Started the day out with some sunshine but it was about 22 degrees and a solid 20 MPH wind rockin' along. No chance at all for a ride, and even bumping up the motivation to get into the garage and do some bike mechanic-ing was waning.
I heard a little blurb on the radio about the North American Handmade Bike Show at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver, so, Debbie was game for the drive and off we went!
We really have become a couple of small town rubes.....we went around a few blocks looking for parking and then while walking over a few blocks we caught each other doing some rubber-necking at the tall buildings, both of us wondering why people live way up there???
Anyway, Her are some pictures of bikes that I thought were cool. What am I saying......everybike there was cool in it's own way. If you ever wonder about the direction the design and technology of bike world is going attend one of these shows. People out there are very creative and excited about the work they are doing!
Just inside the front door was this wooden bike to catch my eye. It is made with laminated wood Much like an LVL piece of support beam.
There were many bikes with Gates belt drive systems and Roloff style gearing.
This was the first of many, many fat tire bikes. This had a Lincoln penny, copper theme going for it.
This was one of Debbie's favorites (and mine too!!) of the show. The stylish line made this a very sexy bike to look at!. Just Beautiful!
I just liked this handlebar set on the bike.
This was a nice bikepacking set-up, although there was better to come!
Pinky Fat-Bike!!
How about a handmade track bike??? There were all styles of riding displayed! Track bikes, cyclocross, fat tire, trail, road, touring, cargo, tandem, everything!!
Not sure how you would ever get comfortable on this bike!
Here is the ultimate adventure/work bike. These were made by Moots Cycles out of Steamboat for the forest service crews.
These two bikes were in my opinion the most crafstman/artistic bike there. except for the drive system and brakes,and rear spokes, everything else was a piece of wood. Handlebars, seatposts,forks,even seats....wood. The builder was a wood boat builder that just decided between boat projects to build up theses bikes.
All in all a great way to spend a day and even worth the drive to Denver! Fat tire bikes are really the buzz and driving the market for future bike sales according to many of the guys I talked with. Debbie spent the most time in the Brompton booth talking up folding bikes. Maybe she'll just get interested!!!
My personal favorite??? There was a beautiful touring bike there by Littlefield bikes that I got so interested in I forgot to take a picture!
Spring is coming people!!
Jim
What a wonderful outing. Not having such a great bike show here, I braved the 25mph Oklahoma breeze and rode. I would have rather went to the Handmade Bike Show....Hmmm wood seats....... I guess! I once saw a bike with a carbon fiber saddle .... no padding at all, just hard carbon fiber. The owner said .... the padding is in your pants! Well now....I know I'm carrying a bit more weight than I should, but really! .... Oh wait..... maybe he meant the chamois........
ReplyDeleteThose last wood bikes were really just show pieces. maybe taken out for a ride in a parade or some kind of event like that. The other wood bike at the show were very functional. There were a couple of companies with bamboo frames with off road and road versions.
ReplyDeleteLittleford was the bike I really liked, not Littlefield. It really had no more functionality than my Surly LHTrucker but it was beautiful. His finish was to let the frame rust, and then seal in the patina with clear coat. That and an upgrade on the components. It had almost the same gearing that Surly has with bar ends that I like.
It also had the generator for the lighting system, all internal wiring.
If you go to their site, it is the Expedition Rig. They have pictures
DeleteI'm jealous. Maybe I'll make Vegas this year. I need a gig with one of the magazines to cover these things.
ReplyDeleteGonzo style, of course.
Copper is the new thing. Looks good, too, doesn't it?
tj
I like that, gonzo style. Now that you bring it up, you could be a poor man's Hunter S.
DeleteOr a harder working incarnation.
You know when I first walked into the show, I thought I would have a big pang of envy, but it never hit me. Kind-of like having a 10 year old Subaru that really does the job and then going to the car show to look at Ferrari's and such. They are cool to look at but I really would never want one. I would be freaked out to own a $8000 custom made bike. How could you have any fun on that? Unless of course, I had 10 million in the bank and then what difference would it make???