Impressive list of ‘Constructors’ will push transportation bike boundaries

What sort of features will
builders like Joseph Ahearne dream up?
(Photo © J. Maus)

If you haven’t taken time to peruse the schedule of the Oregon Manifest, you should. The six-week event — which last year mainly focused on a custom bike show — has blossomed into nothing short of an urban biking summit.

This year organizers have added everything from workshops about family biking to a full-fledged bike fashion show (to coincide with Portland’s Fashion Week).

However, despite it’s broadened focus in 2009, the Manifest maintains its roots as a showcase for America’s finest, handcrafted bicycles. This year, instead of the typical bike show format, organizers have challenged the nation’s top builders to create (and then ride) the ultimate transportation bike. And the builders have responded.

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As of today, 30 builders from all over America have confirmed their attendance in the Constructor’s Design Challenge (we covered it in greater detail back in July). The list includes a diverse array of bicycle craftsmen, from legendary builder Mark Dinucci who’s been building in the Northwest for over three decades and who is named as a key influence on local phenom Sacha White of Vanilla Bicycles (among others), to Massachusetts-based Chris Igleheart and local upstarts like Jordan Hufnagel.

Here is the complete list of confirmed builders:

Ahearne Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Ahrens Bicycles : San Jose, California
Boxer Bicycles : Seattle, Washington
Cielo by Chris King : Portland, Oregon (not to be judged)
Circle A Cycles : Providence, Rhode Island
Courage Bicycle Mfg. Co. : Portland, Oregon
Curt Goodrich Bicycles : Minneapolis, Minnesota
DiNucci Cycles : Sisters, Oregon
Donkelope Bikes : Bellingham, Washington
Framebones Cycles : Mill Creek, Oregon
Frances Cycles : Santa Cruz, California
Hufnagel Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Igleheart Custom Bicycles : Wenham, Massachusetts
Inglis Cycles : Napa, California
Ira Ryan Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Magnolia Bicycles : Memphis, Tennessee
Map Bicycles : Portland, Oregon
Metrofiets : Portland, Oregon
Parlee Cycles : Peabody, Massachusetts
Pereira Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Quixote Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Rebolledo Cycles : Glen Ellen, California
Rex Cycles : Sacramento, California
Signal Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Sizemore Bicycle : Tacoma, Washington
Sprout Cycles : Portland, Oregon
SyCip Design : Santa Rosa, California
Ti Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Tsunehiro Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Vertigo Cycles : Portland, Oregon
Winter Bicycles : Eugene, Oregon

This is an unprecedented gathering of some of the brightest minds in bike building. The innovations they come up with are sure to move the needle of transportation bike design, which is a category of bicycles that the larger bike industry is just now beginning to take seriously.

Bikes built for this competition will be unveiled on Friday, October 2nd and will be judged by a panel of esteemed experts. The bikes will remain on display at the Oregon Manifest Pop-up Bike Union (539 NW 10th) throughout the six-week event.

BikePortland.org is proud to be an official partner of this fine event. Stay tuned for full coverage of all the panel discussions, handmade bikes, bike-cultural exhibitions, and much more. For more information, check out OregonManifest.com.