World Cup MTB Mechanic Brad Copeland Takes Bike Tuning as Seriously as Kate Courtney Does Racing [Podcast #251]

Being the bike mechanic for a World MTB Champion requires deep focus and dedication. In this episode, Brad Copeland, shares the story of how he progressed from a shop wrench to a traveling technician with the fastest XC team on the planet.

By Gerow
May 26, 2020 Last Updated: January 20, 2021

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On this Episode

Brad Copeland worked his way up the bike tuning chain, from shop mechanic to a full-time position at Specialized Bicycles, and eventually landed a spot wrenching for the brand’s domestic teams. His racing and career interests laid deep in the dirt side of cycling, and when asked to travel with the Specialized World Cup XC athletes to a few events, he excitedly accepted. Copeland developed lasting friendships with several riders, eventually becoming the primary traveling wrench for Kate Courtney, who would then go on to win both a rainbow jersey and a World Cup overall title.

When Courtney switched to the Scott-SRAM MTB Racing team she was able to bring Copeland with her, which doesn’t happen in XC as often as it does in downhill racing. The pair are working hard to prepare for what the 2020 season holds, and we recently chatted with Copeland to get the story from his side of the pits. This discussion wasn’t originally intended to be a podcast, but given Copeland’s passionate descriptions, we wanted to share the raw recording.

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