Made Bike Show Day 3

There's fantastic coverage of the Made Bike Show out there. This isn't it. You should look at the excellent coverage from other places, like bikepacking.com. I went with my son Sam to visit with friends who were at the show, take pictures of bikes and cool stuff. Here are my pics and videos, with some commentary on my part.

We got into Portland late Saturday, to visit our kids. Sam and I had tickets for Made. We did not got an early start. We got there Sunday, around 1:30. The show closed at 4. These photos and videos were shot in a hurry, mostly in between talking with friends. It's taken me way more time to crop, edit, research, caption and write about the show than the time I spent there. Maybe some of you will read this. If you make it to the end, you deserve a medal.

Sunday morning I assembled my Falconer gravel bike, in the process discovering some really unfortunate rust. I just had this frame repainted with powder coat three years ago. I don't wash it as much as I should. This made me think about gravel bike frames all day...

I rode from my daughter's house to my son's house, where we had a little lunch, then rode to the show.

There were interesting bikes parked outside:

Crust Bombora from Virginia

Omnium cargo bike from Denmark

3T gravel bike, all green, from Italy

A Breadwinner from Portland, OR, a Bourdeau from Seaside, CA and a Rockhopper from the big red S

That Bourdeau and a Rockhopper

That Breadwinner

I met, and rode with this guy later, Alex. This was his Ritchey track bike. (Ritchey track bike?!)

A Wilde bike

This guy was holding forth about tall bikes out front. I took a picture of him because he was wearing a t-shirt that read "SHELDON BROWN APPRECIATION SOCIETY." Cam Falconer said he's known him since he was a kid.

This guy, I think he said his name was Yad, had a booth that appeared to just be the bikes in his old mountain bikes collection, complete with rolling tool box, garage ephemera, etc. I was very appreciative of him, and his old bikes. If you're a bike nerd of a certain age, who grew up with bikes like these in the 1980s, you will appreciate this next set:

Lawill-Knight Pro Cruiser

Mantis X Frame, by Richard Cunningham

Powerlite 26

After this, I just started snapping. These bikes just caught my eye.

I think this was a Stooge Scrambler Ti. I know I really liked it. Behind it was, I think, a Stridsland ti.

An Otso Hoot and a Crust Desert Brat

An Ibis Ripley SL. I wish this had existed when I bought my Ripley V5. The Ripley is great, but it's kind of a tank at 33lbs.

This Sour Cycles bike, and the next few all had Madrone derailleurs

Wolfhound

English

My son Sam said he liked that fade paint jobs were coming back. This was a Velo Orange Rando. I think Serotta did this color combo, and many others.

A Bantam Bicycle Works bike with Ortlieb bags

This guy, True Marmalade / Erik Bingesser was working at the show. He and his very long cargo touring bike were fascinating. He'd criss-crossed the country many times, and during the 2020 Covid lockdown he'd ridden every street in LA. He had a sign "Let me take a photo of your knife! BLADES of MADE." He was definitely one of the more interesting people I met at the show.

He was working alongside my good friend Frank Shoemaker, who I didn't photograph, but who I did hug. What a good guy. He's someone I know from cyclocross, working NorCal races together, and he puts on the Folsom Rodeo Cross races.

My friend Jay and I found each other, and he and Sam and I roamed the show. I took a few more random pictures...

The bus was maybe cooler than the Singular bike. Was it a 32" wheeled bike? It's hard to tell, but there were a lot of them at the show.

This bike, a Wilde Pleezer, was one of my favorite. I snapped fast, and I think both shots are out of focus. It's obviously an homage to the first Breezer Series 1 mountain bikes.

The line from Don McLean's American Pie was going through my head when I got to the Paul Components booth, "three men I admire most / The Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost." Greg Williams and Paul Price have both had a huge impact on bike culture, especially in the California corner where I live. Another, sadly missed, but present I think in the bikes and hearts of everyone there was Mark Norstad. I can't put people in a pantheon, but those three are special. David Wilcox, representing Enduro Bearings, a friend Oakland and BTCEB was there, and California Travis, the pied piper of bikepacking overnighters and marketing honcho and Paul Components were also there, and a young guy who works at Paul, but I've forgotten his name. Sorry!

I am bossy with the camera phone. "Shake hands," I told Greg and David.

