Bespoked Handmade Bike Show made a very welcome return to Manchester's historic Victoria Baths at the weekend. For the second consecutive year, some of the finest frame builders, artisans and lovers of all things handcrafted descended on the city to demonstrate their love for this side of our industry.
For this year's show, in addition to showcasing the highly polished builds and accessories from their many exhibitors, Bespoked broke with tradition and added a lo-fi build off and crit race to the schedule too. Designed around 'reconnecting with the fun and creativity of bike building', the new Apocalypse Build Off gave entrants a chance to throw off the shackles of perfectionism, embrace their inner prepper and go wild with a torch.
Having worked in the cycling industry in various roles over the last 21 years, I've seen many trends come and go at trade shows. Some have deserved their place (29” wheels) and others have been a pain since day one (BB30). This constant innovation and progress is important, of course, but with it comes the potential to lose sight of why we fell in love with bikes in the first place—how they make us feel deep down. And that's exactly what the Apocalypse Build Off and car park crit captured perfectly.
Re-Igniting The Flame
If you were fortunate enough to discover cycling in your teenage years like I did, you're probably familiar with the make do and mend mentality that comes from a burning desire to ride cool bikes but a lack of money to buy them. Back then, armed with an angle grinder and an arc welder, no steel frame within 100m was safe from experimentation (RIP 24Seven Dark Angel, I'm sorry). We took the law into our own hands and learned a whole lot about fabrication and engineering in the process. It really didn't matter if the results were pretty or the bike steered to the left on its own. The only thing that mattered was the feeling it gave us.
Lives inevitably move on though. Wallets (hopefully) fill up with cash and our attention as cyclists and consumers turns to segment times, saving weight and sweating profusely on carbon bikes mounted to indoor trainers. We still love bikes and cycling but the simple pleasures of sketchy DIY modifications and hopping curbs on the way to the park are distant memories.
Distant, that is, until an apocalypse hits.
Apocalypse Build Off: Bikes That Stole The Show
It would be possible to go into excruciating detail over the apocalypse builds. Each one displayed many layers of its builder's passion, imagination and flair for the wacky. Instead, I'll highlight a few of my favourite aspects from the gang and let the photos do the rest.
1. BabyLDN: On One Inbred
As a proud owner of a 26” Inbred, this BabyLDN bike instantly caught my attention. The Brant Richards-designed frame was basically apocalypse-ready when it first hit the market two decades ago and Marlon's touches simply brought the bike up to 2025 code. The MAPP gas canister for on-the-go brazing repairs and a hip flask to numb the pain from the zombie attacks were both cool touches.
2. The Woods Cyclery: Binfluencer
'The apocalypse is nigh unless we start picking up our shit!' Enough said.
3. Sentient Works
The Sentient Works build won the best apocalypse award and rightly so. I felt it was the most capable end-of-the-world bike and had everything you could ever need, from a built-in firewood saw to a place for your favourite hen to lay its eggs. Isn't that the dream?
4. Brother Cycles: Dawes Kingpin
I've restored a number of Raleigh Twentys and Dawes Kingpins over the years, so again I had an instant soft spot for this build by Brother Cycles. There's something about vintage shoppers that screams practicality even though riding them is generally a form of torture.
Cargo cages galore, a comms trailer complete with scrolling screen of death and the retro-fitted v-brake mounts all stood out for me for different reasons.
5. Tailwind Cyclery: Brother Big Bro
The Tailwind build didn't win a rosette but Wayne definitely won the unofficial Best Crash award, as you'll see below.
6. Sea Bass Cycles: Brother Mehteh
A hunting rifle? A BBQ with body parts? Definitely ready for the apocalypse. Nice one, Sea Bass.
7. Tomo Bikes
Jonathan at Tomo really let his imagination run wild with the riding position, extended swingarm (that poor Fox Vanilla shock) and steering linkage on this bike. It was a blast to watch it navigate the crit course. Special mention goes to the Haribo-holster, which I've now added to my own prepper's essentials list.
