck in your head now? Yeah, me too.


Anyway- this Thursday is the Team Luna Chix Mountain Bike Boston Second Annual Season Kick-Off Maintenance Clinic (T.L.C.M.B.B.S.A.S.K.O.M.C.)! Come if you want to learn some basic maintenance, hang out with some bike riding ladies, and learn which wines pair best with Peanut Honey Pretzel. 

7pm at Hub Bicycle World HQ, $20 suggested donation to be given to the Breast Cancer Fund.

Stunt Double

I'm heading out of town this weekend. I'm off to CA with Team Luna Chix for some mountain biking and I've been promised "new instructional skills to take back to your community to share with other women". I'll bring some back for you.

In my absence I'm leaving Midwest Tim as my stunt double. Squint a little- we look exactly alike. He's a former bike shop manager, turned grown-up office job haver and all around good dude. I know this puts him at the risk of falling off the wagon (or is it onto the wagon?), so make sure he doesn't have too much fun, ok?

We'll be down a pair of wrenching hands while I'm gone, so I expect we'll have to add a day to our turn-around times. If you don't want to leave your bike off with us for a few days, please take advantage of making an appointment. If you don't mind that your bike stays with us for a little while, then carry on. And don't forget- Hubway is back! So you're never really bikeless.

 

Spring is Tomorrow

Remember when riding bikes in the snow was new and novel and fun? Those days are long gone. I'm really looking forward to getting three full seasons between me and winter, so I can fully appreciate how fun it can be. Today's commute in was particularly unpleasant- if you ride, be careful out there!

Help Wanted

It's that time of the year again. Bikes are rolling in in dire need of tune ups (wintering in a snowbank does terrible things to your bike...). Erich and I can't tune them all ourselves (I mean, we can, but a girl needs a day off to ride her bike, right?) so we're looking for someone to join the Hub Bicycle Dream Team. Not to repeat myself too many times, but bike industry experience is required. Please pass this along to anyone you might know who might be interested. Thanks!



Hub Bicycle Co., located in beautiful Cambridge, MA, is hiring! Are you a talented bicycle mechanic with industry experience looking for a small, but growing, service-oriented shop? Would you love to have every Sunday off to actually ride your bike for fun? Do you believe that bicycles make the world a better place? Are you comfortable working on the full range of bicycles and components- from big box specials to carbon race rockets? Hydraulic brakes, wheel building, suspension, and three speed hubs? We should talk.


You can expect full time seasonal employment (with the possibility of a year-round gig, for the right person) competitive pay based on experience, employee discounts on bikes/parts/stuff, opportunities to participate in advocacy, community education & trail building, and a relaxed, positive work environment. Conversational Spanish and Portuguese skills are a plus, but not a requirement.  Please email a cover letter and resume to Emily (emily @ hubbicycle . com) if that sounds good to you. Emails only, please. Thanks!

Check Your Brakes

We've been working on a ton of brakes in the last couple of weeks. All of the sand and salt that's been on the streets really does a number on brake pads. Mix that with rain and slush and you've got a perfect slurry for wearing out brake pads. If you've noticed that your brake levers take a little more pull to engage, you're in good company.

If you want your bike to stop better (and you probably do), your bike needs either a brake adjustment or brake pad replacement. Here's how to tell if your pads need replacing-

You don't need any tools, or even to remove the wheels to see if you need new pads. Just take a look. Brake pads have grooves that run top to bottom. This allows for water and junk to be cleared from the rim while braking, and they also provide wear indication. If you don't see those grooves- the pad is worn out and needs replacement.

You can see that the two "Partially worn" guys in the picture are more worn out on one end than the other. That's not uncommon to find (brake pads often need to be angled to stop brake chatter and squeaking). In that case you'd want to think about replacing those pads when any one of the grooves disappears.

Don't be alarmed if it seems like you're blowing through brake pads this time of year. It's (probably) not your fault (I don't know... maybe you're brake crazy or something). It's the weather. Just replace those pads and remember that spring starts on March 20.