Written by Joel on September 15, 2016/Shop Rag Newsletter
Shop Rag Issue 9 — 30 New Tools for 2017
Park Tool is proud to announce 30 new and updated products for 2017. Watch Park Tool Head Engineer Jeff and Chief Mechanic Eric Hawkins as they give an overview of the latest bicycle repair products for your shop.
Repair Help:
Tire and Tube
Check out the latest series of Repair Help videos and articles on YouTube and the Repair Help Section of ParkTool.com. Join Calvin as he breaks down the fundamentals of inner tube repair, tubeless conversion, and more.
Park Tool in the Field
Throughout most of 2016, Park Tool has been getting out and connecting with the people that use our tools. You may have seen our recent video about the MW-1 Mobile Workshop. We made the MW-1 because events are key to our growth as a company. Events let you get out there and talk to the people that are in the trenches using our tools and that feedback is crucial to improving our products. Interacting with people at events also allows us to educate them on bike repair in the best way possible; hands-on experience. The MW-1 allows us to bring a complete assortment of tools along, and we’re always happy to let people use them. Not only do we bring tools along for people to use, but we’re always happy to teach people repair processes and best practices when it comes to fixing their bikes.
This year began with The Sea Otter Classic – a hugely popular festival held every year in Monterey, California. It is the largest consumer bike expo with nearly every discipline of cycling represented at the races. Cyclocross to Downhill, road racing to short track mountain bike events, Sea Otter has it all. It’s a great place to set up shop and let people use our tools. It’s considered by many to be the opener of the North American cycling season and we had a ton of fun making connections and spreading the gospel of Park Tool.
From Sea Otter we went to an event called Saddle Drive. Saddle Drive is held at Northstar Resort and is put on by US distributor, Quality Bicycle Products. QBP has been supplying the nations bike shops with Park Tool products for decades. Saddle Drive pulls together many of the nation’s bike shop owners in one place to show off new products from QBP’s own in-house brands and other vendors alike. Calvin Jones was on hand to assist dealers in setting up demo bikes and showing off our new tools.
Park Tool booth at Eurobike
After Saddle Drive, a group hopped on a plane to Friedrichshafen, Germany for Eurobike. Eurobike is one of the largest trade shows in the cycling industryand were on hand at the expo to make sure the world took notice of what we have to offer in the repair category.
Salsa RideCamp
Last weekend we sent the MW-1 to the wilds of Northern Wisconsin for Salsa Cycles’ Ride Camp. Ride Camp is a unique event that saw over 250 people camping in a field just north of Seeley, Wisconsin, near the trails of the Chequamegon national forest. Riders came with an appetite for adventure and Salsa didn’t disappoint. The Chequamegon area is home to miles and miles of pristine wilderness and incredible trails that everyone enjoyed. There were clinics on bikepacking, fly-fishing, and presentations from Salsa-sponsored ultra-endurance athletes to inspire people to have their own adventures, big or small. We had our two mobile mechanics Sean and Ben on hand to assist and teach people in the ways of the bicycle.
And that brings us to the present, which finds us preparing for Outdoor Demo, Interbike (booth #12203), and Fall Cyclofest presented by Interbike. These upcoming demos and trade shows will round out our first year of events by giving us more opportunities to educate bike shops and cyclists on how to properly care for their bikes, and what new and exciting tools we have, while also giving them the opportunity to see our entire product line. If you’re out at any of these events make sure to stop by and say hello to our staff.
Pinkbike Tech Talks
Park Tool has partnered with Pinkbike to bring a monthly video series covering some of the most common bicycle repairs. Just look in the Pinkbike Tech section. Next episode airs September 29th!