Categories: Defining MomentsLa Vie Velominatus

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The Walker Hour Bike

I won’t hold liking cats against you, but if you don’t like dogs, you’re dead to me. Some things aren’t left to opinions, like whether Star Wars is good or not. You’re free to be an outlier – and I loves me some outliers and I loves me a rebel – but in some cases, being an outlier doesn’t make you clever. It just makes you wrong. Also, the Laws of Physics show that the more lightsabers you have in a movie, the better the movie. Except for Episode I and The Matrix, two anomalies which balance each other out.

Similarly, loving carbon bikes is no crime. They are light, they are stiff, and many (most) are beautiful. My stable is filled with them. But a bike handbuilt by an artisan in a small workshop is something different altogether, and each one’s singular beauty is not a matter of opinion, unless you’re comfortable being wrong. I only have one so far, and it’s the custom steel I had made by NAHBS founder, Don Walker for my failed Hour ride last summer. (I’m planning a rematch with Weather this coming June.)

At this point every bike I own is custom, if only the paintwork. But even then, having a hand in how the bike is finished bonds you to the machine in a way that off-the-peg bikes simply can’t. And my Walker, even though I don’t ride it as much as a practical bike (you know, one with gears and brakes) every time I climb on it, I can feel its magic. There is something about custom in general and steel in particular that feels uniquely magnificent.

We’re in a crisis, my fellow Velominati. The North American Handmade Bicycle Show is only a few weeks away and I just heard from Don that many of the builders who have been stalwarts of the event are struggling to the point that they can’t afford to attend, much less keep a booth there. People aren’t buying bikes as much as they were, apparently, and the bikes that are being bought aren’t custom, handmade ones. We’re buying kittens, not dogs. Cyclists are watching Star Trek, not Star Wars. It’s a fucking disaster.

This isn’t a call to go buy a custom frame, we aren’t made of money. But it is a reminder that there are giant corporations behind some bikes, and there are individuals behind others. And if you’re in the market for a bike, I’m asking you to remember that. And if you aren’t in the market for a bike but love looking at them, I’ll be at NAHBS this year (in godforsaken Salt Lake fucking City no less) and I’ll look forward to seeing you there.

Vive la Vie Velominatus.

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

DVMR says:

Jan 12 2017 at 11:07 am

@Stuart F

Nice touch, and a stunner of a bike! Also, my condolences. By the way, I wasn't directing the second paragraph of my comment to you specifically, but to the article itself. I would most probably do the exact same thing in your situation, and bizarrely, Rourke would likely be top of my list too. Guy Martin put him on my radar, and I have been very impressed by what I've seen of his work. Is it 853?
Stuart F says:

Jan 12 2017 at 12:13 pm

@DVMR

Thanks - power of the bike to help us through hard times is amazing!

I can't recommend the experience at Rourke's highly enough - great group of lads and Brian is still running about chatting to the customers and offering advice - well worth a visit to 'Kelly's bar' upstairs which is stacked with memorabilia.

Glad you like it - 953 with enve 2 forks - all comes in at under 18lbs - could have gone lower by spending many more £$£$ but when you weigh 15st on a good day.....
Randy C says:

Jan 12 2017 at 7:01 pm

@Stuart F

That's really a cool story behind the gorgeous bike. And gotta believe Mum would dig it too. Cheers
Buck Rogers says:

Jan 12 2017 at 10:57 pm

@Stuart F

Very well done. So much more to a person (or a bike) than meets the eye on first blush.

Thanks for sharing and sorry for your loss.

It must be very nice to ride that gorgeous bike and know that a part of your mum is with you every time.
sthilzy says:

Jan 13 2017 at 12:37 am

@Stuart F

That's the most heart felt frame on the planet! Can feel the joy and sorrow on every ride.
Ron says:

Jan 13 2017 at 8:54 am

@Stuart F

@DVMR

I wouldn’t have been able to order a custom myself, it was a bittersweet experience because my mum died last year and although not a wealthy woman she left me enough to get a little ‘treat’. A custom steel bike seemed like the perfect thing (carbon just doesn’t fit the bill of a forever bike).

The whole process of picking every detail was a welcome distraction at the time (only someone who reads this website will understand the length of time I spent agonising over QR skewers!)

Best of all I got to put my Mum’s own Rule #5 on the top tube and I get a smile on my face every time I go out for a ride.

Wow, Stuart. I came into my Tommasini via some money left to me by my paternal grandfather. My parents told me to spend it on something cool, not something I needed. It's a Guest Article in the archives here.

Sorry for your loss. Great bike! And what a good way to remember your mum...spinning around on that lovely bike. Thanks for sharing.
Ron says:

Jan 13 2017 at 8:58 am

Oh, and Stuart...I think your Mum laid down the groundwork for Rule V right there...
Stuart F says:

Jan 13 2017 at 12:59 pm

Thanks to everyone for the kind words - just goes to confirm - nice people ride bikes!
Shandawg says:

Jan 13 2017 at 4:14 pm
Cycle72 says:

Jan 14 2017 at 8:34 am

Hi Stuart,

a really beautiful bike. Great way to remember your mum. Hope you have great rides on it