Cycling advice without the sales pitch
TwoWheelGuide exists because most cycling information online is trying to sell you something. We’re not. We publish what we’ve learned, and that’s the whole business model.
Why this site exists
TwoWheelGuide started as a set of notes. One of us was trying to work out why a rear derailleur wouldn’t shift cleanly, and after an evening of contradictory forum threads, videos that skipped the crucial step, and articles that turned out to be product listings with paragraphs attached, the fix took four minutes once someone explained it properly.
That gap — between how simple most bike problems actually are and how hard it is to find a straight answer — is what the site is for.
Cycling has an unusual information problem. It’s a mature hobby with deep expertise in it, but most of that expertise reaches beginners through channels with something to sell. None of that is dishonest exactly, but it does mean the answer to “which one should I buy?” is almost never “you probably don’t need one.”
What we cover, and what we don't
We write about three things: choosing a bike, maintaining it, and riding it safely. Those are the areas where good information changes outcomes most.
We deliberately don’t publish product reviews or “best bike” rankings. The format goes stale within a season and it pulls hard toward affiliate revenue. We’d rather teach you how to judge a bike than tell you which one to buy this year.
Three commitments
Independent
No brand sponsorship, no affiliate links, no paid placements, and no products for sale. Nothing we write is influenced by what someone would like you to buy.
Practical
Every repair procedure has been carried out on a real bike before publication. Where a step is genuinely awkward, we say so instead of pretending it's easy.
Kept current
Guides carry the date they were last reviewed. Every one is checked at least annually, and sooner when standards change.
How a guide gets written
Every guide on this site goes through the same five stages before it’s published.
It starts with a real question
Most guides begin as something a reader emailed us, or a question one of us couldn’t find a decent answer to. We don’t write to chase search terms.
Research against primary sources
Manufacturer technical documentation, published safety standards, official highway codes, and mechanics we know personally. Where sources disagree, we say so.
Tested on an actual bike
Every repair procedure is performed start to finish before it’s written up, which is how we catch steps that read fine but don’t work.
Reviewed by someone who didn't write it
A second person checks for accuracy and, just as importantly, for assumed knowledge — jargon that slipped in unexplained.
Dated, then revisited
Each guide publishes with a review date and returns to the queue at least annually. When we correct something substantive, we say what changed.
Found something wrong?
Tell us. Corrections from readers are the fastest route to a better guide, and we’d much rather be corrected than be confidently wrong in public.
The contributors
A small team of riders and mechanics. Between us we’ve done a lot of things wrong, which turns out to be the useful part.
Dan Ellis
Fifteen years wrenching on his own bikes and everyone else’s. Writes most of the repair guides, and owns far too many hex keys.
Maria Costa
Former bike shop mechanic. Has fitted several thousand people to bikes and has strong opinions about saddle height.
Josh Ade
Qualified cycling instructor. Teaches adults who were told as children they’d never learn, and proves otherwise most weeks.
Priya Nair
Reviews everything before it publishes, mostly by asking “but what does that word mean?” until the answer is clear.
How the site is funded
TwoWheelGuide is funded by advertising. Ad units appear on some pages, served by third-party networks that may use cookies to show you relevant ads. Our privacy policy explains exactly what that involves and how to opt out.
- Advertisers have no input into our content. No advertiser has ever asked us to change an article.
- We don't run affiliate links. If we mention a type of product, we earn nothing whether you buy it or not.
- We don't accept sponsored posts. Every guide was written by a contributor listed above.
- Ads are labelled and kept out of the way. Nothing here is designed to look like editorial when it isn't.
Common questions
Please do — reader questions are where most of our guides come from. If you couldn’t find a clear answer elsewhere, that’s exactly the signal we’re looking for.
Not in full, but you’re welcome to quote a short extract with a link back. For translations or use by a cycling club or school, get in touch — we’ve said yes before.
No. Every guide is written by our own contributors. We decline several sponsored-content requests a week, because the moment we accept one, nothing else on the site can be trusted either.
No. No brand, manufacturer, retailer or workshop has any commercial relationship with this site.
Our contributors are spread across the UK and Europe. Because road law varies, we flag which country a legal point applies to whenever we mention one.
Got a question we haven't answered?
Ask it. If it’s a good question, it usually becomes a guide.