Words and photos by Miles Arbour and Nic Morales

Shows like MADE tend to focus on anything from skinny-tired track bikes to full-suspension enduro builds, but this year’s show had a wide variety of bikes that appear to have been designed with loaded riding in mind. Though we couldn’t cover everything, the crop of selected bikes in our coverage this year seems perfect for both overnighters and long tours, with many of the most notable bikes being made with the specific intention of bikepacking. Though all of us are feeling the squeeze on our resources and time to get out under the stars, it’s good to see people make the time and space to get out on trips both big and small. In Bikes and Builders of MADE 2025 Part 4, we highlight a few of those rigs and so much more.

GHOOOST / SimWorks link

Kamagaya, Japan

SimWorks had an art-forward special at this year’s show with the folks from GHOOOST making the journey over from Japan. Though most know them for their flower twists, the artistic duo also does some really creative design work that SimWorks asked them to paint all over one of their ATB models, the Doppo. As a modern ATB, this Doppo is covered in GHOOOST imagery as a one-off creation for the show.

They also asked the pair to do the same on a white set of their production bikepacking bags, with the iconic, noodley figures drawn all over the grid pattern. It made for a fantastic showpiece and one that we wish was on a set of production bags. The rest of the Doppo features bits from White Industries, the new SimWorks Bullmoose bars, bronze SimWorks finishing pieces, and a set of bottles painted by the GHOOOST team.

Josh Ogle Design link

Durango, Colorado

Josh Ogle was easily one of the most openly passionate builders we spoke to at the show, and he was eager to dive deep into all the details of the titanium full-suspension mountain bike he had on display. When we pulled him away from his booth, he warned us that if we “put in a dime, we’ll be getting the full ride,” and he wasn’t kidding. Josh has had a lifetime of precision-based jobs, including starting Jericho Bicycles in 1997, building race cars, and working as a watchmaker for three years. He also did some machining and design work for Firefly bicycles, which got him back into the cycling industry, and he couldn’t be happier.

Under the Ogle Component Design name, Josh creates stems, rotor lock rings, headsets, and other small parts for the cycling industry. He specializes in 3D-printed and machined titanium and aluminum parts, and some of his shiniest parts were displayed in a glass viewing case, complete with rotating display stands. Josh Ogle Design is the other arm of his business, offering design services to manufacturers in the cycling industry.

The mountain bike Josh showed us was one of the flashiest examples of 3D printing at the show. Coming from a 27-year career as a machinist, Josh loves how 3D printing has nearly no limitations, unlike machining, where you start with a large block of material and make something smaller. The downside is that 3D printing bicycle components and parts is incredibly expensive, and the different vendors that offer printing services all use different setups and procedures, making it challenging to work with all of them. However, Josh is making progress.

Under the graffiti-themed exterior are wild details made possible by 3D printing. Josh explained how there’s an internal seatpost binder that’s printed inside the top tube/seat tube junction. Instead of pinching the post, it wraps around the seatpost. It’s also completely sealed, thanks to an internal O-ring. 3D printing allows Josh to fine-tune the flex and thickness of different frame parts, forcing loads into the most ideal spots and creating a product that will “last a long fucking time,” as Josh put it.

The Japanese writing on the frame is in Japanese Kanji and translates to “Josh Ogle Design,” thanks to the help of his cousin, who is half-Japanese. Josh loves Japanese culture, so incorporating it into the bike’s design was a fun way to do so. From afar, it’s easy to miss all the custom details that Josh worked into the 3D-printed parts. A closer look reveals a tiny Godzilla, pinch point warnings, torque spec markings, and #ReformedEvilGenius on the seat tube. Josh used Ministry’s 3VO suspension system, but, of course, he had to customize it with branded, machined fasteners.

