It was a muggy afternoon in late June when members of the metal band Mastodon hovered over a Rad Service Manager and ebike technician who was kneeling in the grass. Drum fills pulsed in the background as Coheed and Cambria finished their sound check, and Mastodon musicians Bill Kelliher and Brent Hinds were excited to get riding again.
The Grammy award-winning, Atlanta-based band had owned their RadMini electric folding bikes for just over a year, and they had become accustomed to using them on tour, zipping around concert venues across the country. As their evening concert at Washington’s Marymoor Park approached, they started to become restless.
“You done yet?” Kelliher asked the service tech.
This wasn’t exactly your routine check up at your local bike shop. The Rad Power Bikes crew had made a special service call to a concert venue to help out Rad family in their time of ebike need. They took one look at the fleet of three RadMini ebikes and said, “Well, we’re going to need more supplies.”
After an hour, the lead tech was was still in the throes of a Rad tune-up. The tour bikes’ frames were scratched up. They had broken components and worn brake pads -- standard repairs on any ordinary ebike. But these repairs (rightfully so) were of a more extreme nature.
Hinds, guitarist and vocalist, described the carnage the ebikes had suffered from being constantly dragged in and out of the tour bus’s storage compartment. One of the band members had crashed his bike, then a member of the sound crew did the same thing.
But the RadMini had raged on. "They’re built so solid, and they’re so much fun. I love this thing,” Hinds said.
When our crew pointed out that Hinds didn't have a basket on the rear rack, he perked up. “Man, if you've got a basket, I need that thing. Does it fit a 12-pack? I've just been strapping a six-pack down to the rack,” he said.
After a few hours of labor, a new shifter, chain, and a few feet of brake cable housing, the bikes were returned to their owners.
Kelliher (rhythm guitar) was stoked. “It’s a brand new bike!” he said, straddling his well-loved bike and riding off towards the stage. The RadMinis would make another date after all.
Our Rad service team has you covered for sound checks, brake pads, and everything in between. We may not be able to meet you at your venue before a show, but our Tech Support Team is here for you 7 days a week, from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Pacific Time. It takes some effort to keep folks on the road, but it’s worth it to us to keep you riding Rad.