Some rad bikes on top of Paul's dune buggy

The young guy and Paul

Greg sticks his head in it

Paul and Greg

I think this was an English Cycles "super commuter" bike with Bosch power assist, Gates Belt, Shimano internally-geared hub

A neat Tex-Lock lock

Max Keegan of Mostly Forever had his rad titanium wares at the show

Max's titanium bike, ready to go out.

I like Max's style

A Mosaic gravel bike, pretty, but leaves me cold.

These builders, starting with Memento from Montreal all had one thing in common; the tubes for their bikes came from the same provider.

Memento Cycles

A blurry pic of Sam and Jay

A Broakland bike, represented by Oakland local and legend Jason Montano, formerly of Montano Velo

I really liked this clever substitution of a dice, for brake levers on the Broakland. I suppose you are rolling the dice when you wish you had brakes, and brake levers.

One of my favorite people in the bike world is Jeremy Sycip. He was hanging out with Joseph Ahearne, Mike DeSalvo and Allen, AKA Aosty. Aosty showed me his laser-cut steel creations, and he urged me to order a 32" gravel bike from Jeremy. After seeing the rust on my 9-year-old Falconer, I was thinking about Jeremey, and his ti bikes...

Aosty.co

Aosty's lugs

Lug with press-fit Sycip stainless crown

A Sycip stainless crown...

...brazed onto a Sycip segmented fork crown/leg

Aosty and a 32" Sycip gravel bike

hand made in Santa Rosa, CAlifornia. I liked the WWII steel pennies.

Joseph, Jeremy, Allen

Allen, Joseph, Jeremy, Morgan

Allen in front of a Mini Cooper and another Sycip bike

The baja bug at Mike DeSalvo's booth

Matching baja bug, DeSalvo bike and Mike DeSalvo

Next I ran into Matt Feeney of Pass and Stow racks. I've been trying to get Matt to ride with me, back in Oakland. We had nice conversation, then a frantic Curtis Inglis came through, said hi, was in a hurry, and he pulled his big ole 32" wheel Retrotec with Matt's beautiful racks off the display. I think he and the bike had to get to a photo shoot / interview? I documented.

Curtis, taking down his 32" wheel Retrotec, with Pass and Stow front and rear racks. The rear rack is new. Check it out.

Matt and Curtis, two excellent people

SimWorks bike toys and fashionable objects

SimWorks

SimWorks and their Marcel Duchamp homage

A Sycip ATB with an FJ45 pickup RC car mounted on the bars, because

Sycip with deployable FJ45 RC car

This thing was beautiful, a Jeffrey Bock road bike

A La Marche townie

A La Marche... utility bike? I like the design

A Donkelope in sharp contrast. Who took this picture?!

A better view of that Donkelope

And who emerges from the shadows? Stevil Kinevil. This is Jay and Stevil.

Stevil's middle finger, Stevil and me. I'm wearing my SSWC 2008 shirt from Napa, which he designed. It's so threadbare, I wore it "one more time," hoping I might see him and/or Curtis - who put on SSWC that year - at the show. I saw both. Lucky me.

I next found Ron Andrews at the King Cage booth doing his legendary, on-premise fabrication of a King Cage titanium water bottle cage. He does all but the final weld in person. Definitely worth a watch. While he creates it, I'm asking him about the nalgene-sized, titanium King bottle cage that I'd heard about from his daughter, and which he had on display. I will be buying a pair! He reminded me about the o-ring solution, for keeping Voile straps from dropping out from behind the cage.

King Cage oversized (Nalgene-sized) bottle cage. I want two.

Next I made it to the Clever Standard table. They always have the best stuff. This year, Karsten - I think that was his name - from Reno was representing the Clever Standard product line. Last time, I bought the tire plug kit that was packaged like a plastic model set. This year I got a pair of their purple Captain Hook valve caps, per Bike Rumor, "Another smart little tool that Clever Standard had to show was their new Captain Hook. The colorful valve caps not only serve as valve core wrenches, but they have another tool that anyone with stuck valve nuts will love.

The bottom of the tool is shaped to fit the flat found on most valve nuts on tubeless valves. While using one tool to hold the valve core from spinning, you can use the other to loosen the valve nut in cases where it’s stuck with tire sealant, road salt, sea salt, etc.