Woodpecker Cycle Co. link

Lacey, Washington

Daren Beenen of Woodpecker Cycle Co. was an absolute joy to speak to at the show, showing up with a full-suspension bike he made for his friend, Jameson, and his daughter Audrey’s bike. Not knowing he’d made it off the waitlist until Tuesday, Daren only had a few days to prepare himself. So, he thought it fitting to bring this 130/130 trail bike with a few custom bits he made that lend themselves nicely for bikepacking trips. Because the linkage is centered around a headset at the main pivot, Daren was also able to fit the OneUP EDC tool in the same spot! He also machined a custom top cap that works to effectively extend the height of the steerer such that large top tube bags have a better and bigger area for support. Even though the bike is quite large, the build kit as shown (sans bags) comes in at about 31 pounds. With a 510 reach, a 65-degree head tube angle, and a 76-degree seat tube angle, Daren says this bike is built for all-day trail rides, XC races, and big backcountry outings.

Rey’s Custom 24″ Hardtail

Little Audrey’s bike is a small, simple hardtail with 24″ wheels and a custom built fork from MRP that Daren says has 90mm of travel. The bike also features sliding dropouts, which, when backed all the way out, can accommodate a 26″ wheel. As far as what’s next for Audrey, Daren says he’s keen on building something similar to what he built Jameson but optimized for a 26″ wheelset. He hopes to have that completed by the MADE bike show next year.

Wheels Manufacturing link

Louisville, Colorado

Wheels Manufacturing came out to MADE with some of their new chainrings and UDH components. With 30T and 32T options available in three-bolt and Shimano direct mount options, and an eight-bolt system is reportedly coming down the pike. James Flanagan, marketing manager at Wheels Manufacturing, gave us a sneak peek of the chainring with his Rigs Of the Colorado Trail Race submission, where he completed the legendary route in 12 days using the new Wheels Manufacturing chainring. “It’s trail-tested and fared a fair bit better than I did,” said James. They also had their derailleur hanger system on display at the show, the recently released Dropout 666. The new hanger removes the derailleur mount for maximum clearance and weight savings, and it works with UDH sliding dropouts and eccentric BB frames.

Brule Bicycles link

San Luis Obispo, California

Brûlé Bikes, like crème brûlée, is a relatively new project from owner/framebuilder Julian. He has been working as a bike mechanic for 10+ years, and has always had a passion for making things. Before working in bike shops, Julian gave freelance graphic design work a shot, but he found it soul-crushing and unsustainable. He has bounced around between a few jobs, including some time in the food service industry and a short stint teaching English as a foreign language in Beijing. He was interested in making his own bikes from a fairly young age, but he didn’t have the knowledge or resources to get started. He enrolled in welding class at a community college, didn’t finish the class, but learned enough to get started. The first thing Julian made was a car chassis in his grandfather’s garage.

Like others, Julian started making bikes because he was dissatisfied with traditional bike offerings. Even with a fairly average height, around 5’8” with short legs, he couldn’t find a city/crit/track bike that fit him the way he wanted, so he made his own. “The first one was pretty ungainly, but it was great to be able to test the theories on handling, wheel size, and wheelbase firsthand. I did a lot of extremes in the first few years to see how far you can go with extreme geometry before a bike becomes essentially ineffective.”

At last year’s MADE bike show, Julian brought a time trial track bike with an ungodly 120-tooth chainring up front and a 32T in the back. As expected, there were numerous comments about the bike online, but Julian explains that his approach to frame design aims to get to the core of what the discipline or objective of the particular bike is. In that case, the goal was to find the limit of a theoretically UCI-legal hour record bike. “People have given me a lot of grief about the aesthetics of these extreme concept bikes, but they’re made for the purpose, not for the trending aesthetics.”

Sky Dog

Surprisingly, the tall bike Julian brought to MADE was ordered as a touring bike, so the customer’s primary interest was maximizing the storage area. A few “must-haves” included parallel main tubes, plenty of storage space for gear, and a wheelbase suitable for climbing hills. Using these fairly loose parameters, the final result was a tall bike based around 24 x 3.0” tires, Velocity Blunt 35 wheels, an Alfine 8 rear hub, and an Alfine dynamo front hub. It has an integrated bar and stem combo to limit hardware, an integrated star nut, a built-in chain tensioner, cable-actuated everything, and 220mm rotors for stopping power when riding fully loaded. The complete bike weighs 52 pounds, thanks to some oversized, thin-walled tandem tubing and simple, in-house-made lugs.

“The customer had never actually even ridden a tall bike before ordering it, which surprised me, but they just hopped right on for the test ride and never looked back. It’s going to be great to see them cruisin’ around our local area, and I’m looking forward to seeing what adventures they get up to,” he said.

