Essential Bike Maintenance Skills Every Cyclist Needs With Casey Wytaske

Have you ever been out on the trail or road and encountered a mechanical issue that left you stranded and afraid to ride longer distances on your own? Or maybe you’ve been putting off taking care of your bike because you’re not sure what you should be doing?

In either case, you’re not alone. Many cyclists, especially women, haven’t been given the encouragement or resources to learn these crucial skills.

That’s why I’m thrilled to welcome Casey Wytaske to the show. Casey is a professional bike mechanic and certified mountain bike coach who has dedicated her career to empowering women in cycling.

After discovering her passion for bike mechanics while volunteering at a local non-profit bike shop, Casey went on to become certified at the United Bicycle Institute and now works as a demo technician for Liv Cycling.

In today’s episode, we’ll discuss why there are so few female bike mechanics, essential maintenance skills every cyclist should know, and what tools you should have in your home toolkit. Casey will also share insights about the Girls Gone Gravel mechanic camps she leads and offer practical tips for getting your bike ready for riding season.

If you’ve ever hoped to become better at bike maintenace, this is an episode you don’t want to miss.

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Photo credit: Wilson Turk

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Connect With Casey

👉 Instagram: @o_acacia
👉 Girls Gone Gravel Mechanic School: https://www.girlsgonegravel.com/camp 

Breaking Down Barriers

When I asked Casey why we see so few female bike mechanics in the industry, her answer was refreshingly honest.

“It’s just always been a male-dominated industry in general, the bike industry,” Casey explained. “For me personally, I never thought of myself as like a mechanically inclined person and I never really had interest in working on bikes. There’s a shop for that. So I just kind of assumed that it was nothing that I needed to personally get into.”

She highlighted how representation matters: “If you don’t see a woman in that position, you don’t envision yourself in that position. And that was me personally. It was kind of like, I really wanted people to look up to and people to learn from that were women. And that was really hard to find when I was first getting into bike mechanic work.”

From Real Estate to Wrenching on Bikes

Casey’s path to becoming a bike mechanic wasn’t traditional. Before entering the cycling industry, she worked in real estate as a broker and appraiser. Her journey into bike mechanics began at a local nonprofit.

“I started volunteering there because my partner at the time was the executive director and they really needed help and he was keen on getting some women in the shop,” Casey shared. “I started working on bikes there. I felt very inadequate. You get to start with just breaking bikes down, which is a great way to learn.”

This volunteer experience sparked something in Casey. “It was very empowering. It was really cool to know that I am totally capable of doing this and it’s something that not a lot of people know. And so it gave me that power and that empowerment. And I wanted to learn more.”

Five years after starting at Key City Bike, Casey received a women’s bike mechanic scholarship from QBP (Quality Bicycle Products) in 2018, which provided her first formal training.

Finding Her Dream Career with Liv Cycling

What truly changed Casey’s career trajectory was discovering that she could get paid for the cycling work she was already doing as a volunteer.

“Liv Cycling had posted on Facebook and they were hiring somebody, a woman that could work on bikes, that liked to coach biking, that liked to teach clinics,” Casey recalled. “And it was basically describing everything I was doing on a volunteer basis in my community, but it was offering a wage. And I was like, oh my God, I didn’t even know that existed in this world. And it was a dream come true later in my life.”

Girls Gone Gravel Mechanic Camps

One of Casey’s current passions is teaching women bike maintenance through Girls Gone Gravel mechanic camps in Patagonia, Arizona.

“It’s a three full days of actual mechanic work,” Casey explained. “The first day we have a build party where you’re building your bike because you fly your bike in with yourself. And then we do complete teardown of the wheels, so we can see if you are set up tubeless and then if you aren’t set up tubeless we get you set up tubeless.”

The hands-on approach ensures women learn by doing: “You’re gonna actually be doing all the work yourself on your bike. You learn about drive train maintenance, chain repairs, we learn bar taping, so like all the very things that you’re totally capable of doing on your bike, recognizing when there’s a shifting issue and how to correct that.”

Three Essential Maintenance Skills for Every Cyclist

For riders who find all of this overwhelming, Casey recommends starting with three key maintenance skills:

1. Chain maintenance: “My number one thing I would recommend is learning how to clean and lubricate your chain on your bike and how to measure chain wear.”
2. Understanding torque specs: “Learning the different torque specs of the bolts that you need to tighten regularly. So that would be anything in your cockpit area, so like the shifters, just the angle of the shifters, your headset, and your seat post.”
3. Tire pressure and sealant: “And then just tire pressure and checking your sealant in tires if you run tubeless tires.”

The Importance of Proper Tire Pressure

When I asked about determining the right tire pressure, Casey provided detailed guidance:

“That is very relevant to a lot of different things. So the type of surface that you’re riding, your rider weight, the type of riding you’re doing, the type of tire you’re using.”

For mountain bikes specifically: “You’re going to ride a lower tire pressure, which is usually around that 20 to 18 to 25, 30 depending on your rider weight. So for me personally, I’m 180 pounds. I’m going to ride probably like at 18, 19 in the front and a 20, 21 in the rear.”