Additional features include a 3.23mm spoke wrench at the hook side, and a 3.30mm spoke wrench at the valve side. Additionally, the size of the tool allows brands or bike shops to include their logos and a QR code in the laser etching."

After that, I was just straight snapping for a while:

Two seats, one pair of pedals, straight-up style

Joshua Muir of Frances Cycles demonstrates his Trishaw. He and I briefly talked about Pedalborn Pictures Cycling Without Age.

Joshua talks about the Trishaw

A brand that has been part of cycling since I was a kid; Tange Seiki

MX320 headsets, beautiful

Another legendary Japanese brand, Nitto

Nitto wares

These next bikes were all featured in the "Builder's Lounge." All I know are what I snapped:

Manzanita Cycles

Prova Cycles

Bilenky Cycle Works

Landyachtz

Forma Bicycles

Baum Cycles

Big Block Bikes Matchlight Tribute

Haute Bicycle Co - I have their Twisted T-Bar bag support

Ira Ryan Cycles

Haute Bicycle Co

Montenegro Manufacturing

Baphomet Bicycles / All Bikes Welcome raffle bike

Nikas Bikes

Ira Ryan again

More Japanese legendary brands:

Honjo mudguards (fenders)

MKS pedals

MKS pedals, the one in the top-center has an ingenious quick release, allowing you to remove the pedals for transport without tools.

Izumi chains, they told me they only sold chains up to 8spd, or maybe it was 9spd, because they are the OEM manufacturer for Shimano, and therefore don't compete.

Then we ran into our friends Adam and Katie, newlyweds and soon bound for Barcelona, and I met Katie's older sister Rachel, and Rachel's husband David.

Katie and Rachel

Sam and Adam

Sam, Jay, Adam, Katie

Had a nice talk with this guy from Efficient Velo Tools (EVT) of Washougal, WA

I don't need any of this, but I want all of it.

A really nice workstand. One kind is made in Asia, one in Washougal, WA. They are similar.

More EVT

Fine Bikes

Another Fine Bikes bike, this one I guess a show winner, and wow, was it beautiful. I apologize for the lack of focus.

Fine Bike detail. So pretty.

More of that Fine Bike

Google Lens tells me this is a Telepathy Opus. Aside; shouldn't you be able to tell the brand of a bicycle by reading its logo? Also, check out that drivetrain, those pulleys and guides.

English Cycles bikepacking bike; cool trussed fork / front bedroll carrier

A really cool, vise-mounted wheel holder (for wheel building) from Remco Tools

More from Remco Tools

Mad Monkey

Anna Schwinn's Significant Other

Another Significant Other

Josh Ogle Design V3 titanium full-suspension

This was one of my favorites, a Curtis-Inglis-built 32"-wheel Tumbleweed Sunliner, for Daniel Molloy

Daniel's titanium Sunliner, fresh off the Iceland Divide

Daniel had Jay of Bags by Bird make this lightweight, stripped-down front bag

Tumbleweed Persuader handlebars

Another look at that ti Sunliner. Hmm...

Chris Chance, at background left, with a Fat Chance cyclocross bike in foreground

old and new Fat Chance frames, and shirts

Yellow Bird Thread Works bike jewelry

I've been following Brian Chapman's work for a while. His hand-made craftsmanship of everything is really amazing. He doesn't just make frames, he makes brakes, racks. He reminds me a bit of Bruce Gordon. This was a beautiful Chapman Cycles bike.

Chapman Cycles

A neat, older Litespead restovation

Good Grief / Drust

I read / watched about this Rare Earth Cycle gravel bike, built for Neil Beltchenko. Amazing.

Rons Bikes in all red

I told these two, "I'm gonna take your picture." Ron and a show attendee

Another dune buggy, that's Carl Decker just out of frame.

That logo is hard to read, but this is a Sour Bicycles bike

Cyclepath is a bike shop(s) in Portland, Oregon. My friend Alan works there.

High Above makes bags.

Waterford is legendary.

Sam said these Trickstuff C42 brakes were special...

...but when he squeezed the lever on this Gunnar Retriever, he said there was no fluid in the line.