At the bike shop where Julian works, they’ve been finding e-bikes are blowing through brake rotors and pads. To address this, he made some copper heat sinks that bolt on with the rotor. Julian explained, “Copper has almost double the heat conductivity of aluminum, which a lot of rotors have built into the spider or the core of the rotor itself.” The heat sink can be re-used as rotors wear out, and he imagines it makes the most sense for heavy touring bikes or electric-assist where a little extra weight isn’t a concern. For now, Julian is only planning to sell the heat sinks, but he’s also experimenting with different rotor materials for better braking with small rotor diameters.

MADE Bike

Brûlé Bikes was one of the makers invited by the organizers to bring an extra-special MADE-branded bike to the show, and it certainly delivered. When Billy Sinkford, the show’s founder, contacted Julian, his only parameters were UDH dropouts, single-speed capability, flat-mount disc brakes for Paul Components Clampers, and clearance for some decent tires. Julian has been experimenting with “tuning” the rear stays for the rider’s intended use and riding style and has found this works best using as much round tubing as possible. Round tubes are also easier to shape and customize, unlike ovalized or S-bend stays. He used a T47 bottom bracket, which provided extra surface area for triangulated chainstays. Julian said it’s designed to be “lightweight, springy, fun, and have a relatively simple arrangement for chain tensioning.”

The real magic is the bike’s telescoping rear triangle, which utilizes four telescoping tubes to adjust the chainstay length, allowing for adjustments at both the chainstays and seatstays. Julian added some half lugs and internal sleeves in places that generally see more stress, and used Columbus Super Leggera tubing to give it some spring. “Some of the feedback it’s gotten from the street level are comments like, ‘You know someone already designed something that does the same thing, only simpler.” Which, personally, I think is a very valid point, but I didn’t get into frame building to build someone else’s concept. I like what I like, and I want to build things the way I think they should be made.”

Julian is excited to see where electric bikes can start bridging the gap for car replacement on a bigger scale, and how they can open up doors for people with mobility or range of motion issues, and their dependence on motor vehicles. Julian explains, “We have a significant group of riders in our small community in California that really benefits from electric assist, and I’ve got some new concepts for velomobile-inspired daily drivers I’m working on for next year.” He’s most scared of not having enough time to build all the things he sees in his head, but that doesn’t mean he won’t keep trying.

Eli’s Goodday Fat Bike link

Gunnison, Colorado

This year, Brooks England elevated their booth experience by partnering with Roly Poly Coffee on a quirky, interactive display, complete with a coffee truck, a collection of leather saddles, thrift store finds, and a selection of hand-built bikes adorned with Brooks saddles. The good coffee was a big draw, but we also kept finding ourselves peering at a stunning Goodday fat bike on display. Its owner, Eli, told us he was invited to join Brooks at MADE because he’s weird and they like him for some reason.

Eli owns an outdoor gear company in Bozeman, Montana, called Seldom Seen. He makes totes, zippered pouches, dog collars, and hip packs. He’s only just launched the company, but judging by the quality of the hip pack we saw, he’s making some seriously nice gear. His fat bike was created in collaboration with Chris Besnia of Goodday Bike Works in Gunnison, Colorado. Eli has been riding fat bikes for years and has been jotting down notes about what he likes and dislikes about them. He landed on some specific ideas that he thought would make a good all-rounder fat bike and expedition bikepacking rig and sent Chris his thoughts.

The result is a titanium fat bike designed around a standard boost mountain bike bottom bracket, which keeps the Q-factor (the distance between the pedals) tight and ensures it still pedals efficiently. The rear end was kept nice and short to provide a playful ride quality. Living in Montana, Eli does a lot of bikerafting, but he also wanted a bike for the snow, so the Goodday is as close as it gets to the ultimate year-round bike.

It turns out that the stunning purple Goodday hardtail we photographed at the inaugural MADE bike show belonged to Eli’s ex-wife, and after drooling over it in their garage for a while, he knew he had to get one for himself. Between the twin top tubes, spacer-cradle rack, massive curved seat stays, and the cavernous main triangle, it’s impossible not to get lost in all the little, hand-built details.