She also challenged a common misconception: “The lower pressure you have, the more traction you’re going to have. And the more traction you have, the faster you can go. So that’s actually kind of confusing for a lot of people over like the higher pressure I have the faster I can go and that might be so with tires and rims from five years ago, but the technology in tires and rims over the last few years has changed so much.”

“I’m Just Not Mechanically Inclined”

Many women hesitate to work on their bikes because they believe they aren’t mechanically inclined. I asked Casey if she thinks this is a real limitation or just a mindset issue.

“That’s 100% true,” Casey admitted. “I would say that based on experience because I’m personally not mechanically inclined. Like I said at the beginning, I would give the bike to the shop. They can deal with it. I’m not gonna figure out how to do this.”

But she emphasized that this isn’t an insurmountable barrier: “Where I’m still not mechanically inclined, but I feel like because I came from a background of not being mechanically inclined, I learned how to learn mechanic systems in a different way. And then I can teach that.”

Her approach focuses on building confidence through repetition: “It’s just the repetitive building confidence, learning in ways that help you understand is the way that you can tackle that. And bikes are complicated, but they’re also a mechanical system is just that. It is a system, it’s made to work in a certain way. So there’s a way to break it down and figure it out.”

Advice for Women Interested in Becoming Bike Mechanics

For women who might want to pursue bike mechanics as a career, Casey emphasizes the importance of formal training.

“Definitely one of the bike schools. That’s where you’re going to learn just how to do everything to the book, which I think is really important,” she advised. “Learning by the book and by manufacturer specifications, I feel is really important, especially if you’re not someone that’s 100% confident in figuring things out yourself.”

She also highlighted the value of mentorship: “Finding a mentor. Even if it is not a woman mechanic, but a mentor you trust, I wouldn’t be where I was if I didn’t have the incredible mentors that I’ve got to work with.”

The Changing Experience for Women in Bike Shops

When I asked about the experience of being a female mechanic in retail bike shops, Casey acknowledged that things are improving but challenges remain.

“I think it has changed a lot over the last few years. I think it’s definitely retailers are starting to recognize the importance of having women in the shop, not just on the sales floor.”

She was candid about her own experiences: “It was pointed out to me that I kind of have a chip on my shoulder. Like, I walk into shops and almost expect that now because I’ve personally experienced it so much. So it’s like I already have this like, what’s it going to be this time? Or like, what am I gonna have to prove?”

Her advice for women customers who don’t feel respected in shops: “If one shop, they’re not treating you kindly, take your money elsewhere and go to a shop where they do treat you kindly and speak to you kindly.”

How to Communicate with Bike Mechanics

For women who feel intimidated when taking their bike to a shop, Casey offered practical advice:

“Try to familiarize yourself just with the bike components. So knowing, you know, this is my bottom bracket, this is my drivetrain. So just knowing how to speak just the basic parts of the bike is just a good way to start.”

She also suggests being specific about when problems occur: “Having examples of when it happens, like, do you have this issue when you’re pedaling or when you’re pushing the bike or when is this issue occurring every time you shift into an easier gear or shift into a harder gear.”

Building a Home Toolkit

Not everyone needs an extensive toolkit right away. Casey recommends starting small:

“When I was first getting into bike maintenance, I just used my local community bike kitchen. So they have work stands that you can go in and use the tools. But then when I wanted to start doing my own stuff at home, I started with just a multi-tool and a floor pump for air and a tire lever. So basically a fix-a-flat kit that you would carry with you on your bike. That is what got me through for a long time.”

For those ready to invest more seriously: “During the pandemic, I got laid off from Liv doing events and I invested in the Abby tool home mechanic kit. At the time it was $1,300, which I thought was really expensive. I think it’s now like $1,600. But it had like everything you would need as a bike mechanic for building out a really awesome toolkit.”

Her affordable essentials: “If you’re just getting started, you’re not ready to invest $1,000 in tools. I would start with just a fix-a-flat kit. You’re gonna have a lot of stuff that you need right there for the basic bike maintenance. I would definitely invest in a chain wear indicator or a chain checker. And a hex key set.”

Spring Bike Maintenance Check

As we enter riding season, Casey shared her checklist for getting a bike ready after it’s been sitting unused:

1. “I’m going to charge the batteries. I’ve got the SRAM AXS on my bike. So make sure all my batteries are charged, including my spare batteries.”
2. “I’m going to change out the shifter batteries that are in the shifters. So that’s a coin cell battery just to have fresh batteries in there.”
3. “I’m going to check the sealant in both my tires and I’ll probably I might even take the tires off and check the tape just because I haven’t done that for a few months.”
4. “And then make sure the air is set. I’m going to lube my chain and just run through the gears, make sure that everything’s shifting good and check that my shifters are not moving, all the bolts are good and that’s it.”

For checking sealant levels, Casey offers this practical tip: “I take the wheel off of the bike, then I shake it by my ear. And I listen for slushing around the liquid. If I can’t hear liquid slushing, then I either it’s dry or I don’t have enough in there is my thought so I’ll usually squirt some in there.”

More Episodes You Might Enjoy

• How To Develop Your Mountain Bike Skills & Confidence With Joanna Yates
• 9 Ways To Increase Your Confidence On The Mountain Bike
• 7 Tips For Biking Alone: Stay Safe, Feel Confident

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