CLEVELAND (BRAIN) — The Professional Bicycle Mechanics Association has announced a series of four manufacturer-direct training workshop, running from October this year through February 2020.
The workshops will start midday on Monday and wrap up on Wednesday evening. They also will include a manufacturer "bonus day" on Thursday where some manufacturers will conduct additional training geared toward advanced technical training and/or sales training on their latest products.
The schedule:
- Cleveland, Ohio, Oct. 14-16, 2019
- Salt Lake City, Utah, Dec. 2-4, 2019
- Austin, Texas, January 2020
- Hartford, Conn., Feb. 3-5, 2020
"The PBMA reconfigured the schedule to allow for some expanded education opportunities; where there was a 90-minute session before, you will now see those vendors taking advantage of a 2-hour session, giving them a bit of breathing room to cover a bit more on the technical side," the organization said.
PBMA intends to offer its certification testing Monday morning before the start of the workshop and also Wednesday and Thursday once the event has concluded.
PBMA's president, James Stanfill, said, “Balancing event dates and locations is a real challenge. We never want to overlap with other events and we want to ensure we are making our training events accessible to people in different regions each year.”
Registration is now open for the all four events. PBMA members pay $250, nonmembers $400. The registration price includes daily morning and evening breaks, three lunches and a catered reception in addition to direct access to all the participating vendors. Vendors already on board for the upcoming training season are DT Swiss, Enduro Bearings, SR Suntour, Magura, Industry Nine and Pedro’s.
The PBMA hopes to announce the final participating brands as well as confirm the Austin dates in the coming weeks.
In addition to the technical training the PBMA is placing emphasis on providing Mechanics and Service Managers important tools for profitability; attendees will participate in a few sessions focused on selling service and setting an appropriate labor rate.
The PBMA is providing the opportunity for four individuals per location to attend these workshops for no charge. These scholarships are funded by the CABDA Expo are intended to provide a diverse group of attendees the opportunity to attend, including those who are in need of financial assistance. Scholarships include workshop registration fees, lodging and a stipend for travel and food.
To register or apply for a scholarship: probma.org/pbma-technical-workshops.
