New Substack Who Dis

Introducing Spanner in the Works 🛠️

Dear friend of bikes,

A couple days ago I had to say farewell to my dear cat George-Michael. He had a sudden decline in his health (and the vet found a big growth in his belly) and we decided the most humane thing to do was to put him to sleep. Ev and I are both very very sad, he was our baby boy and we miss him very much already.

miss you so much boo-boo

To that end I am sharing with you the new About page I’ve been working on, which will explain to you a bit more about what’s going on here. I would love some feedback!

Plus an update on pricing: I’m totally bucking conventional wisdom here, as you are NOT supposed to lower your prices.

But rules are meant to be broken, and after several people unsubscribed citing “price” as the reason, I did some reflection: I personally pay £3.50-£4 for the newsletters I subscribe to; £5 is kind of a lot of money for me. I realised that I wasn’t here to make a buck, I’m here to spread knowledge. If people can throw a few quid my way then I’d be much obliged. But I would rather have more subscribers paying less money than the other way around.

I hope to return to new writing in a few weeks time.

Ride on,

Jenni 🍉

ps. the artwork is by the wonderful Nelson, some of you may remember him!

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This was formerly known as the LBK Newsletter. The London Bike Kitchen was a women-led bike workshop, specialising in bike maintenance education. From 2012 - 2025 we built up the skills of beginners with our workshops, and our newsletter was an extension of that.

I now present to you:

SPANNER IN THE WORKS

The one tool that might be missing from your toolbox? Knowledge.

When you buy a bike, it doesn’t come with a user manual - and I think that’s by design. A customer that doesn’t know how to maintain their purchase means that they will be at the whim and mercy of the industry - an industry steeped in planned obsolescence for the sake of the profit motive.

The cost of bike parts has doubled since Covid, (one reason why I had to close down London Bike Kitchen), and now we may be facing another jump in costs.

It’s probably a good time to learn a little bit about how to make things last longer.

This saves money, prevents waste, staves off headaches, and maintains a reliable ride.

My passion is making this world a less shitty place than when I found it. I believe that if more people cycle for utilitarian purposes (transportation for commuting, shopping, shits & giggles) our roads would be safer and less polluted, less junk would go to landfill, and we would save money and our souls.

The industry only wants to sell you things. But marketers aren’t mechanics.

We mechanics witness the dark underbelly of the bike world. How things like internal cable routing, press fit bottom brackets, and tubeless setups might not be the game changers they are made out to be, but merely ways to get you to part with your hard earned cash / whatever currency we are forced to use in a capitalist system.

What’s the antidote?

I believe that when you understand how something works, it becomes less scary and intimidating. And the more you understand how your bike works, the more likely you are to ride it.

But the gears they are a changin: it’s time to equip yourself with more than just knowledge of *how* something works.

Let’s ask questions like:

• What’s the real reason you want 12 speeds and Di2?

• If we zoom out, how does it sync with the bigger capitalist picture?

• And is progress even linear bro?

I will show you:

1. How bare minimum bike maintenance is all you really need

2. Bike tech that works (and bike tech that doesn’t!)

3. How bikes are a hub that connect us to the wider world and to each other

You can also expect rants about politics, animated gifs, and lots of cats.

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Why “Spanner in the Works”?

To my American readers, a spanner is a wrench here in the UK, and the delightful phrase itself means something has gone terribly wrong. Spanner is also used in a derogatory manner, much like “tool” is used in the US. However, “in the works” has multiple meanings, and rather than going with a trite cycling pun (Spoke & Word anyone?) I’ve gone with something that I think relates to what I want to do with my words.

A spanner (me, you, everyone here) in the works, learning how to do new things, making connections between disparate ideas, changing and being the change we wish to see in the world, and making mistakes along the way. I’m here to reclaim my spanner status and I hope you will join me.

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Who’s driving this thing?

Hi, I’m Jenni Gwiazdowski.

I’m a mechanic, published author (I wrote How to Build a Bike, get in touch if you want a signed copy!), serial entrepreneur (hi ADHD), and cat herder (that’s Tuesday, above).

In my 20’s I used to be a teacher, and rediscovered cycling while I lived in Japan from 2003-2006. But it wasn’t till I moved to London in 2008 that I became obsessed with bikes and wanted to learn more. I got my City & Guilds Level 2 bike mechanic certification in 2011 and set up the London Bike Kitchen in 2012 with the express purpose of teaching everyday cyclists everyday bike maintenance. I have taught tens of thousands of people how to take care of their bikes (it scared me when I made that calculation, but it’s real!)

I have been writing a newsletter since I had the idea of LBK, and moved over to Substack in 2023.

Consider me your interpreter: I translate bike jargon into the useful bits. I’m here to share how-tos and hot takes alongside tips and tricks.

My goal is to lift up the curtain on the bike industry and enlighten you.

Why subscribe?

Don’t take my word for it - the most consistent feedback I get is that it’s the only newsletter that people read from start to finish. High praise indeed.

A brilliant newsletter. Read every word (how many newsletters can claim that?).

Thank you for writing it,

Theo

Because I want bike education and knowledge to spread as widely as possible, this newsletter will always be free.

• The newsletter will come out once or twice a month, with some bonus newsletters sprinkled in between.

• I also work part time at Herne Hill Velodrome as their Operations Manager / Marketing Manager / Mechanic so expect some HHV content as well!

Why become a paying subscriber?

Whoever controls the purse, controls the message. I take no money from grants or sponsors. This means that what you’re reading is untainted by capitalism, a genuine take, humanly honest, and honestly human.

But I also want these words to reach as many people as possible, so there will never be a paywall (unless there’s a reeeally personal story).

To that end, I have bucked the trend and brought the cost down to £3.50/mo or £35/year. If you have the means, I’d appreciate the support. Your recognition means that I can spend more time writing and connecting the dots.

If you sign up to be a paying subscriber, you’ll help keep this message going, AND you’ll also get access to the private Discord server with:

• Bike mechanic advice on tap

• Like-minded folks

• Behind the scenes messages and updates

📚Knowledge = Power⚡

If you’re curious about knowledge, empowerment, cycling, pushing boundaries, progressive politics, and what it’s like to be a woman in the bike industry, join me for the ride.

“I don't usually read newsletters and having been a bit of a fanatic commuter and long distance cyclist, I haven't touched my bike for going on for a year now thanks to a long term health condition. So all that to say, you'd think it would be very unlikely that I'd open your newsletters. However, I read them regularly with great interest. Your humour, your quirky writing style, your ethics and the new things I learn each time, I love it all. And after today's email left me with tears streaming down my cheeks, I knew I had to write in to tell you. Please keep doing what you're doing - it's so important. And I'm sure many others really appreciate it.”

~ anonymous