NAHBS Indiana Convention Center, Indianapolis. Feb.27-Mar.1, 2009

The World's No.1 Handmade Bicycle Show Heads to Indy
Show will put city and region in cycling's national spotlight

SPEEDWAY, Indiana--The North American Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS) brings one of the world's most prestigious bicycle shows to Indianapolis, February 27-March 1, 2009, helping put Midwest cycling in the spotlight, and it comes with the welcome of The Mayor.

"On behalf of the city of Indianapolis, it is an honor to be chosen to host the 2009 North American Handmade Bicycle Show," said Mayor Greg Ballard. "Our city has a very enthusiastic cycling community and I am pleased to have the opportunity to build on that as we showcase this unique and prestigious event."

The founder and director of the roving annual bicycle show, Don Walker, of Speedway Indiana, said, "There is not a bicycle show on the planet that matches the NAHBS for the sheer density of famous builders. This is the most significant presentation of custom bicycles anywhere. In the cycling world, it's worldwide news. On the ground in Indianapolis, we see great potential for this show to bring together the sporting, artistic, health and engineering communities."

Exhibitors from four continents and more than 20 US states will comprise a list of master craftspeople expected to number in excess of 100 of the world's leading custom bicycles companies. Around 5,000 visitors should attend, along with an international media corps of up to 100. Now entering its fifth year, the world renowned custom bicycle show has chosen its home base, Indianapolis, as the next stop as it travels around the USA energizing existing markets and helping open up new ones.

Nancy Tibbett, Executive Director of the Indiana Bicycle Coalition, said "I am excited that NAHBS selected Indianapolis for its 2009 venue. This is a great city that offers wonderful amenities for guests. With Indiana's commitment to bicycling, and our form of cycling as an alternative lifestyle, it's a good cultural fit. The show will bring a complete new awareness of cycling opportunities to the community, and through the visitors and journalists that come to the show I think the NAHBS can shine some light on many of the different cycling scenes here in Indiana."

After starting out in Houston, Texas, in 2005, then stopping for two years in San Jose, California, the NAHBS went to cycling-mad Portland, Oregon, in February 2008. The show was so popular that the fire marshal closed the doors for two hours on Saturday morning to reduce numbers in the hall. "I tell people from Portland, wait till you see the way the Hoosiers welcome this show!" Said Don Walker.

While there is an abundance of bicycles in the $5000.00 - $15,000.00 price range, NAHBS is a more than an exotic bike show. It is now a "must attend" event for the nation's high-end cycling aficionados, as well as the specialist media, transportation experts, style leaders, as well as the movers and shakers of the cycling world. In Portland this February, numerous interest groups used the occasion of the show as a catalyst for social gatherings and information exchanges. The city was abuzz with expectation about what was one of the key social and commercial events of the year in the bicycling scene there.

"So many people come from outlying regions for the show, it just makes good sense to conduct related business during the weekend that the show takes place, and we will do what we can to encourage any such gatherings," offered Walker.

One such gathering planned for the Indianapolis show is a seminar on integrating bicycles into the transportation networks in towns and cities throughout the Midwest, not only Indiana. Another gathering is the Annual General Meeting of the Hoosiers Mountain Bike Association (HMBA). "We look at it as an added attraction, so more people will come to our AGM," says Tony Simeone of the HMBA. A meeting of the Indiana Bicycling Coalition is also being planned.

A range of other seminars and workshops add to the feast of bicycles, components, services, accessories and literature available at the show. Three days of talks will address subjects as diverse as bike fit, carbon fiber technology, lug filing, marketing, as well as the abovementioned advocacy and transport planning. Presenting these seminars and panel discussions is a stable of the nation's and even the world's leading experts.

The social aspect of the show is significant too. While many exhibitors are glad to take new orders - which is why so many keep returning - for them it is also a once-a-year opportunity to talk shop, exchange ideas, and through the industry seminars to pass on valuable knowledge while at the same time cementing their positions as leading lights.

It is not surprising, then, that an online forum on the show's website www.handmadebicycleshow.com starts buzzing many weeks in advance of the show, in expectation of what will be seen in the show booths, heard in the aisles, and learned in the seminar rooms.

Custom frame builders come not only from across North America, but from around the world too. Among the featured exhibitors in Indianapolis are Shini-ichi Konno of Cherubim Bicycles in Japan, Tiziano Zullo of Italy, Naked Bicycles and Design from Canada, and from the USA renowned craftsmen in the likes of Richard Sachs, David Kirk and Independent Fabrication. The show also features homegrown Indiana frame builders, including Shamrock Cycles of Indianapolis and Don Walker Cycles, based in Speedway.

Leading component manufacturers Cane Creek, Paragon Machine Works, Chris King, Zipp, Paul Comp, L.H. Thomson and Hed will attend the show to display the very latest in high-end componentry.

Also present will be a range of manufacturers of high end clothing and cycle accessories, including Sheila Moon, Bailey Works, CCP clothing from Japan, Brooks Saddles from the UK, and distributors such as Cantitoe Road and ProNet.

There are also exhibitors purely for the custom frame exhibitors. The Bicycle Forest sells frame design software, Nova Cycle Supply provides tubes and lugs to build the bicycles, and Spectrum Powder Works is a painting workshop.

The grand finale of NAHBS each year is the show awards, in which exhibitors and the public vote on the best bicycles in 17 different categories, the most coveted of which is the "best of show" award.

The 2008 show will be held in the Indiana Convention Center, Indianapolis, February 27-March 1. For more information, journalists may call Paul Skilbeck on 415-359-0730 and visit www.handmadebicycleshow.com.

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