(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)
After a stop in Bend last year, the Oregon Bicycle Constructor’s Association is bringing their annual show back to Portland.
This weekend on Swan Island some of Oregon’s finest frame builders will come together for the annual Oregon Handmade Bicycle Show. With 18 builders and 36 total exhibitors lined up, this is an excellent chance to see the latest creations from both well-known and up-and-coming bike makers. In addition to framebuilders, the show will include the legendary, made-in-Portland parts from Chris King Precision Components (fresh of their trip to the White House), handmade wooden helmets from Dan Coyle, the latest light creations from Beaverton resident Brian Engelen of Light On! Lights, and lots more.
The OHBS isn’t just a place to gawk at amazing bicycles, it’s where you can meet and ask questions of the brightest minds in America on topics like bike fit, wheel building, custom paint, and so on.
Here are a few hot tips of what to look for at the show:
— Cielo Cycles (by Chris King) has recently hired respected builder Chris Igleheart. Chris has moved from Wenham, Massachusetts to Portland and is now making frames for Cielo. Portland is lucky to have such a talented and veteran builder. Welcome Chris!
— Stop by the Ahearne Cycles booth for a peek at the new BikePortland company vehicle. I have been doing this blog for over seven years now and I’m long overdue for having a locally made bike. Joseph was one of the first builders I met when I moved here (I even wrote a profile on him in Dirt Rag Magazine back in 2006) and I’ve always appreciated his simple, yet artistic and highly functional bikes. I’m excited to see my own rig take shape! (Sneak peek below)
— Blueshift is a new, Portland-based company that makes speaker systems for bicycles. I don’t know much about the company, but given that bicycle sound systems are the hot thing these days, and this guy is making them in Portland, I will definitely be stopping by to get a closer look at these.
I can’t get over the symbolism of having this event at the Vigor Industries Swan Island Shipyard. Not only is that place steeped in bicycle culture (the employees ride bikes all over the 60+ acre site); but it’s also one of Portland’s industrial and manufacturing centers. Like the shipbuilders at Vigor, Portland’s amazing crop of bike builders and component makers are poised to capitalize on the renewed interest and potential to bring bicycle manufacturing back to America. This show is where that exciting conversation is taking root.
— For the full schedule and other details, visit OregonFramebuilders.org. View our past OHBS coverage and photos here.
I have one of the first road bikes Chris Igleheart built when he first came to Oregon back in like 1994. Good to see him around again!
So last year, I was stuck in Portland when the show was in Bend.
You’ll NEVER guess where I’m going this weekend…
*sigh*
Head on down to Swan Island to Vigor Industrial’s Portland Shipyard, Building 10, for the show. By bike, head down Going Street, sidewalk or street as you prefer. Construction has yet to begin on the new wider sidewalk, aka MUP, now the hill. Lagoon Avenue takes you there, but if you want a quieter route, drop over a block to the new sidwalk along N. Channel, “The Captain’s Walk.” You will need to slip back over against traffic on N. Dolphin to N. Lagoon and the access road to the Lagoon gate of VI’s Portland Shipyards. Inside, it is Building 10, but be sure to check out all the activity in the yard and note the many classic cruisers, used for getting around the 50 plus acre yard. Enjoy and welcome to Swan Island!
Good to hear that it’s back in town. Mrs Dibbly & I are looking forward to going.
Anybody know how attendance was last year?