The hidden strength beneath this cuteness—I built the BASSI RACHEL myself.

― Nothing beats experience.
I didn't understand the benefits of merino wool until I tried it,
and even cycling down a river turned out to be surprisingly doable if you just have the momentum.
Once I rode 100km, I could suddenly imagine how to ride 200km.

There are so many things you only understand or see once you’ve experienced them,
and I think that is worth dozens or hundreds of times more than just hearing about it from someone else.

Telling myself that while distracting myself from my bank account balance, I built a bike loaded with parts I thought were "The Best!"

BASSI BIKES Rachel

It’s the eye-catching mixte/step-through frame, along with Rachel’s elegant blue color, that stands out. At 151cm tall, I chose the 47cm frame size. Besides the color, I really love the cute "RACHEL" font. Someone might tell me to focus more on the specs, but it’s real to be drawn to things like that. Looks are very important, too!

The savior for a slacker like me: "SON Nabendynamo"

This might be the part I splurged on the most.
SON NABENDYNAMO Son Delux
Son Nabendynamo Edelux II

I first fell in love with this light after seeing it on a customer's bike—the design is so round and stylish. The system works by generating power from a hub dynamo built into the hub as you pedal, which then lights up the lamp.

Commonly used dynamo lights are the "bottle dynamo" type, which create friction against the side of the tire. This friction can make pedaling feel heavy. (Some even make a whirring sound.)
But wait! With a hub dynamo, because the generator is built into the hub, you feel almost no friction at all! (You wouldn't even notice if you weren't told!)
Using it in practice, the light turns on just by pedaling, so there’s no stress at all about forgetting to turn it on when it starts getting dark in the evening, or worrying about charging it! It’s perfect for someone like me who finds charging lights to be a hassle, and I’m really reaping the benefits of the hub dynamo.

A classical shifter that defies the era

Nowadays, there's a strong image that brake levers and shift levers should be a set. And that’s all for the convenience of being able to shift quickly without moving your hands much. While my left brain (logical thinking) understands that it’s definitely more user-friendly, my right brain (intuitive thinking) says, "No, it’s this one!" That would be the microSHIFT downtube shifters.

Downtube shifters, which change gears by pushing and pulling levers, seem to have been widely used on road bikes back in the day before modern dual-control levers were developed. The feeling of reaching down to click the levers, the sound they make... it's irresistible! (Click-click-click!)

City riding ✖️ Drop bars

I decided to go with drop bars for a look that might seem a bit unconventional. The step-through frame is easy to mount and is often used as a typical "mamachari" (city bike). I could have finished it like a mamachari, but because of my background riding road bikes, I'm more used to drop bars, and I also wanted to add a sporty feel. Come to think of it, I love long rides too, so it’s a win-win-win!
The GHOOOST twisted flower adds an extra touch of cute, too.

Seeking toughness

Up to this point, I’ve chosen parts mainly for their looks, trying to pack in as much cuteness as possible. But from here on, I finished it to be tougher, thinking about "what kind of scenes I want to ride in."

For someone like me who has only ridden road bikes, riding on dirt roads has always been a dream. Dreaming that I could even go camping with such fat tires... I chose SimWorks by PANARACER's "The Homage."

Thinking I might ride those kinds of roads, a front single chainring might be tough for my leg strength, so I spoiled myself and went with a 2x9 speed setup using SHIMANO's "SORA." For just city riding, that's more than enough gear range!

And finally, the rack. This one felt like it was made just for me! The NITTO "Campee 32R Rear Rack." This rack, which can carry an incredible 16kg, was chosen by Asai-san, who said, "This is the one for Chan-Mai." With this much capacity, I'm all set for touring, not to mention camping!

With this, I can trust it completely!! No, not just myself—it can be a bike packed with all the necessities of life: clothing, food, and shelter! I feel that this hidden toughness, despite its cuteness, is the real charm of this Rachel.

Actually, it’s been over three months since I finished building it. Starting with the Strawberry Ride, I’ve been riding with this partner daily, and also took it to the OMM BIKE held last month.

As I said at the beginning, nothing beats experience.
They say "there’s no harm in trying," and as I ride it more, I’m seeing all sorts of things:
This is good for this kind of scene
This is overkill for everyday use
I could probably shave off this much weight...

My best setup will always change depending on my lifestyle and where my curiosity leads me. I want to keep enjoying my bike life with my partner while fumbling through and finding what works best for me "right now"!!

#ChanMaiBreakRoom

I got ahead of myself wanting to show off the finished bike and ended up talking only about the "experience of using it," but the "experience of building" a bike was something completely fresh for me.

On the first day of building, all I managed to do in two hours was deburr the frame and press in the headset. Huh!? It barely looks any different!?? Imagining the time it would take to finish, I despaired, and my respect for mechanics exploded.

And then, the next thing to break my heart was wheel building.
I’d heard from seniors that it’s the task that takes the most time at first, so I prepared myself, but it was beyond my expectations. The work itself was surprisingly fun, and I liked focusing and working silently.
I’d heard about all the typical beginner mistakes—getting the rim direction wrong, mixing up sides, or the spoke length being wrong—so I managed to proceed without any major errors.

And then it hits me. It’s hard to decide when to stop...

The process of fine-tuning slight deviations is endless.
As a typical AB blood type who is usually a slacker but wants to do things thoroughly once I decide to do them, I found myself in an infinite loop where I couldn’t stop no matter how far I went.

Once the bike started looking like a bike, it was difficult, but the fact that it was slowly taking shape was fun, and I’d catch my seniors after closing every night to have them teach me until late. Sometimes even the boss would teach me directly.

It’s a bike that was finally completed thanks to the support of so many people.
I intend to keep pedaling it with great care.

When I was a kid, many things were "new experiences," but once you’ve lived for 30 years (or more...), the opportunities to have new experiences surprisingly decrease, don't they?
...No, is that really true? Could it be that I’ve just lost the courage and vitality to jump in? If I look around, aren't there still many things I haven’t experienced yet, just waiting there?

In other words, that’s exactly what it is.