The Radavist

For me, the best part about NAHBS is being submerged into the host city’s community and getting to know some of the local names. I first heard of Avery County Cycles through a video that I posted about a year ago. Josh seemed like a good guy, with attainable aspirations and a love for frame building. One of the things that struck me in his interview was his commentary on “more frame builders are a good thing”. That’s a weighted statement but in Josh’s eyes, and as something I can understand, having a local framebuilder that serves the local community is important. In today’s world, everyone orders frames from all over. You simply email in your fit information and 6 months later, your bike arrives. It’s great for business and no builder would ever complain about being busy, but that statement really struck me.

In the two years Josh has been building frames, he’s been catering to his local community. Starting out with frames for friends to practice his torch skills and moving up to a full fleet of single speed cross bikes for Pearl Velo. His space sits next to Berkeley Supply Co and Pearl Velo, just up the hill in Denver. The energy of these three storefronts is intoxicating. Honestly, the only comparison I can draw is how the old FYXO Hub and Shifter Bikes shared a space. A couple of motivated young men, looking to just do shit right. Josh’s work is very much localized to the Denver / Boulder area and he’s just one of the many faces building bicycles in Colorado. I honestly believe what he’s doing is legitimate and his community respects him for that. His work won the Rookie of the Year award at NAHBS, so he’s doing something right!

Check out some photos I shot of Josh working during my stay in Denver in the Gallery.

Leica M7
Leica Summicron 50mm f2
Zeiss 28mm f2.8 T* ZM
Neopan 400

Mamiya 7ii
80mm
Portra 400

Bring the Ruckus! Of course that’s a Wu reference. At Ruckus Components the team is in their fourth year of designing, redesigning, repairing, and manufacturing carbon fiber products. The guys there have a strong belief in bicycles, sustainability, local manufacturing and with two robots and two degrees they tend to get “stuff” done. “Stuff” like repairing a crashed Colnago and painting an ENVE fork to match the original. “Stuff” like building a bike or two.  “Stuff” like fabricating cross bash guards. “Stuff” like adding fender mounts to your carbon fiber road bike. Just really cool “stuff”.

Entering Ruckus’ facilities in SE Portland, it’s hard to not crack a joke about a torture dungeon. You head down the sketchy staircase and suddenly, the space opens up to a sprawling 3,000 sq/ft warehouse, where in the back, Ruckus’ shop lies. At any given moment, there will be a dozen frames from all over the US in queue for repair and repaint.

I spent some time with the guys and shot some photos of their work space. Check them out in the gallery!

This afternoon, Rapha is throwing a happy hour to celebrate their new display at Mellow Johnny’s here in Austin. Come see their product line up, from City Riding to Pro bibs and jerseys.

Time: 6-7pm
Location: Mellow Johnny’s Bike Shop
Address: 400 Nueces St. Austin, TX 78701

If you can’t make it out, I shot some photos of the display today. Click on the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.

Velo Cult is easily one of my favorite shops in the States and their recent move to Portland from San Diego was far from easy on the guys but it’s been worth it. Their massive, sprawling storefront has a bar, a huge basement with a movie theater and one of the classiest mechanics area I’ve ever seen.

When they made the move, Sky and Anthony were literally selling bikes to build millwork. It’s been a slow process but the community is embracing these SoCal natives. If you’re in the Portland area, swing through, grab a beer, chat about touring, gravel and the next rando and if you can’t make it to Portland, check out my Shop Visit photos. And if you missed the Recent Roll, check it out here.

Click on the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.

If there’s one thing shooting with the Hasselblad has taught me it’s selection. Velo Cult‘s new location in Portland is far too massive to capture in a roll (or in this case, less than a half of a roll) but I feel like these photos pick up on some of the highlights. For those who want a more comprehensive Photoset, don’t fret, digital is on the way. It just so happened that the analog photos were done before the digital.

This shop needs no introduction but for those looking for a background, I do believe Velo Cult’s San Diego space was one of my first Shop Visits. Check the original photos out here.

Click on the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.

Rocket Company is a rather unique shop. It’s not exactly a bike shop and it’s far from a motorcycle garage, but it’s a healthy mix of the two. Oh and add in some insane autos on the side. That pretty much sums up how this hub in Jakarta appears on the surface. Even when you walk in the doors, it’s hard to tell what’s for sale and what’s for display. The MG is certainly not for sale, but the Stanridge and the LOW are.

Rocket’s clientele seeks high-end and unique track frames and builds. As all my coverage from Fixed Fest shows, the people in Jakarta love their balleur track bikes. But they’re also a fully-functioning motorcycle shop. It’s safe to say if it has two wheels, Rocket’s there to keep it moving. These guys were fantastic hosts and I highly recommend you swing through their doors if you find yourself in Indonesia.

Click on the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.

The last time I visited the Los Angeles-based cycling apparel brand SWRVE‘s shop, they had just relocated and had big plans to expand their floorplan to include a storefront. Last week, before skipping town, I headed over to check out their newly-opened retail space. For a brand like SWRVE, most of their sales are online, so a retail space wasn’t of the highest priority. But they wanted the city of Los Angeles to have a place where customers could come try on the clothing and actually touch the product before committing to buy.

I don’t need to explain any further the merits of buying from a store, versus buying online, so I’ll let the photos do the talking…

Click on the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.

The brand and label Southern Lord is a staple in any metal head’s catalog. While they’re consistently signing new bands, they’ve also done an excellent job cultivating their catalogs with re-pressing and re-issuing old releases. Most recently, Sleep’s masterpiece, Dopesmoker. I met up with Aaron Edge, the resident art director at the label for a quick little tour of their facilities in Hollywood. Walking through the halls and rooms of the offices was amazing. See for yourself below and pick up Sleep’s Dopesmoker re-issue HERE!

If you’re in Seattle, the Southern Lord tour begins tonight. Check out all those details here.

Click on the above photo to launch the gallery, or here to open in a new tab.