Sanitas Cycles link

Durango, Colorado

Sanitas Cycles was founded by Brad Swaim, John Siegrist, and David Siegrist in 2021. The original idea to start a bike brand stemmed from David’s desire to follow in the footsteps of his father, John, founder of DEAN Titanium, and start his own bike brand.

Brad was manning the booth at MADE this year and gave us a rundown of his story leading up to Sanitas. Like many at the show, he has been working in the cycling industry for nearly 20 years, starting with a long career at his local big bike shop chain, Bike Barn. He worked his way up through the company, eventually managing the second-largest store for almost 10 years. In 2017, Brad moved to Colorado and got a job with DEAN and the Janus Cycle group, working as the brand manager for Merlin Metalworks and later, Knight Composites. When DEAN was sold in 2021, Brad left to work at HUNT’s new US office as the operations manager.

Although Brad isn’t building Sanitas frames, he’s always had an affinity for handcrafted bicycles and the personalization that comes with building a bike from scratch. Brad explained, “Even though I have owned many of the big box bike brands in my time, I was always the one stripping everything off and building it up with the exact color and brand components to make the bike my own. I would attend the NAHBS shows almost annually as a consumer before ever being an exhibitor.”

Pistil XC-120

Sanitas had a few stunning titanium bikes on display, but we couldn’t resist pulling the short-travel Pistil XC 120 aside for a closer look. Like the rest of the lineup, the Pistil XC is handmade in Durango, Colorado, from hand-selected, size-specific, cold-worked 3/2.5 titanium tubing. It’s designed around a 120mm travel fork and shock, and the model we shot was built up using the carbon rear triangle from the Allied BC40. According to Sanitas, this makes the Pistil XC an efficient climber, all the while feeling supple and stable on technical descents.

Each frame is totally custom and tailored for its owner, so Sanitas can use fit numbers to dial in the perfect fit and geometry, or they can use a nifty body measurement tool they’ve developed over the years to design a perfectly fitting frame without the need for a bike fit. Frames start at $5,500.

We wrapped up our conversation by asking Brad what he’s most excited for and what scares him. Here’s what he had to say: “We get to be more creative across all our bike brands and provide more offerings outside of just titanium. Not scared so much as nervous about doing the Waterford and Gunnar brands justice and honoring their legacy! There is almost a cult following for the brands, and we want to ensure that both old and new customers continue to appreciate them, just as they always have.”

Fitz Cyclez link

Santa Rosa, California

Apprenticing under Paul Sadoff at Rock Lobster, John Fitzgerald has been manufacturing bikes for almost 20 years. John taught wood shop at a middle school before his time learning bicycle fabrication, and he now fabricates from a shop in Santa Rosa, where he’s been for 11 years. As far as the bike goes, John built it around a fork he bought from Sour Bikes. He built the custom stainless steel racks just for the show but has been trying to sell the bike itself for some time. The front rack is a modular, two piece system that allows the user to run a lower, low-rider system for extra attachments if need be.

The rear rack is attached such that the user can still use their dropper post while carrying a load on the rack. The seatstays were also finished used stainless caps that sit flush with the top tube—a nice touch that speaks to John’s expertise and dedication to functional aesthetics. John also insisted on us photographing the slightly modified version of his BxB front bag that perfectly matches the maroon paint used for the frame. His signature can be found on the non-driveside chainstay in a beautiful silver finish that compliments the components used on the rest of the build.

Sycip link

Santa Rosa, California

Jeremy Sycip of Sycip Bicycles has been building bicycles since 1992. With over three decades of framebuilding experience under his belt, his experience shows, and he lets his stunning titanium bikes do most of the talking. Jeremy and his brother Jay started Sycip together, but since 2008, Jeremy has been running the business solo. They’ve made pretty much every style of bike out there, including gravel bikes, full-suspension mountain bikes, and even pedal-assist trail work rigs.

Because Jeremy isn’t a designer or engineer by trade, he got started building full-suspension mountain bikes by licensing the rear end of the bikes from companies like Amp Research and Titus. He paired their suspension designs with a fully custom front triangle, which worked for a while, but about a year and a half ago, he decided he wanted to design his own rear triangle so the entire thing would be his own. He liked the simplicity of a single-pivot design and the ease of swapping out a couple of bearings instead of 20. Continuing with the theme of simplicity, Jeremy used a standard BSA bottom bracket as the lower pivot instead of pressed bearings or bushings.

