Maintaining your bike is important
A bike is a machine, and like any machine it has parts that need maintenance. Basic maintenance that you can do at home will save you time, hassle and money in addition to ensuring the longevity of your bike overall.
YouTube is an excellent source for information on how to do some of your own bike work (though is not a replacement for actual courses to teach you or professionals to do the work for you), if you want to do some things that are otherwise an expensive hassle at a bike shop. Worth repeating: professional bike mechanics exist for a reason but basic minor maintenance or the changing of things like shift cables can be done at home, saving the mechanics to work on things you can't.
Park Tool makes excellent videos and while many of their tools are not worth the cost (when it would cost as much as having a professional do the job, just have the professional do the job), there are a lot of things you can do without any special tools. Some videos which I've personally used and recommend:
- how to adjust a rear derailleur
- how to adjust a front derailleur
- how to clean and lube a bike chain (I highly recommend purchasing a chain measuring tool so you know when your chain needs to be replaced)
GCN also has tons of excellent videos, including:
- 5 minute bike wash
- 30 minute bike wash
- 1 hour tune up (feel free to only do some of these)
- 5 minute rim brake tune up
- how to maintain disc brakes (not just for road bikes)
- how to index your gears (rear derailleur; similar to Park Tool's video)
Professional help
Feeling overwhelmed? Don't want to work on your own bike? No problem! Here's a list of local bike shops that have professional bike mechanics with all the tools and expertise to help you out:
- Bow Cycle 6501 Bowness Rd NW
- Lifesport 4711 85 Street NW
- Ridley’s Cycle 223 10 Street NW
- B&P Cycle 1717 52 Street SE
- Pedal Head / Ski Works 12100 Macleod Trail SE
- The Bike Shop 3 locations in Calgary
- Calgary Cycle 2 locations in Calgary (south location is called Pure Cycle)
- Mountain Equipment Co-op 830 10 Avenue SW (only the downtown location has a service shop)
- Cactus Bike & Ski 9827B Horton Road SW
- Outlaw Sports 903 Heritage Drive SW
Some SportChek locations also have bike mechanics in their service shop. Supporting your local bike shop is preferable, but if all you can access is a SportChek, that's better than not getting the work done at all!