Re: Disc brake maintenance tips

On 6/22/2024 12:02 PM, Frank Krygowski wrote:

On 6/22/2024 1:05 AM, John B. wrote:

>
As I've mentioned before I frequently see a little 6 or 7 year old
girl charging down the street chasing her brother - Very doubtful that
she has read a bicycle "How to do" book.

 True. Little kids rolling around quiet residential streets don't need to know much. People who don't venture off isolated, flat bike trails don't need to know much. A person's needs depend on what a person wants to accomplish.
 Also, John Forester used to say that education was not the only way to learn competent bicycling skills. He said that there have always been some who arrived at the best techniques by trial and error - although the "error" bit can obviously be dangerous. There have always been some who learned from others - the classic case being club cyclists who gradually learn by talking to and observing more expert club members.
 A parallel might be machine shop skills. A sixteen year old kid who watched some professional machinists and snuck into the shop after hours to practice could possibly become halfway competent. But compared to organized training, that's a very inefficient and hazardous way to learn.
 And I'll note that if a person has not read one of the relevant cycling books and/or not taken one of the relevant cycling courses, they have no idea of the content. They have no idea what they're missing, or dismissing.
 

For applied skills such as machining, apprentice/helper programs have a great track record with exceptional results. Don't dismiss immersive education from one's senior peers.
Are there failures? Sure, but no more than in any other educational format.
--
Andrew Muzi
am@yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971