Zinn's Cycling Primer: Maintenance Tips and Skill Building for Cyclists

When I first saw the title of this book, I thought "That is an odd combination." How about a book on "diet and wheelbuilding"?But seriously, the book is valuable because it also includes a good overview on bike fit, as well. I believe proper bike fit is the first and most important aspect of riding a bike that needs to be understood and routinely revisited.If my friends would read the sections on road and mountain bike maintenance tuning, they would be more self-sufficient on group rides. But then they wouldn't need our help, and it's nice to be needed. Please note that the maintenance tips are not a substitute for the detailed books on advanced maintenance and assembly by Mr. Zinn and others. I don't believe the book description is misleading, I just wanted to be clear to readers.I respectfully disagree with one of the reviewers that the book is too advanced for a beginner. We have to start somewhere. We might as well read books that educate.I am also an author of a road cycling skills book  Watch Your Line: Techniques to Improve Road Cycling Skills  and considered this book by Mr. Zinn as a useful reference.

This book is an intro to cycling that would be good to read before you buy your first bike as it has an awful lot of information on bike sizing. The sizing part starts to sound like an infomercial for Zinn's bike shop, so I ended up skipping the end of it to get to the rest of the stuff about workouts, massage, and stretching. Zinn's views on self-massage and stretching are sensible enough, but they're kind of thin. A better bike book would expand this part and shorten the bike sizing message.

I have no doubt that Zinn knows a lot about bicycles and bicycling, and I have gleaned a useful tip or several from this book. But be alerted to the fact that this is not a primer (defined as a book that deals with the basics of a subject). This is a book for the intermediate cyclist--and probably one who is preparing for serious cycling or competition. Those looking for information for beginners should look elsewhere.

This book is pretty much worthless. A primer is supposed to be written for those who are generally unfamiliar with a topic. This book, however, is full of confusion, jargon, and irrelevance. It is not a primer! For example, for one of the most basic items of maintenance (adjusting bicycle brakes) it refers readers to a website. I didn't buy the book for web references. I considered it a waste of money and returned it.

Excellent reference volume for any cyclist. Nearly all aspects of biking including basic set-up, maintenance, physical conditioning,and honing riding skills are dealt with in "blocks" consisting of a few pages to full chapters. I find myself checking a section for a few minutes in the "library" and then rereading full chapters.

A great guide for a Cyclist at any level

Zinn's "Road Bike Maintenance" is a handy guide to maintaining any road bicycle. His experience in physiology, mechanics and science gives him a unique take on wrenching a bicycle. Very concise and detailed.

Zinn is a great asset to anybody interested in the world of cycling.

Good gear well pleased

perfect