The Radavist

Any guy will tell you that putting a bike together for his lady can be an emotionally taxing event. Luckily for me, Lauren knew exactly what she wanted when I proposed the idea of buying her a new bike for her birthday. She loved my Icarus and Ian’s work but wanted something practical to commute on here in Austin. I was pushing for a full-on touring bike but she doesn’t like the idea of bigger tires and wanted something zippier.

What we agreed on is a mashup of a few things: primarily a long-reach caliper, lower trail road bike. It’ll fit 28c tires and fenders or 32c without, it has rack mounts on the front and the rear for any sort of light touring or camping we’d do but most importantly, the front cockpit is by no means racey…

She liked the riding position of her Tokyo Fixed Dream Machine build but wanted the bars a little wider and better stopping power than her cantis. After finally wrapping my head around figuring out what she wanted, we met up with Ian of Icarus Frames, who measured her and went through the new frame procedure.

In the meanwhile, I started looking for parts. Rather than going all budget, I splurged a bit and went with a lot of American-manufactured products. Ian was making a stem to accomodate the back sweep of Nitto Albatross bars to which we’d run barcon shifters on. Chris King had these “ox-blood” Sotto Voce headsets at NAHBS, so I picked one up. Then, I consulted my friend PAUL and kinda went all out. Soon, I had purchased Canti Levers, polished Medium Racers, Moon Units, Polished Tall & Handsome seat post, Funky Money cable hanger and it didn’t stop there…

As with any commuter, gearing is a key factor. Lauren had been riding a single speed to work consistently but some of the hills en route to her teaching job were a bit tough. We also want to be able to do longer rides out to the hill country, so I chose the White Industries VBC cranks (46/30) with a mid-cage Shimano 105 rear derailleur and a 12-32 cassette. Shimano 105 hubs to H+Son TB 14s are bomb-proof, budget wheels. Topping the build off are Panaracer Paselas 32c, Brooks B 17 S saddle and tape.

The paint would be from Fresh Frame and the color we chose is an elusive one. Was it blue? Or green? It changes with the light. In the shade, it’s sort of jade but in the sun, it sparkles blue. Whatever it is, the final product is stunning.

While the bike is shown here, sans racks, we’re in the process of tracking down a good front basket and a rear rack for panniers. The bike is light, coming in at just a hair over 19 lbs and it “rides like a dream”. If it were my bike, I would have done a few things differently but that’s the beauty of a custom bike, you get what YOU want and trust me, there are few arguments I’m willing to engage in with this lady. She always gets what SHE wants… who can blame her? Further down the road, I’ll look into new panniers and maybe a porteur bag but for now, I’ve spent enough money on this thing!

Many thanks to Austin Bikes for the build, Bens Cycle for the assistance in the components, Ian Sutton of Icarus Frames and Bryan Myers at Fresh Frame.

When Josh from Avery County Cycles won the rookie of the year award at this year’s NAHBS, I don’t think anyone was surprised. I for one, was not in the least bit. His self-described Colorado front-range commuter is a mixture of things. Part cross bike, part light-tourer / commuter, with a trail suitable for off-roading. He kept the rear end tight, at 405mm and a nice, even bb drop of 65mm. While there are rack provisions on the rear, Josh prefers a bit of backpack camping.

Enough about the use and geometry, this is a show bike with all the suiting accoutrement. The hardware is copper-plated, there’s a machined lamp tab on the non-drive fork, Avery “A” fork crown inlay and a ‘perty blue matte coat of paint. The color really looks great in person. In fact, this whole bike looks great in person and in photos. See for yourself in the Gallery!

“A little bit of racing and a little bit of light touring” seems to be what a lot of people want from their cross bikes. That’s exactly what Gordon told Firefly when he put down his deposit. This cross bike has fender and rack mounts for weekend getaways and mini-v’s for road riding. Come cross season, he’ll pop on some 32c cross tires and get her nice and muddy. It’s always a pleasure to photograph a Firefly, especially when the owner is such a stand up guy. Denver has such rad bikes and such great people. It’s been a hell of a trip. Oh and, thanks for the hangover man!

Ira Ryan and Tony Pereira‘s new framebuilding company, Breadwinner unveiled their full range at the 2013 NAHBS. While Ira and Tony’s own speciality approach to frame building is still present, the branding and choice paint selection unify the brand into one of the most impressive offerings I saw today. Some details from previous projects returned with new life and with a breathe of confidence, the two Portland builders have a very promising future ahead of them.

Over the past few years, the crew at Geekhouse Bikes have slowly grown apart from their brightly-colored, low-pro, bent seat tube, triple triangle track bikes that they became so well known for. This slow and steady move towards class, with a bit of sass has culminated in their 2013 NAHBS offerings in Denver. New this year are the Brentwood Porteur and Hopedale Light Tourer. Both bikes would make ideal vehicles for a weekend camping trip, or around town jaunts. These models will be available in conjunction with Geekhouses’ already established models. Let me just say the brightly-colored Mudville singlespeed disk cross looks so dialed. Even the Adria Klora-designed graphics are top notch. Well done guys!

Check out some more photos, by the lovely Heather McGrath in the gallery!

Detroit has a long tradition of US manufacturing and it’s this very tradition that Shinola is looking to continue with their brand. The company began with watches, a common, everyday object that hasn’t been mass produced in the United States for decades. But Shinola knew that in order to bring that industry back to Detroit, they’d have to enlist in the help of true craftsmen. Ronda AG, a Lausen, Switzerland-based movement manufacturer is working with Shinola on their Argonite 1069 watch movement assemblage and that’s only the beginning.

Similarly, when Shinola began to design their bicycles, they looked to Wisconsin and the Waterford facilities for fabrication. Inspired by French porteurs and light tourers, the Shinola Runwell is an ideal city bike and you don’t need any fancy Swiss movement to get these bikes rolling. An 11-speed Alfine hub effortlessly shifts this mid-trail bike through your city or countryside. Load up the front rack with groceries, post office runs, beer, or what have you and just go! If you need to stop on a dime, the mechanical disk brakes will do the trick.

The Runwell has details. Waterford’s simple and classy lugwork, along with a bright Cherokee red paint job (it’s really bright!) really compliments the mostly chrome components. Even the gusset on the non-drive fork leg resolves any stress riser issue you might have with disk tabs on a mid-trail ride. Shinola went the extra mile with their branded saddle and grips and the 32c Continental Contact tires will roll without getting flats from thorns or glass.

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