 |
| Portland , Oregon |
SRAM
*CAMPAGNOLO
FSA
*PARK TOOL
MAVIC
*SHIMANO
CANE CREEK
FOX
*CAMPAGNOLO
FSA
*PARK TOOL
MAVIC
*SHIMANO
CANE CREEK
FOX
I made a list of events I wanted to participate in this year. I
choose to attend the Park Tool tech summit in Portland because I had a fellow mechanic recommend the experience. Abi booked me round trip tickets for my
birthday and found friends for me to stay with. The registration fee was $200 bucks and I jumped on it right away. That was that, I was
packing up to go to the bicycle conscious capital.
I was also excited to visit the Chris King factory and VeloCult bike shop.
Daily Schedule
Breakfast / Registration (8am-9am)
Class #1 (9am-11:30am)
Lunch (11:30am-12:30pm)
Class #2 (12:30pm-3:00pm)
Break (3:00pm-3:20pm)
Class #3 (3:20pm-5:50)
Expo / Reception (6:30pm-8:00)
The summit took place at the Sheraton near the Portland International Airport.
Three classes in two days. I'm definitely a fast learner when I'm tought hands on.
I'm also the type to take lots of notes because I enjoy writing. I literally took down every note and suggestions. Each class was very interesting and informative.
Instructor Daniel Large gave us a brief history of CAMPAGNOLO, which was amazing.
The invention of the cork screw and the first skewer Campagnolo has done a lot for the sport.
The class was about the Electric Power Shift / EPS and the obstacles a mechanic may face when trying to make other products compatible with Campy. It was great to learn from a professional the proper installation and adjustments. All my questions were answered and I highly recommend mechanics to attend this event.
Calvin Jones, Park Tool Director of Education was the instructor. I was really happy to have Calvin teach the class. He has written and published books on bicycle repair. As you can see we went through lots of hands on training such as gluing tubular tires, tubular tire adhesion, wheel theory, wheel truing, rim tension recommendations and how to make a graphic tension chart using the tension conversion calculator. Very very useful techniques!
I was looking forward to the Shimano class, I heard lots of good things. I wanted details and explanations. The new Dura-Ace 9000 11 speed group set had just came out and I had only worked on a few. We learned how to install Di2 and mechanical shifters, bottom bracket, crank set, Derailleurs, cassettes, chain pins, cable / housing, removing / mounting skid plates, adjustments and torque specifications.
Build Your Resume!
Seek further education and don't depend on anyone but yourself to succeed.