#Fast-Boy-Cycles

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Golden Saddle Rides: Sean’s Fast Boy 650b Singlespeed

Reportage

Golden Saddle Rides: Sean’s Fast Boy 650b Singlespeed

Photos by Kyle Kelley

After passing away a few weeks back, Ezra Caldwell‘s work keeps popping up all over, miles away from his home studio in New York City. In fact, this bike was first built up by Golden Saddle Cyclery years back for Sean, a loyal customer living in Santa Barbara.

A singlespeed commuter is really all most people need. 650b tires provide a smooth ride and for medium sized frames, they look well-balanced proportionately. Exra had a way of proclaiming his approach with frame design by not really saying anything. While this bike may seem very straight-forward, the details in the metalwork are what first caught my eye.

The chainguard is attached by two 5mm bolts that actually pass through the down and seat tubes. Then the guard itself is incredibly elegant, especially when matched with the White Industries ENO cranks.

Stainless lugs and raw steel tubes make up the frame’s materials, with a good amount of patina forming on the steel. It must be the salt in the air. Santa Barbara is coastal, you know. The rear rack is custom, with wooden planks, which even out the overall build, especially when compared to Ezra’s signature wooden handlebars.

In a lot of ways, this bike is void of ostentation, yet meticulously detailed. Something that seemed to spill over from Ezra’s personality onto everything he touched.

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Follow Kyle on Instagram and visit Golden Saddle Cyclery in Silverlake, Los Angeles.

Your Work Will Always Move Us, Ezra Caldwell

Radar

Your Work Will Always Move Us, Ezra Caldwell

Last week, I said a farewell to Ezra Caldwell and in that time, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it means to leave this world, especially as someone who made a lot of really beautiful, meaningful moments and machines for people to enjoy their lives through.

Ezra Caldwell produced a lot of exceptionally-crafted bicycles while building Fast Boy Cycles and he was able to document them himself, so that people like me, who rarely saw his work in person, felt some attraction to these inanimate objects. His lugwork, liveries and iconography spoke with a resonance that will continue to echo through time.

This stainless heart headbadge represents Ezra’s legacy and I was lucky enough to see this bike in person at Mellow Johnny’s today, where it’s being built. Hopefully, I’ll be able to photograph the bike in its entirety, but for now, I just wanted to say thank you, Ezra Caldwell.

Thank you for showing the world your life, your struggle and your work, in a way that few can equal…

You did Teach Cancer to Cry my friend.

Ride in Peace Ezra

Radar

Ride in Peace Ezra

This is the first thing I’m posting. Ezra from Fast Boy passed away yesterday. He lost the battle with cancer… His bikes, videos and photography inspired countless people, myself included. Ride in Peace brother.

Fast Boy Cycles FASST Auctions

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Fast Boy Cycles FASST Auctions

Ezra from Fast Boy’s story is inspiring and even after he fought cancer, he’s still a huge advocate. Over on his site, he’s auctioning off two bikes:

“Both the assless and the UTA are up for auction NOW.   The auction pages are at www.fastboycycles.com.  The auctions CLOSE on wednesday at 2pm eastern time.  ALL proceeds for both auctions go to the Visiting Nurse Service of New York Home Hospice Program. ”

Go Fast Boy!

Fast Boy Visits J.P. Weigle

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Fast Boy Visits J.P. Weigle

Photos by Ezra Caldwell

I love Peter Weigle. He’s one of the nicest frame builders you’ll ever meet and even though I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting Ezra before, I’d say he’s a pretty nice guy as well. Both Fastboy and Peter’s bicycles have provided me with tons of inspiration and seeing them come together via Ezra’s lens is not to be missed… and even Jamie Swan was there! Check out more photos at the Fast Boy Flickr.