Sprocket rocket! Former ATG cycle maintenance trainee becomes "The Fastest Wrench in The West"

To the growing list of British cycling greats such as Chris Boardman, Nicole Cooke and Chris Hoy you’ll now have to add the name of Carl Percival, who became the Fastest Wrench In The West in the competition organised by the Association of Cycle Traders for the recent Cycle Show at Earls Court.

Carl, who took his Cytech qualification at ATG Training in Aylesbury, beat 170 rival mechanics when he took JUST 44 SECONDS to remove a front wheel, take out the inner tube, put the inner tube back in the tyre, inflate it to 20psi and re-fit the wheel into the bike.

With a Park toolkit worth £99 and a £100 bike shop voucher up for grabs, Carl was spurred on by the fact that his own kit and bike had recently been stolen. He made several attempts through the day but on each occasion saw his previous times narrowly beaten. Finally, cheered on by the four-deep crowd that surrounded the ACT stand, he emerged victorious.

Julian Thrasher, his assessor at ATG Training, said:
“‘Carl was truly amazing. The loss of his bike and kit in a break-in made him determined to see off the competition.”

Mark Brown of ACT, which supervises Cytech accreditation, said: “The response to the competition was fantastic and all the participants and crowd had a lot of fun. It really illustrated the kind of specialist skills that local bike shops can offer and the high quality of Cytech training”

“It is the first time we’ve ever run anything like this and we were really pleased with how enthusiastically it was received. We connected with a lot of people who showed interest in Cytech courses”

Carl works at Wiggle, the Portsmouth-based online cycle shop.

Educational charity ATG Training is the national leader in specialist training for cycle maintenance and runs 90% of Cytech courses. Its Cycle Academy courses are recognised for their superb standards at all levels from basic to advanced level. At well as the newly expanded Cycle Academy facilities at Aylesbury in Bucks, ATG Training’s also runs a second Cycle Academy near the Velodrome in Manchester.

For more information about ATG Training visit www.atg-training.co.uk

The Association of Cycle Traders is an independent, non-profit making organisation representing the interests of more than 2,000 cycle shops. Its activities help to ensure that consumers can continue to benefit from the skills, services, enthusiasm and choice of products available from their local independent bike shop.

It also develops and promotes Cytech - the cycle industry's only training and accreditation scheme - which aims to develop and promote the skills and services which are essential benefits local bike shops have to offer.

For more about ACT go to www.thecyclingexperts.co.uk