ASHEVILLE, N.C. (BRAIN) — James Stanfill is stepping down as president of the Professional Bicycle Mechanics Association, a group he helped form in 2016.
On Jan. 1 Jenny Kallista, who owns the Appalachian Bicycle Institute mechanic school, will take over as president, an unpaid position. Kallista has been a member of the PBMA since its launch.
"I helped found the PBMA, so it's been partly my baby too. There are lots of parents of this baby," Kallista told BRAIN. "I’ve kind of been James' right-hand man for last 4-plus years we’ve been doing this, so it seems like a natural progression for me to take over."
"We were looking for some freshness to our perspective and to come up with some new and different things for our membership while we continue advancing the promotion, development and advocacy for bicycle mechanics," she said, paraphrasing the group's mission statement.
Education remains a top priority for the group, although in-person classes have been hampered by the pandemic in 2020. PBMA will participate in CABDA's online dealer event Feb. 10-11. She hopes PBMA will be able to resume in-person training in the third quarter next year.
In an email to PBMA members and supporters Wednesday, Stanfill said launching a new non-profit was hard work he hopes to never repeat. "I'll say the only easy part was meeting lots of new faces at all the events I've been to since 2016. The bike industry is an interesting place ... I often wonder when it will finally get out of its own way, but I can never quite find the answer or solution to nudge it along any quicker."
"I firmly believe that the mechanic is the heart of the bicycle. I am sure I will still get to some events from time to time, and see many faces in various places we might and will surely gather in the future ... someone might even call on me to make some inspirational speech and really get some people riled up, who knows?"
Stanfill told BRAIN he was focusing on his bike shop in Kyle, Texas, and his e-commerce bike tool business, pedalingtools.com. He also is head mechanic for Cycling Canada's Para Cycling team, a contract that extends through the Tokyo Olympics. And he coaches a local NICA team.
"Kyle Cyclery’s steady now; it wasn’t meant to be open full time until after the Olympics, the pandemic changed that dramatically," he said in a text message to BRAIN. "Pedaling Tools is going well, our curated catalog is continuing to grow and you’ll see more products added in 2021... it’s not like I’m not still busy! I just want to focus on my 'things' instead of things for the whole of the industry."