The frame features a stunning matte-blasted finish, subtle branding, and an assortment of color-matched blue Chris King components. When we asked Jeremy what he had planned for Sycip moving forward, he said, “No big plans. I just want to keep making custom bikes for people to enjoy in steel, titanium, or aluminum.”

Bike Friday link

Eugene, Oregon

Hanna from Bike Friday was keen to show us their new All-Packa, the biggest change being the addition of thru-axles from what has always been a quick-release design. Intended to be as travel-friendly as possible, Hanna spoke to the company’s hesitation in converting some of their models to the thru-axle standard, but that it was a long requested feature. As of right now, they’re testing the market to see if it’s something that will work.

The rest of the All-Packa is unchanged from prior iterations save for the custom drop bars you see here. While the Bike Friday brand typically tends toward flat-bar builds, she spoke to the fact that the major selling point is that it can fit in an airline-compliant suitcase. While they haven’t quite found a set of drop bars that will aid them in that quest, Hanna cut these Salsa bars in half to fit in her suitcase. The bike is also sporting their new colorway, Power Bronze, and a soon to be released set of Astral Outback 20″ alloy rims.

Wren Sports link

Anchorage, Alaska

Cameron Sanders, vice president at Wren Sports, and his partner, Bird, caught up with us early on our final day of the show to give us a rundown of a handful of upcoming products they’ve been working on. The two made the trip down from Alaska and had plans to ride Mount St. Helens after the show, but the heat wave made them pivot, and they were going to head up to Washington to ride the Olympic Adventure Route instead.

Cameron’s Defiance Frameworks HyperFat Bike

Cameron’s wild 24 x 6.2″ fat bike from Defiance Frameworks was set up with a prototype rear rack that has flat aluminum struts on both sides for bolt-on cages, mini panniers, and other accessories. We could probably dedicate an entire story to this bike, but some other interesting details include a BMX chainring as the rear cog and a cowhide frame bag from a local bag maker in Anchorage, who said it was their first and last cowhide framebag. At the top of the purple truss fork were two belt-drive chainstay splitters that connect the lower part of the fork to a headset spacer connected to the top portion. Daniel at Defiance Frameworks and Cameron have messed around with these splitters in the past, and this seemed like a better option than using a removable steerer and clamps or funky headsets, like most truss forks.

The fat bike was equipped with Wren’s new carbon wheels, featuring 197mm singlespeed hubs front and rear. Wren was also behind the carbon wheels on BTCHN’s show-stopping 32-inch gravel bike, which utilized two of their 148mm high-engagement star ratchet singlespeed hubs. Cameron let us know that they’ll be rolling out a carbon 32″ wheel within the next few months, using a NEXTIE rim, 36 oversized 13-gram spokes, and they’ll use a four-cross spoke pattern instead of a conventional three-cross pattern for additional strength and support. At the same time, they will launch a “Mullet Your 29er 32-inch Style” campaign, where they are packaging their new 32-inch front wheel with an Inverted Fork setup for 32-inch wheels (available in 90mm and 140mm of travel).

Bird’s Wyatt Maverick

Bird’s US-made Wyatt Maverick was also kitted out with some interesting parts and bags. At the front, she had a Perseverance Front Rack with Wren’s new optional accessory support rail system, which allows the rack to work more effectively with panniers. There were also some neat brackets being used to bolt the basket into place, and some of the threaded holes were used to mount a knife sheath and a knife for easy access.

The colorful pattern on Bird’s bags is inspired by a Grackle feather Cameron found. He took a picture of it, uploaded it to Adobe Illustrator, and traced a pattern from it. He had the pattern printed on Dyneema fabric by Ripstop by the Roll. San Util Design mini panniers, a custom Alaska-made frame bag and top tube bag, and a basket bag round out Bird’s kit, ready for the Olympic Adventure Route. My favorite detail was Bird’s Boone Technologies’ titanium cog earrings to match the actual cog on her bike.

