Some Highlights from the 2022 Philly Bike Expo

This past weekend, Oct 29-30, the 2022 Philly Bike Expo (PBE) kicked off, bringing together local bike shops, custom framebuilders, and advocacy groups to the Pennsylvania Convention Center. With more than 140 exhibitors and almost 40 seminars, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by the constant drum of excited attendees. It was a history of cycling collected under one roof, ranging from Royal H’s interpretation of an 1880s Pedersen bike to show bikes sprinkled with more modern innovations such as hydraulic rear derailleurs and electronic groupsets.

In so many ways, I feel like I’m always a student. From the exhibitors I talked to, the breadth and depth of knowledge was a reminder that there’s forever more to absorb and that everything was created by riders for riders. The trend is quite cemented now: bikepacking and gravel-oriented rigs are where the bike industry is focused on, and there were many beautiful examples of both on display. I wasn’t able to visit and talk to everyone I wanted to, but here are a few things that caught my eye.

Liberation Fabrication

In conjunction with PBE, SRAM continued the third year of its Inclusivity Scholarship program, which provides the platform and support to spotlight the talents of four builders. This year, they were Liberation Fabrication, HotSalad, Benevolent Bicycles, and WZRD. Given my riding interests, I had to take a closer look at the build that Eva, the framebuilder behind Liberation Fabrication, put together. The bike features custom bags made by Gurp Stitchwork, a pearlescent glitter paint job, dynamo wiring routed through the thru-axle and connected with the brake line via heat-shrink tubing, and aerobars for all-day comfort.

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I can’t help but be drawn to the world of endurance events and all the choices behind how each race bike is set up. The sage advice that “comfort is speed” is something I’m happy to see slowly working its way down from the sharp end to consumer-level bikes, influencing even the bigger names in mass-market production bike brands to offer functional builds with slacker geometry and accommodation for wider tires. Moving away from the racing-oriented marketing of weight savings and aerodynamic but uncomfortable choices will only open up more people to the idea that riding should be fun and not merely metrics. Eva’s bike, “Eastbound and Down,” named after her recent move from Seattle to Pittsburgh, felt like something I’d be more than happy to ride just about anywhere, taking advantage of every singletrack option along the way.

Wren Sports

Wren Sports’ latest addition to their adventure ecosystem is the Perseverance drop bar, seen mounted on Oliviah Franke’s Swood bike with bags from Ukrainian company 7R. As the popularity of bikepacking and touring increases, it’s fantastic to have more options on the market to reduce hand fatigue. It’s one of the quiet problems that can slowly creep up, ending a race early or causing lingering nerve issues months after a tour. The drop bar features a similar loop to their flat bars, allowing for easy transition from one handlebar system to another. There are entry/exit ports for those using bar end shifters.

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Not photographed are their recently announced armrests. The clamps fit both 22.2 and 23.8mm bar diameters, opening up other handlebar options outside of the Perseverance line and allowing riders to use arm rests without needing the aerobars.

Chapman Cycles

If you’ve come across any meditative videos on Instagram detailing the intricate process of the art of framebuilding, it most likely was rando bike constructeur Brian Chapman of Chapman Cycles. It was a delight to see so many of his handbuilt components in person. On display was a custom bike Chapman had built for his kid, among a handful of other exceptionally lovely bikes.

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Updated Sinewave Beacon

One of the changes I was most delighted to discover was Sinewave’s updated integrated USB charger and dynamo light, simply called the “Beacon 2.” The output is the same, but there is now reduced flickering at lower speeds, a low-brightness mode, and, what some might consider the most anticipated change, a stand light that can be turned off. The Beacon 2 will be shipping to people with current backorders. Deposits can now be made with an expected delivery of spring or summer 2023.

Redshift Arclight Pedals

Redshift has had their Arclight pedals available for a year now, but I hadn’t really thought much about them until I saw them in person. The circular motion of the illuminated pedals apparently makes a person more recognizable as a bicyclist to drivers compared to having lights that are fixed to the bike frame, and I think they make a lot of sense for commuting. Smart sensors on the lights will turn white or red depending on its orientation. The folks at Redshift are currently working on clipless and mountain bike pedals too.

Tools For Builders

Beyond product releases and show bikes, there were several booths catering to frame builders. BikeCAD’s Brent Curry had demonstrations of the software for frame design and fitting. Paragon Machine Works came with new products to share for frame builders. Alex Meade, located in Shelburne Falls, MA, teaches frame building classes and had some of his tools/jigs on display for sale.

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Atomik Carbon

Atomik Carbon has been handbuilding their carbon rims with Berd spokes for a while now, but they’re the most recent rim brand to offer Fusion Fiber carbon. Traditional carbon is made with epoxy and resin, but Fusion Fiber uses long-chain (nylon) polymers. As a result, the rims can be recycled after their life cycle for less intensive applications. The composition of the rim also means that it has increased impact dampening. Along with all of that, the Berd spokes are available in an impressive array of 14 colors.

Sal’s Bikes Rod Steward

I was curious and asked about the bag support on Sal’s bike, cheekily named “Rod Steward.” The rack in the photo is unfortunately out of focus, but hopefully the idea comes through. For those running a Carradice-style saddle/handlebar bag, some support system is usually needed to keep the bag from rubbing on the wheels, touching the back of your legs, or pressing against cantilever brake cables. Sal’s is shown in the photo below with a fork crown cable hanger and Jubilee Mfg’s heart straddle cable hanger. Depending on the size of your bag, you can choose different length crossbar rods.

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Arko Bici

It wasn’t until I talked to Marek, the Slovakian framebuilder behind Arko Bici, that the theme of the expo began to take shape in my mind. At a seminar earlier in the weekend, he shared stories and discussed the history of Concours de Machines, a competition with roots in the early 1900s. For his showcase, he displayed his most recent bike, built to CDM regulations.

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The part that brought me in for a closer look was the electronic shifting and connecterless Schmidt SON SL hub powering the lights on what, on first glance, appears as such a classic build. It was, of course, not the only bike in the expo set up this way, but it’s always in the details that the craft of framebuilding emerges. In the case of this bicycle, other highlights would be the handbuilt stem and racks, custom CNC’d cranks with an interchangeable spider, and internal wiring wending its way around the bottom bracket.

Building Upon History

From the hydraulic Rotor 13-speed derailleur spotted on an Alex Meade bike to the older but venerable Shimano M952 rear derailleur found on Sal’s first frame build, these expos display the ongoing dialogue between the legacy of cycling history and the creative folks who continue to iterate and build upon its past. One might even be surprised to hear about a new 27.5″ rigid aluminum rim brake MTB bike making its first appearance somewhere at PBE.

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It may be a bit of a stretch to describe it as such, but I feel like these builders are all operating under unspoken guides for a grand, ongoing concours des machines, finding the pulse of cycling culture and shaping it for future riders. It’s nearly impossible to reinvent the wheel, but we don’t all come with the same shape, size, or needs, so there’s plenty to fine-tune yet to be done along the way.

More Scenes from the Show

There was far too much going on at this year’s Philly Bike Expo to cover in detail, but here’s a miscellaneous gallery of other various people, bikes, bits that caught my eye but didn’t slot into the items outlined above: