How many cities has it been now?
San Jose, Portland, Indiana, Vermont, Austin, and now Sacramento.
I’ve finally made the rounds. I’ve seen it all, full circle.
And through this “Trip,” I’ve finally realized that this is a massive country. Truly, incredibly vast.
It’s not just a matter of scale, but the fact that it continues to grow so quickly and so significantly in every way—from mental outlooks to the very structure of society. Whether you view that as good or bad is up to the person who actually goes, sees, listens, and talks to the people there. But if I may speak from the perspective of the cycling society I know, there is an incredibly huge “gap” that has formed between their society and ours.
But we have our own perspectives and ways of doing things, and I’ve realized anew that bridging that “gap” is the true meaning behind driving SimWorks forward, and that it’s our own grand life’s work.
Coming to NAHBS six times seems to have changed the way I see various things and society itself.
In the beginning, I was like a maniac, digging through the fine details of bicycles and the new products coming out from parts manufacturers. It was a different dimension from other trade shows, which made me go a little crazy. (My smart companion at the time used to see me like that and tell me I was being ridiculous—a funny story to look back on now.)
As I came a first and second time, I realized that there are more important things in this society, which I think is why I’ve kept following this show more than anyone else.
That realization came only recently.
And it is also extremely important for me to experience the fact that there is a world out there that doesn’t exist in Japan.
You might think I’m crazy, but even though about 200 years have passed since the bicycle was born, I had almost never seen the place where they are “made” with my own eyes. (Of course, I assemble them myself, but “making” a bicycle is on a different level.)
In the town where I live, the bicycle manufacturing industry used to be thriving, and I believe many frames and parts were made and assembled right here, cherished as quite valuable items. Setting that fact aside, I had spent my life focusing only on the bicycle as a finished product.
Until I came to this NAHBS.
Yes, I was just a child.
In the end, I knew nothing.
And here, I laid myself bare before the people I met and asked them everything I wanted to know. Without shame (because I was a child).
And they answered. All of them, each with their own correct answer.
There are those for whom creating something beautiful is what matters,
Those for whom offering things at a good value is what matters,
Those for whom it is most important to thoroughly make what people want,
Those for whom it is essential to translate their own theories into tangible products,
It means that all sorts of people are connecting people and products through all sorts of ideas.
Life is tough, there are plenty of things you don’t want to do, making things is incredibly hard, and people can be so selfish.
But in the end, they just love bicycles so much (both riding them and making them), that they can’t see any other meaning in life, and everyone pours that feeling into the things they create.
This trade show, where I can meet such people, reminds me of what I should learn, what I should gain, and things we have started to forget.
And somehow, deep bonds form with the people I meet there; they accept us as companions, teach us various things, and when we have a beer together or go for a ride, I find myself getting quite emotional.
And then I think.
If we could share the various facts we were given there with more people and evolve them, many ideas would expand and multiply in our own country, and it would surely evolve at a rapid pace. And perhaps we could sublimate them into even better ideas on our end.
This is “SimWorks,” and its core concept. My own personal delusion is that I believe the day will come when even from our country, people, things, and passion will overflow with great force to leap out into the wider world.
And perhaps this selfish delusion is actually deeply connected to everything else, and if I can become a single gear that helps turn the times, then that is truly all I could ask for.
I’m always thinking about which of the countless “things that are more interesting if you do them” I should take on, in what order, with what steps, and who I should dance with.
Now that I’ve come this far, I want to make it a stage that is more than just “certainly” interesting—it’s how it should be.
Play recklessly.
Laugh.
And convey it.
To be continued in the next issue.
North American Handmade Bicycle Show
http://2012.handmadebicycleshow.com/
The North American Handmade Bicycle Show, commonly known as NAHBS. It is the world’s largest trade show for handmade bicycles, featuring many of the frames and parts handled by SimWorks. It is held annually in different state capitals across the U.S., and in 2012 it was in Sacramento, California. (The 2013 show is scheduled for Denver, Colorado.)
– Photos from NAHBS & More [ View the NAHBS Flickr photoset ]