Anothar Gunnar

Sanitas Cycles

This Slow Southern Steel bike got some good press on bikepacking.com, "We kick things off with Jesse of Slow Southern Steel and his chopper-inspired 140mm hardtail, complete with Black Sabbath-inspired details."

Dimples

Henry

More SSS

This is another, neat bike, that I also watched / read about on bikepacking, from Woodpecker Cycle Co...

I was really curious about the shifter. I had a brown AMF, in the style of a Schwinn Stingray, but a bit more motocross, with a top tube shifter, when I was 9 in 1978. He said the internals were a SRAM grip shift, and that he'd built the stick shift around it. He said I could gently shift it one click, only, as the Pinion gearbox needed to be turning to effect the shifts, otherwise it would bind up. I clicked it one click.

I think this bike is so neat. The mini velo thing is... curious and appealing, yet offers not much utility to me.

I really liked the paint. I mentioned I had a Falconer which would need repaint, and we talked about how it would look with gold parts and tan decals. He gave me the paint recipe: "Prismatic Rustic Texture and then with Casper clear coat on top" Hmm!

I will miss the industrial background and overhead views of Zidell Yards, but I think a lot of the business showing wares for days at a time will not.

All I know is what's on the placard, "1970's EDDY MERCKX Merckx production bike; Dave's first rain bike in Portland." I think this stand might have been for River City Bicycles. It was late in the day, Sam was done, and they were trying to usher us all out.

There was a sign that said something like "try to ride this backwards bike." The steering moved the wheel in the opposite direction.

Fail bike steering. Soulcraft in background. Was hoping to see Sean Walling.

Here is Billy Sinkford telling us all to go home:

"It is time for you to go to one of the two exits so that we can start letting the frame builders go home."

Two Retrotecs - this might have been the best photo of the best bikes I took all day. The 32" wheel green one looks huge, considering the orange one is Curtis' personal bike, and I think he's 6'4".

Monē makes gravel bikes.

I saw this lady. She looked at me. Then we both realized we'd been talking at SSUSA in Chico, in October. She was Erika, Cjell Monē's partner. It was nice to reconnect. SSUSA -> Made is definitely two stops on the bike culture pilgrimage.

And commuter bikes.

Kei trucks of Made. Check the YAKIMA plate.

I saw Scot Nicol, and I was bossy again. "Scot, please go stand next to one of your bikes." "Which one?" "The old one."

Vans of Made

As we were walking to the bike valet parking, we saw so many more cool bikes. This was a Velo Orange Neutrino.

A Bishop track / fixie bike.

This guy's name was Hans. I asked about his bike. He made it.

I liked the twin top tube.

I said, "Is that elvish?" He said it was, and that it spelled something. I wish I'd asked him more.

The prizes I brought home. Also a crown from Aosty, which I might have lost, purple valve caps from Clever Standard, and two of those little Ghost twisty flowers from SimWorks. The green tie on the bottom left has "SSCXWC" on it, and the card at left is a flyer for Singlespeed Cyclocross World Championships in Bellingham, Oct 3-4, 2026. Stevil told me about it. That's him with a beer can in his mouth, near left, because. I saw the FUCK NAZIS socks at top center and had to have them. I thanked the maker, Moondust for making them. We both agreed, it's the least we can do, and we have to do so much more, and it might be too late.

After the show, Sam, Jay and Jay's friend Alex met Katie, Adam, Rachel, David and another Oakland ex-pat, Chris Corrall at a food cart place, where we had beers and fries, then Jay, Sam and I climbed up through Forest Park, then took a cutty trail down to the Saint John's Bridge. Jay was on his 20-year-old Surly fixie, which he refers to as his 'grfxl' bike. I've known Jay for about as long as he's had that Surly, which is a long time, and he's been strong as fuck that whole time. Following him up the hill, well, I got dropped. Luckily we stopped at a bench to refresh the inner man, before continuining up the hill, then dropping. Jay tried to ride the descent brakeless, which was entertaining. He almost got it! We finally arrived at family favorite Pocket Pub in time for dinner with family. What a fun day.

Jay and Alex rolling east toward, I think the Tilikum bridge

Jay and Alex

Sam said, "There's a non-US Land Cruiser up here." I stopped to take pictures of it, mostly as an excuse to catch my breath. Sam and Jay were hurting me.