Mitchell Robinson Gainesville Florida: A Day At the Races Mitchell Robinson of Gainesville, Florida is a professional bike mechanic. He is the owner and operator of Bike Speed Repairs, a bike shop he opened in Gainesville in 1979. He has earned an international reputation as a bike mechanic. Mitchell Robinson has traveled to Europe as a member of Team Generica on five occasions. The team is headed by Belgian rider Marco d'Marco. "The Tour is hard on riders," says Mitchell Robinson of Gainesville, Florida. "Everyone knows that. But it's hard on the bikes, too – and on the mechanics who fix them." He should know, since he has been a team mechanic at five Tours, as well as in five Giro d'Italias. Mitchell Robinson of Gainesville, Florida recently took time out from his Florida bike shop to describe a typical day in the life of a Tour de France bike mechanic. Most of the mechanics are up early, he says; as early as 5:00 a.m. After eating breakfast the team mechanics get the team bikes from the truck they have been stored in overnight and right away, check the tires to make sure they are properly inflated. Most of the bikes have been prepared the night before, but each one is given a final check, and any last-minute tweaks are done at that time. By 8:30, he says that all of the team's bikes are loaded onto the team vehicles and driven to where that day's stage begins. The bikes are all ready to go by this time. Team vehicles that trail the main pack of riders, called the peloton, are loaded with all necessary tools and spare parts. They are also refueled. By 10:45 the teams are all assembled at the starting point. There is still plenty of time, though, because the races usually don't begin until 1pm. From 1pm until the stage ends, which ordinarily takes about five hours, the riders cover an average of about one hundred miles and the mechanics trail behind in the team cars. Any mechanical issues for any of the team riders are dealt with swiftly, with the main objective being to get the rider back on the road as quickly as possible. Mitchell Robinson of Gainesville, Florida has the reputation of being one of the faster mechanics on Team Generica. Once the stage has ended, the riders eat and recover for the next day's stage. The mechanics, however, have a lot of work still before them. One at a time, each bike is cleaned and known mechanical issues are dealt with. Each bike is also inspected. Its drive train is cleaned with a brush and high-pressure power washer. Cables are inspected and often replaced regardless of their condition. After all of the team bikes have been through the ritual and declared ready to ride, they are loaded back onto the team truck and trailer, and locked down for the night. As an added security measure a car is backed up against the trailer. That way, should someone manage to break the lock during the night, the out-swinging door still cannot be opened. "And the next day," says Mitchell Robinson of Gainesville, Florida, "we get up early and do the whole thing again." To know more information please visit our blog site:
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