Getting your bike ready for spring: the checklist

The first spring ride always tells the truth. Squealing brakes, a chain that skips, a drivetrain that creaks: after months in a garage, a basement, or storage, the bike lets you know exactly when you're finally itching to get back on the road. Spring bike maintenance isn't fussy mechanic talk, it's what decides whether your first rides of the season feel effortless or come loaded with small annoyances that drag on for weeks. Here's what's actually worth checking before you swing a leg over the saddle again.

Tyres, pressure and drivetrain: the five-minute checks

Start here, because these are the parts that deteriorate even while the bike is sitting still. Tyres lose pressure naturally over time as air slowly works its way through the inner tube, so even a bike that's been untouched all winter will show up in spring half-deflated: check the pressure printed on the tyre sidewall, and look closely for cracks or cuts, especially if the bike has been resting on its own weight for months. Inner tubes and tyres are consistently among the most requested parts in any repair shop, right alongside chains and brake pads — no coincidence, since these are exactly the components that time and use wear down fastest.

The chain is the second thing to check. If it wasn't cleaned and lubricated before storage, damp air in a basement or garage has probably started to oxidise it — you can feel it under your fingers and see the surface rust spots. A dry or rusty chain isn't just noisy, it accelerates wear on the chainring and cassette, turning a cheap fix into a real bill if you leave it too long. It's also worth checking the gears: if shifting skips or won't settle into a gear, it's often just a barrel adjuster out of tune, but if the front derailleur in particular is being stubborn, the cable may have stretched or loosened over the cold months.

Brakes: the one system you don't cut corners on

Brakes are the one part of the bike where a quick glance isn't enough. Check the pads visually: if the friction material looks thin, or you hear a metallic grinding sound when braking, replace them before you ride, not after. On disc brakes, check that the rotor isn't deeply scored and that the levers have consistent travel without pulling all the way to the bar — a lever that feels spongy usually means air in the system or a cable that needs adjusting. On rim brakes, check the pad alignment against the rim and how worn the rubber is. Riding down a hill on damp March tarmac with brakes you haven't checked is a risk that simply isn't worth taking.

Booking a service: why earlier beats later

There's a real gap between what a rider can check themselves — tyre pressure, a clean chain, a visual check on the brakes — and what actually needs a mechanic: checking play in the headset and bottom bracket, measuring chainring and cassette wear with a gauge, inspecting the hydraulic system on disc brakes, checking spoke tension. These are checks that need proper tools and a trained eye, and on an e-bike they matter even more: battery health, motor condition and warranty handling have become one of the most-reported headaches for repair shops in recent years, precisely because they're things a rider can't diagnose alone in the garage.

But here's the real issue: spring is the moment everyone decides to book a service on the same sunny weekend. Workshops fill up fast, and if you show up without an appointment once the weather has properly turned, you can end up waiting weeks — right when you'd rather be riding. Booking a little ahead of time, even just two or three weeks before the ride you actually have in mind, means showing up to a bike that's ready to go, instead of chasing a free slot while everyone else is already out on the road.

With the CrankPal app you can find a workshop near you and keep track of your bike's maintenance history in one place, so you always know when it's time to book the next check-up.