‘Britain’s best bike mechanic’ sets up shop in Bourton

Scott Jones has enjoyed a successful start to life after launching Cotswold Bike Works at Bourton Business Hub.

The 45-year-old has worked in the cycling industry as a qualified mechanic for 20 years and has decided to now set up a permanent base of operations.

He said: “Bourton is in the centre of my customer base, close to home, and has a thriving cycling scene with some great cycling routes nearby.

“All of these points just seemed to make sense to set up shop in this beautiful village.

“Support from local people and businesses has been fantastic, with half of my repair work so far being from new customers.”

Cotswold Bike Works has opened at Bourton Business Hub (Image: Scott Jones)

Mr Jones has lived in Upper Rissington for the last nine years, having grown up in Cheltenham.

During his career he has worked for Williams Cycles, Leisure Lakes Bikes, Mickey Cranks and Performance Cycles.

He also works closely with Jozef Metelka, a three-time Paralympic and 15-time World Championship gold medallist in road and track cycling.

Mr Jones met the cycling start in 2015 when he was working at Mickey Cranks and Mr Metelka was based in Oxford.

He has been building his bikes ever since.

Then, in 2018, Mr Jones was crowned ‘Britain’s best bike mechanic’ in a competition held by Cycling Weekly, a title he still holds as the awards have not taken place since.

When not at the shop, Mr Jones volunteers at Belmont School in Cheltenham, where his autistic son attends.

The school has a full fleet of specially adapted bicycles and tricycles which he helps to maintain for the pupils.

Scott Jones works closely with Paralympic champion Jozef Metelka (Image: Scott Jones)

Cotswold Bike Works, which opened on Tuesday, January 17, doesn’t have any new bikes for sale but instead focuses on keeping bikes in working order.

Mr Jones said: “My main aim is to provide the highest level of service and customer service available.

“There are no new bikes for sale as room is limited and I cannot compete with the internet on costs.

“My focus is keeping the customer on the road, or off it if it's a mountain bike, and providing necessary parts and accessories to do so.”

There are three main service levels, starting at £25 for a child’s bike and £50 for an adult bike, with small repairs starting from £10.

For more information visit www.cotswoldbikeworks.com or check out their Facebook and Instagram accounts.

Scott Jones was named 'Britain’s best bike mechanic’ in a competition held by Cycling Weekly (Image: Scott Jones)