BikeGremlin started in 2015 as a straightforward attempt to document practical cycling knowledge in a way that was searchable, structured, and actually useful in the real world.
From the beginning, the goal was simple: write things down properly so they would not have to be explained again and again, and so others could learn without relying on forums, hearsay, or marketing copy.
The spark
The initial idea was by my friend Gox (link to Gox’s articles on my I/O website) – suggesting I should publish my tech notes for other people to use too, and he even helped me buy a domain and start by using hosting that he was paying for.
I have the urge to keep things systematic and structured – it is how my brain works and how I memorize things – but I never considered that could be useful to other people worldwide.
Nomen est omen
As the ancient Latins said. I had to pick a good name.
Since I am very much into both bicycles and motorcycles, along with other stuff, and I was planning to write about all that interests me, I thought that “Bike Gremlin” was a nice universal term, that is still unique enough (no one sane would call their brand that way 🙂 ).
2015 – The start – writing it down properly
The first BikeGremlin articles were published in 2015.
Cycling articles were written in two parallel tracks:
- In Serbo-Croatian, on www.bikegremlin.com
Now on bicikl.bikegremlin.com – read on for details - In English, on www.bike.bikegremlin.com
Wordpress added the “www” by default and that came to bite me in the ass – the site is now moved to bike.bikegremlin.com
The focus was on practical cycling topics: components, maintenance, compatibility, and buying advice. The structure mattered as much as the information. I wrote articles to be read years later, not just to answer a question once.
Website visual (UI & UX) redesign story
2017 – YouTube – video as a necessary tool
In 2017, the first BikeGremlin YouTube videos were published.
Video was never meant to replace written articles. I added it because some things are genuinely hard to explain using only text and photos: mechanical movement, sound, feel, and visual alignment.
So, the videos were created to support articles, not to chase views. They demonstrated what the articles explained… with an occasional spontaneous monologue: 🙂
It grew into a parallel source over the years, when I realized that some people prefer learning by watching, and that I enjoy making videos too (along with writing articles). 🙂
2018 – The site downtime – infrastructure matters
By early 2018, it became clear that infrastructure mattered as much as the website design. I had problems with my site going down from being overloaded with visitors (the first in my performance article series when I was fixing this problem).
That year brought two important changes:
- Moving to a more reliable hosting
(Veerotech first, now with MDDHosting mostly) - Removing the
wwwfrom the English cycling site
The English site was consolidated to bike.bikegremlin.com, with permanent 301 redirects put in place using Cloudflare rules. Those redirects remain active to this day.
Later in 2018, the scope widened beyond bicycles.
2018 – The I/O site
In autumn 2018, io.bikegremlin.com was launched.
This site focused on the technical side of running websites: hosting, performance, security, backups, and structure. It exists because good information is useless if a site is slow, unstable, insecure, or impossible to navigate.
The same principles applied: long-term usefulness, clear structure, and no marketing fluff (see ODEI™ for more details).
2019 – Separating language and purpose
In 2019, the Serbo-Croatian cycling site was moved from www.bikegremlin.com to bicikl.bikegremlin.com.
At the same time, www.bikegremlin.com was redefined as a hub rather than an articles site. Its role became linking to all BikeGremlin resources: websites, YouTube channels, and other projects (it now also hosts an index of my published YouTube videos – for easier search).
This separation made the whole ecosystem clearer:
- Language-specific info on dedicated subdomains
- A neutral entry point for everything else
2020 – The blog
In 2020, this very site, blog.bikegremlin.com was launched.
The blog exists for topics that do not fit neatly into technical guides or tutorials. It allows a looser structure and a more reflective format.
While it started as a general blog, it now includes serious articles on technology, philosophy, history, the web, and politics, alongside lighter or more personal writing.
For some reason, many people refer to my cycling and IT sites as “blogs” – while they could not be further from a “web-log”. They are websites – encyclopedia-like websites.
2021 – Small-scale hosting and email services
In early 2021, two service-oriented projects were added.
bikegremlin.rs became a very small, first-name basis hosting service. It runs like a real hosting provider, with proper infrastructure and a helpdesk, just without any ambition to scale or market aggressively.
bikegremlin.top was created as a hub for email-related services, functioning as a focused sub-section of the hosting work.
Both exist to solve real problems for a small number of people (and small companies), not to grow into products.
2023 – The Forum, finally
In late 2023, bikegremlin.net was launched.
For years, I avoided running a forum out of concern that it would fragment the audience and weaken existing communities such as 2bike.rs or BikeForums. In hindsight, that concern turned out to be misplaced.
The forum is not a competitor. It is a BikeGremlin Q&A space.
A forum is better than WordPress comments for:
- Moderation and spam protection
- Long-term readability
- Structured discussions and follow-ups
Separating authored content and community-created information also makes sense:
- Articles remain on the
*.bikegremlin.comdomains - Community discussions live on
bikegremlin.net
That separation is likely healthier in the long run.
2026 – Archived material in my native and change of pace
Google started censoring all the independent sites in favour of corporate sites like Reddit and Forbes.
Most Internet users started favouring corporate or commercial sites (like Park Tool for bicycles).
My work has become practically invisible for most people searching (either on Google or other search engines). So, with next-to-no readers, it is back to my personal notes – as it started. Having it all online is convenient for me. But I don’t need dual-language notes, that is just needless extra effort. Still, for about a thousand people worldwide still using my work, I’ve decided to keep the one online version in English, because auto-translations to any language work best from English (definitely a lot better than from my native Serbocroatian).
To explain my reasons and thinking, I published a video in my native, but with English subtitles:
What BikeGremlin is today
Officially unrecognized and unappreciated by any computer or cycling initiative, website or portal – and cherished by many individuals – cycling and tech. enthusiasts and mechanics. Quite ironic.
BikeGremlin is not a single site. It is a loosely connected ecosystem built around a few consistent principles (I call ODEI™):
- Practical, experience-based information
- Structure over trends
- Longevity over reach
- Clear separation between authored information and community discussion
A full up-to-date list of my resources is on:
https://www.bikegremlin.com/#bike-in
It grew slowly, mostly by necessity, and often by fixing problems that did not have good existing solutions.
Nothing here was built to be “content” in the modern sense. It was built to be used.
Funding and independence
BikeGremlin is run at roughly financial break-even.
Infrastructure costs are covered, but my work is unpaid time and effort (and expertise to keep it all stable, secure, and low-cost). This is a deliberate choice. It keeps the project independent, small enough to manage properly, and free from pressure to optimise for traffic, advertising, sponsorships, or growth.
A part of the infrastructure costs is covered by voluntary Patreon support, which helps keep the project sustainable without changing its scope or priorities.
That financial structure is also why the ecosystem looks the way it does: focused, objective (without avoiding being opinionated when that makes sense), and built for long-term usefulness rather than short-term visibility.
Conclusion
I want to thank my family, friends, and all the good people who have helped me and supported me over the years. I put in a huge amount of effort and time, but this would not have been possible to do all by myself.
BikeGremlin will continue to evolve slowly, as it always has – driven by practical needs rather than trends or platforms. As long as there are things worth explaining properly, they will be written down and published here.
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