8. Projektride: Brother Mehteh
The team at Projektride kept it simple on their Mehteh, choosing to focus on carrying bags and beer. It was super quick and nimble in the racing and would probably be my choice for escaping a mutant chase.
9. Stayer Cycles: Cargo Kona
Stayer's immense cargo bike with a clever steering linkage and tonnes of storage for baked beans.
10. Bike Fix London: Lime
'If string will do, use string' was the theme for Bike Fix London's plant-powered Lime Bikes conversion. An eco-friendly approach for troubling times.
The Racing: Chaos Unleashed
The crowds began to gather shortly before 4pm for the main event of the day, knowing full well they were going to witness some absolute carnage on the course. The audible buzz of excitement in the air brought an instant smile to my face—it was the UK bike scene at its best.
The good folks at Brother Cycles had built a course reminiscent of the ones from many of our teenage years, with wooden ramps, pallets, skinnies and even a limbo in place to wreak havoc and push the apocalypse bikes to their limits.
As you'd expect in an apocalyptic world, the schedule for the racing was delightfully hectic and no one really took the timed runs seriously. Proper order.
Wayne from Tailwind hit the deck hard (see the article cover at the top of page) during one of his runs but bounced off the tarmac and came back stronger for the mass start. I somehow ended up with his blood on my hand (zombie bite?).
The lighting of the smoke flares signalled the beginning of the mass start. All bikes were on course with no real agenda other than good times and belly laughs. Chaos ensued and it was an absolute riot to be there with a camera.
Does anyone know who won? I certainly don't. I do know everyone had a hell of a lot of fun though (even Wayne).
Four Main Show Mentions
While the Apocalypse Build Off stole a lot of the headlines, there were plenty of standout moments across the main show floor too. From game-changing collaborations to intricate custom builds, these are a few highlights that caught our eye.
1. Stayer Cycles x Academy Tools
One of the biggest losses for the UK bike scene during the pandemic was The Bicycle Academy in Frome. It was an immense source of knowledge for builders worldwide and its closure left a gaping hole in our framebuilding community. Thankfully Andrew Denham from TBA has recently resurfaced under a new brand (Academy Tools) to bring their award-winning Low Cost Frame Fixture/LCFF back to market.
This is where Stayer Cycles comes in. Sam and Andrew are working together to bring framebuilding courses and quality tools back to our shores and I couldn't be happier to see it. I really do wish them all the best.
For £1,500 plus materials, you can learn framebuilding 101 under Sam's tutelage at Stayer HQ in London and avail of discounts on the LCFF from Andrew when the time comes.
2. Collins Cycle Works
Patch aka 'not bloody Colin' is a custom bikepacking bag maker based in Worcestershire. We first crossed paths briefly at Bespoked 2024 but it took us until this year's show to have a proper chat about his bags.
Every item from his workshop is made to order to the customer's exact specifications, which is especially useful for those with awkward frame sizes and special needs. He's even been known to braze the odd custom rack. Check out his website for more info. on the process and Instagram for examples of his gorgeous bags.
Top bloke. Just don't call him Colin ;)
3. Feather Cycles
I've been a long time admirer and follower of Feather Cycles and Ricky's career since his BMX riding days. His bikes really stand out in the industry for their immaculate finishing standards and quality paint jobs.
Fresh off the back of his 'Final 50' announcement, Ricky brought a small selection of builds to this year's show for visitors to enjoy, including this splatter effect stainless beauty.
Finished in red, white and blue cerakote for a weight saving over regular paint, the textured pattern is based on a drawing done by the customer's daughter in school. It is remarkably pretty in real life and a true custom finish from one of the best. More on Instagram.
4. Bike Portraits by RTiiiKA
RTiiiKA was at Bespoked this year drawing custom bike caricatures and selling other pieces of their art. The sketches really stood out as quirky in an industry that can sometimes take itself too seriously. They'd make a great gift. More on Instagram.