Ahearne Cycles link

Portland, Oregon

Joseph Ahearne had a subtle yet stunning bike at the Gates Belt Drive booth that featured a steering lock and two custom racks. Fabricating bikes in Portland for over 20 years, Joseph Ahearne feels that life is too short to ride mediocre bikes. With an eye for detail and a penchant for some of the best looking traditional bikes around, he made this bike for a customer who wanted an all-rounder. Capable of doing almost anything, the detail built into the bike is next level.

Per Joseph, “This bike is a versatile, all-purpose, all road touring bike with a Pinion 12-speed gearbox and the SmartShift electronic shift system. It has S&S couplers to help break the frame down to size to pack the bike for travel. All the racks are hand made, and includes detachable low-rider racks that pack flat for travel, an upper front rack deck that holds a handlebar bag, a front light, as well as stabilizing the front fender. There’s a steering lock in the head tube to help keep the bike steady when the front of the bike is loaded with gear. Most of the light wiring is routed internally all the way to the rear light, with plugs throughout where needed for breaking the frame apart. The rear rack holds panniers and has the roll cage on top to protect the fenders from a seat bag that will hang from the saddle. The whole bike, except for the rear rack, will fit in an S & S hard case. The frame has clearance for tires up to about 2.5,” and has an upright geometry for comfortable all-day riding.”

Baphomet Bikes link

Bellingham, Washington

Dillen Maurer was a part of the Wolf Tooth booth this year with his Tour Divide rig. Though he didn’t finish the race, Dillen was hard at work raising money for one of his favorite charities, Range Of Motion Global (ROMP) at the show. Raising nearly $6,000 during his ride to be the first amputee to finish the race, Dillen said that while he’s disappointed not to have finished, he’s proud to have started at all. As of right now, Dillen isn’t currently taking any orders for new bikes through Baphomet and is “basically just making bikes for friends and family now.”

Buendia Bicycles link

Portland, Oregon

Greg deBoer of Buendia Bicycles made his first frame in 2009 at the United Bicycle Institute (UBI) in Ashland, Oregon. It was drawn up on paper using specs copied from a Surly Long Haul Trucker, and to this day, Greg likes to draw frame plans on life-sized paper, as it’s handy for taking notes, recording numbers, and seeing the actual size of the frame. He told me BikeCAD is one of the most valuable tools in his shop, “I donate to BikeCAD with every custom frame project. I appreciate it so much and want to do what I can to make sure it sticks around.”

After UBI, Greg was working as a contract/freelance graphic designer in the snowboard industry. He made frames for friends and family, but he liked the flexibility of being able to work on other design projects while also framebuilding. These days, framebuilding is a full-time job, although he’s starting to give small batch production some thought because making one-off custom bikes isn’t a great money maker.

Buendia’s clean aesthetic stems from Greg’s own preferences: clean, simple, and quiet. He believes that aesthetics are just as important as form and function, but finding a balance between the three is the real challenge. “At one point, I was thinking that a clean and simple design with a single color paint job would have the bonus of being less attention-grabbing and maybe a bit less attractive to thieves, but I don’t think that’s the case anymore. I think a custom frame is going to stand out even more with a clean design and quiet color, as it will pop out against the noise of most other bikes on a bike rack. Run the aesthetic you like along with a really tough lock.”

Greg is hopeful we’ll eventually get back on track with a (rapid) shift away from fossil fuels, more walkable/bike-able cities, public transit, protection of our wild-lands and wildlife, universal healthcare, inclusivity for all people, welcoming borders, a smaller military that focuses on being helpful, the dissolution of ICE, the demilitarization of the police, the abolishment of guns, free college for everyone, the end of the sci-fi fantasy of inhabiting Mars and the shift to healing this much nicer planet. He’s not a fan of how tech stuff becomes trash so quickly. Thinking back to his time riding a pre-war Fleetwing cruiser to work at the snowboard factory in Seattle, he said, “That bike was about 50 years old at the time. I gave it away when we moved here to Portland. Ideally, I think most bikes should have a lifespan like that.”

That’s it for part four of the MADE bike show here in Portland. For more coverage of this year’s show, stay tuned in the days ahead as we continue to bring you the best and brightest this special corner of the industry has to offer.

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