Best In Show

Sara Best

Portland, Oregon played host to the 2008 North American Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS) from February 8 - 10. NAHBS is this continent’s event of the year for handmade bicycle builders and enthusiasts. This year the event featured 150 exhibitors, one of which was Naked Bicycles and Design of Quadra Island, B.C which walked away with three of the show’s top awards: President Walker’s Choice, People’s Choice and Best of Show.

Naked Bicycles and Design’s Sam Whittingham and Andrea Blaseckie attended the show and brought with them only one bike; one bike that showcased all of Whittingham’s favorite ideas and components. Their award-winner took 6 weeks of daily work to make; the frame alone is a complex amalgam of over 250 individual pieces. It turned a lot of heads at the show, not the least of which was that of seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong who actually bought the bike for $12,000.

Sam remembers the moment well: “Robin Williams stopped by our booth on Sunday and asked if we had sold the bike yet. I had to tell him that it had already been bought, but that I was pretty sure he was friends with the new owner, who would probably let him ride it.”

Whittingham worked in bike shops and learned to weld, draft, machine and paint long before he put together his first frame. He spent years racing and perfecting bike fit and riding analysis for various disciplines. Whittingham has also been called the “fastest man on Earth.” He is undefeated in the realm of human-powered cycling speed, currently holding the world record for both top speed, at 81mph, and endurance: 52 miles covered in 1 hour.

Naked produces roughly 60-70 bikes each year, from road and mountain to track and touring machines. All production, from initial design, to welding and paint is handled in-house by Sam, while Andrea handles PR and administration.

To learn more, or to get your name down early on their rapidly expanding waitlist, go to the Naked Bicycle and Design Website at www.timetogetnaked.com

Popularity: 6% [?]