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Photo by Jack Stewart-Castner
So I made it down to Philly in one piece. Our trip was a huge success and I’ll post up photos once they’re all dumped to my hard drive. I know there’s so much to catch up from this weekend so bear with me while I sort through this mess! While I’m writing some posts, here’s a photos Jack Stewart-Castner took of me and Tony Fast at the Philly Bike Expo / NY Bike Jumble today.
Nice meeting you dude! Thanks for the photo!
When Roland from REload hit me up shortly after I initially posted the Flight Pack asking if I wanted to try one out, I was stoked. I love REload and the way I see it, they pretty much started the whole “custom messenger bag” thing. They’re also located in Philly and I always like supporting East Coast companies. Shortly after I confirmed my address with Roland, a Flight Pack arrived and I started using it as my daily bag. While it’s not hyper-organized, its simplicity is part of its allure.
Check out more of my review below.
Sometimes It’s easy to forget that many framebuilders call Brooklyn home. Even in my neighborhood. Thomas Callahan runs Horse Cycles, a small company on N3rd street in Williamsburg. While Thomas enjoys fillet brazing, he’s also familiar with the fine art that is working with lugs. From the mean street machines to the refined touring bikes, Horse Cycles creates some beautiful bicycles.
Check out my shop visit below!
It’s safe to say that Thomas from Horse Cycles has his own modus operandi. From his frame designs to his graphics, he’s carved a niche in NYC for custom bicycles. This spills over into other areas of his company. Take for instance these new cycling caps he made for the 2010 Philly Bike Expo. Rather than buying yards of fabric, he went out and bought old suits and ripped them into usuable material. Then he commissioned a local seamstress to design a new template for his caps. Using the old material for the hat body and trim, he created a unique silhoutte. Not bad!
These caps will be available at the Philly Bicycle Expo so make sure you’re in attendance.
After my morning ride today, I swung through East River Tattoo to drop off a drawing to Lyam Sparkes, who’s in town for a few weeks tattooing. When I rolled up to the shop, I saw Duke outside working on a mural.
Check out nine more photos below, including a sneak peek at my visit to Horse Cycles.
A few weeks back, during our State Bicycle Ti All-Road review, a conversation about titanium unfurled in the comments. The Radavist is uniquely positioned to have this discussion as we’ve amassed more Beautiful Bicycle galleries than anyone else on the web, and a large portion of these feature titanium frames. In the eighteen years of documenting cycling culture, we’ve also amassed a large contact list in the framebuilding world.
In an attempt to demystify the material, we reached out to No. 22 Bicycle Company for a bit of Ti Talk.
In today’s Dust-Up opinion column, John brings up a controversial point about the disconnect between the “handmade” language surrounding bicycle framebuilder showcases and Asian-produced bicycle frames. Hold onto your butts for this one!
For McKenzie Barney, cycling the world was never about chasing a record, or even adhering to all of the Guinness Book of Records parameters to qualify for an “official” time. But after an introduction to bike touring in Vietnam and learning about the 18,000-mile goal post for a “Cycle the World” completion, she was intrigued. For the next few years she planned, scrimped and saved between trips while pursuing her own Cycling the World project. Earlier this year, she completed the project after having ridden 18,000 miles, in 28 countries, and on five continents. Read on for Part 1 of her journey download, where she writes about moving from thru hiking to bike touring, gaining solo experience in Europe, and then putting it to the test on a ride from Cairo to Cape Town with her partner James. Plus, don’t miss the trailer to her upcoming self-documented, self-edited film!
We’d like to think we’re pretty alright at photographing bikes over here at The Radavist. The steeds we choose to document reflect our audience’s preferences and capture distinct trends in bicycle design. Yet, each year as we reflect on all the builds that have rolled through this cyber showroom, we’re always surprised to see what the Top Ten list reveals. This year, we’ve got a good mix of bikes, outfitted with flat and droopy bars, running rubber across the size spectrum, and made of steel, aluminum and yes, even carbon. Let’s get to it!
I couldn’t stop moving the day before Gravel Camp. I was so excited, so nervous, and full of jitters. For years this camp had been an idea; since last year it was a real goal; and for the past two months, it was practically a part-time job.
Together, my fellow organizers (and friends), and I planned a weekend bike summer camp for femme, trans, women, and non-binary (FTWNB) folks to build the skills, confidence, and community to adventure on their bikes. From all over the East Coast and as far as Colorado, campers were coming to New Haven, CT, to learn about bike mechanics, riding skills, and bikepacking — all while in a community with other Queer, BIPOC, and radically cool riders. After years of dreaming, it was finally here.
Our Radar Roundup compiles products and videos from the ‘net in an easy-to-digest format. Read on below for today’s findings…
The Doppo ATB has been a popular frame for Sim Works since its original release in 2018. Over the years we’ve documented multiple ATB builds (like this, this, and this) highlighting the frame’s versatility. With the updated model that’s available today, Sim Works has made it even more capable by using a lighter tubing spec, changing from quick-release to 100×12 thru-axles, Paragon rear dropouts, and three-pack mounts on fork legs and underside of the downtube. Continue reading for more details from Sim Works…
Call it what you will, but 2016 was an interesting year and I’m not just talking politics! There were a lot of incredible bicycles featured here on the site, many with even more interesting stories and some were even affected by the events of 2016. We’ll get into that a bit later. Grading these beautiful machines is anything but easy and usually requires a few days of data compiling, including but not limited to social media chatter, visits, comments and time spent on that particular page. Since all bikes can be beautiful, this list includes both custom and production bicycles. Some of these will be a no-brainer, others even surprised me. Without further adieu, here are the Radavist’s Top 10 and Then Some Beautiful Bicycles of 2016, in no particular order.
Thomas from Horse Cycles has come a long way since his first track frame. It was about 5 years ago when I met him and in that time, he’s gone on to build touring bikes, road and townies. His new shop, located in Bushwick carries its own character. With rent prices through the roof, builders are forced to deal with tight, cramped quarters.
There’s more in store for Horse Cycles these next few months, with a new storefront planned and a complete city bike package, Thomas is going to have a busy winter. I caught up with him before I left for Philly, for the Bike Expo to see what he’s been up to. Check out more photos of his workshop below.
