Hello everyone! This is Nobu!
In this post, I'd like to share a brief report on my experience participating in TRACK BIKE UNION, which was held for the first time in five years following the impact of the pandemic.
What is TRACK BIKE UNION?
TRACK BIKE UNION is a festival and racing event organized by 25LAS BICYCLE WORKS, a shop based in Meguro, Tokyo, held at the Sakaigawa Velodrome in Sakaigawa, Yamanashi Prefecture.
As the post suggests, this is more of an event for everyone to enjoy rather than a strictly serious race.
It's the perfect event for those who think, "I want to try riding on a track," "Formal racing seems a bit intimidating, but I still want to try it," or simply "I want to do something fun!"
By the way, the Sakaigawa Velodrome venue has a fantastic location!
The race isn't the only thing to enjoy at the venue; looking at other participants' bikes is another highlight.
What kind of frame are they using? What kind of parts? Wow, this person's setup looks cool!
By the way, here is the bike I brought this time!
PANASONIC / Titanium Track
| Frame | PANASONIC Ti Track |
| Fork | Alpina Rake30 |
| Hub | DT-SWISS Track Hub F:20H / R:24H |
| Tire | CONTINENTAL Grandprix 5000 |
| Crank | SUNTOUR Superb Pro 165mm |
| Chain Ring | SUGINO 75 ZEN 49T |
| Cog | EURO-ASIA Super Star |
| Handlebar | ZIPP Service Course SL-70 420mm |
| Stem | ZIPP Service Course SL Stem 17° 90mm |
| Seat Post | THOMSON Masterpiece Seatpost |
| Saddle | SELLE ITALIA Flite |
By the way, you can also place custom frame orders for PANASONIC at Circles!
While the frame I'm riding is unfortunately no longer in production, you can still order road and cyclocross models in either chromoly or titanium, as well as track frames, touring frames, and more.
Incidentally, when I participated five years ago, I was riding a CINELLI x MASH Parallax, which became the basis for the MASH AC series!
I took some photos while participating in the race, so please have a look at the scenes below.
While reviewing the photos, I realized that I had taken a lot of shots of MASH bikes. They just look so cool and really catch the eye, I was reminded of that all over again. Haha.
I'm not sure when the next one will be, but I'll definitely be attending, so if you're interested, let's meet there next time!
Great job to everyone who participated! And a huge thank you to Niko-san and the rest of the 25LAS BICYCLE WORKS team, as well as everyone else who helped organize such a fantastic event!
I'm always happy to chat about stories from the trip, gear ratios, or bike consultations at the shop!
I'm also on Instagram, so feel free to send me a DM there as well.
Please feel free to ask me anything about track bikes! (And anything else, too!)
