#fixed-gear

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The Cub House Bike Show and Swap: Sleek and Minimal Makino Fixed Gear

Reportage

The Cub House Bike Show and Swap: Sleek and Minimal Makino Fixed Gear

I thought these three bikes, the Carnevale, the Cinelli, and now this Makino all brought something interesting to the table at the Cub House’s Bike Show and Swap. While the previous two bikes are examples of the 60’s and 80’s, this Makino reminds me of the mid-2000’s so much. The time when track bikes were the biggest thing in cycling since mountain bikes. ATMO, anyway. I never owned an NJS bike. Mostly because it was always hard to find one in my size. Not too many Keirin racers ride 58cm or 60cm frames. Yet I always loved the work that left Makino’s shop. With their sparkly, iridescent paint, beautiful lug work and tucked and mean stances, the Makino track frames always looked like they were in the process of pouncing. While purists will scoff at the flat bars and sparkle grips, riding drops for the sake of drops never made much sense to me. Especially when riding brakeless.

Richie, the owner of the bike has pieced together quite the build. It’s classy without being hung up on that coveted NJS stamp and for me, it was a joy to photograph.

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Follow the Cub House on Instagram and follow Richie on Instagram.

Radar

Escape

This looks incredible!

“JaBig, a Montreal-based DJ, buys a bike on a whim and decides to attempt to beat the record for the longest continuous bike ride in a single country. What’s more, he’ll ride a single-speed, fixed-gear bicycle and finish in the winter, approaching the Arctic Ocean by way of Canada’s northernmost continental hamlet, Tuktoyaktuk in the Northwest Territories.

We pick up with him as he’s closing in on his endpoint along a 188km-long ice road. In his final kilometres, he falls more times than he has in the previous 17,000km combined.

JaBig knows he is where he is meant to be, but the final hours will push him further than he ever imagined. The journey is bleak and beautiful at the same time, and JaBig’s story will make you pause, asking yourself, “where would I go from here?””

See more at MEC

Tracklocross with Resistance Racing in the Bay Area – RJ Rabe

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Tracklocross with Resistance Racing in the Bay Area – RJ Rabe

Tracklocross with Resistance Racing in the Bay Area
Photos and words by RJ Rabe

The Bay Area has long been a mecca for cycling. Road, trail, whatever. It’s here. Out your door, in any direction, and for as long as your legs can carry you. There’s a niche for everyone. A few niches probably. Enter Resistance Racing. A niche within a niche. Nick Keane and Jean Padilla, the founders of Resistance, combine their love for track bikes and the abundance of trails our city has to offer. Bummed on race fees, the travel time required for races, and the rarity of events, they decided to start hosting a series of their own in their backyard. Races take place in local parks and entry is donation-based. Courses are marked with lines drawn from bags of flour, fallen tree branches, and maybe a piece of trash or two.

Radar

Black Forest Fixed

Heaven and Hell, a fixed gear cycling team, met up with the Stuttgarter Velohelden deep inside the Black Forest of Germany.

Radar

The Harabas Single Speed

This video came in from the Philipines, where a shop there released a limited run of the Harabas single speed frame, designed to be ridden with slicks or knobbies, free or fixed. I really dig the reverse mig welding sequence. That’s a first for sure. Check out some photos of these frames on Instagram.

2018 NAHBS: Sketchy but Safe Squid Bikes Tracklocross

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2018 NAHBS: Sketchy but Safe Squid Bikes Tracklocross

NAHBS isn’t always about $3,000 paint jobs, expensive carbon components, and electronic shifting. For Squid Bikes, their paint jobs cost more in time than they do in materials and the sky’s the limit for their designs. This year at NAHBS, the bike that jumped out at me was this tracklocross fixed gear built with Paul Components and White Industries, using their ‘cross bike frameset. There’s even a nifty little stash container built-in to the handlebar end to keep things even sketchier… but still safe. This bike beckons for some #RubberSideUp action.

My Mercer Buitelander Track Bike – Stan Engelbrecht

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My Mercer Buitelander Track Bike – Stan Engelbrecht

My Mercer ‘Buitelander’ (translated from Afrikaans – ‘foreigner’)
Words and photos by Stan Engelbrecht

I have a handful of track bikes. Almost all local South African-built in the 1980s. I love these bikes, all weird and wonderful and collectible. For some years my Hansom pursuit-style 700c was my day-to-day ride, but this constant use was starting to take its toll on the frame and the beautiful pink to seafoam fade paintwork. And the front wheel / downtube clearance is so tight that normal road use would sometimes push the tyre into the frame, resulting in long black rubber streaks under the downtube. It was obvious – I needed a bike I could use every day, without having to worry about destroying a bit of South Africa cycling heritage in the process.

Radar

Chasing Everyone!

Terry combined his entire “Chasing” series into a 26-minute long feature length. Get your fill of hot lines here!

Lucas’ Samson Street Track Bike

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Lucas’ Samson Street Track Bike

Putting together a parts bin bike doesn’t usually include an NJS frame. When his roommate parted out a complete NJS Samson track bike, Lucas acquired the frameset for $50. Aside from a few small dents in the top tube, the frame was in great condition, so he assembled it with all of his spare parts. Since then, it’s been his go-to around town and lock-up-bike. I couldn’t help myself when he rolled up to Golden Saddle Cyclery on it yesterday, just hours before hopping on a plane back to Portland…