Text by Shinya Tanaka/Photo by Rie Sawada
NAHBS has become a trendsetter.
If you ask why, the answer is always the same: it's "easy to make things."
After all, the charm of the handmade bike world is the ability to just say, "Let’s give this a try," with new materials, new components, and new ideas.
So, for this installment, I’d like to introduce a man who masterfully blends the modern with the historical: Curtis Inglis. Applause, please!
“Hi! I’m Curtis! And this is my buddy Max. Nice to meet you.”
While such a catchy intro might be doing him a disservice, Curtis—a genuinely kind and thoughtful nice guy—is the owner and builder behind Retrotec. Surrounded by the vineyards of Napa, California, he spends his days diligently building bikes, riding them all over the place, and occasionally fixing up cars.
He brought a diverse lineup of bikes to this year’s NAHBS, and I’d like to take a look and chat about them.
First up is this road racer.
Naturally, it features the rounded Half Top style that Retrotec has been perfecting for 20 years.
Looking closely at the details, I think some of you will notice something... Can you tell what it is?
1: The Di2 battery isn't mounted externally.
Simple, right? This kind of issue is easily solved. It’s embedded inside the seatpost.
Calfee, one of the most eccentric builders in the American handmade scene, manufactures and sells a system that allows you to embed the junction and battery into the seat. This eliminates the need to drill a large hole in the bottom bracket (BB stiffness is important), allowing you to install the Di2 system.
[Prediction] I’m sure Shimano will be selling batteries designed for this system soon. (Please don't get mad if I'm wrong.)
2: I don't see a rear brake.
This one is easy, too. It’s mounted on the chainstay.
And because the cable routing is internal, the finish is as clean as can be. This is, of course, available as an order option.
This bike serves as his current training bike, which he rides through the vineyards every day.
You can see that scene on his Instagram.
Next, this Double Top style modern mountain bike, which was awarded "Best MTB."
It hits all the points that are sure to become contemporary standards.
1: 44mm Head Tube and Chris King Inset 7 combo.
This is driven purely by the need for stiffness and weight reduction. Forks are increasingly becoming tapered, and in an era where even CX and road bikes are shifting to disc brakes, this is an obvious choice. In fact, 1-1/8" might just become an obsolete standard.
2: 142mm rear spacing & 12mm thru-axle.
Thanks to hubs finally being released by Chris King and XTR, Paragon Machine Works has started manufacturing rear dropouts for them. There is simply no stopping the drive for higher stiffness in the drivetrain.
Skilled riders will be faster and better, and even a clumsy rider like me might feel a bit more confident...
3: The standardization of PF30.
It improves BB stiffness (I know, I’m obsessed with stiffness) and saves weight (and I’m just as obsessed with being light). Personally, I’m happy about this because with the Problem Solvers eccentric system adapter, setting it up as a single-speed is a snap! Whether a single-speed is actually fun or not is something you won't know until you try, but for someone like me who doesn't want to miss out, it's perfect. (Actually, no, single-speed really is great.)
Then there’s this commuter bike, which he calls the "Triple Top."
It consists of a twin top tube design plus an ornamental third tube. I just want people to look at it and shout, "That's cool!" As a reference for the future, notice how simply color-matching the front and rear racks to the frame creates such stunning harmony. My favorite part is that he uses Shimano on a bike like this without any pretension. (It’s very hard to find a Californian builder who disses Shimano. The point here is that we’re talking about builders.)
He also entered an Oregon Manifest touring bike in the past.
There isn't a single detail skipped here.
The logo is silk-screened onto the fenders, and the front rack is a Passtow rack color-matched to the frame. And if that wasn't enough, it features Freight Baggage gear, too—what more could you ask for?
Furthermore, he uses a threaded stem, and even the Bruce Gordon lights are color-matched. Plus, the double-lever setup with a hub dynamo and SUPERNOVA lights makes my heart race.
And the finishing touch is the WTB Rocket-V! (If you're one of those people shouting for Avocet to come back, you really should give this a try.) Well, this is "American Casual"—people who get it, get it. Those who don't, never will. And I think that's just fine.
Yeah, this one is good, too. Retrotec calls this the "Classic" style.
It’s a model designed and built to be capable for its intended purpose, based on Curtis’s first bike, a Schwinn cruiser—a style Americans love. (It’s also the model that takes the most time to build.)
He’s got it fitted with slicks for city riding, but it performs flawlessly on the trails as well.
The point here is switching out the tires. Many people get hung up on models or types, but the most important thing is how you want to ride. The choice that matches that—namely, the size of tire you can fit—is what makes the difference in the bike's quality. If you’re still getting bogged down in whether it’s a road, cross, or mountain bike, you’re going to be left behind by the times, so be careful.
There was also a basic Half Top 29er.
This is a stock-size build and represents their base specs.
I wonder if the 1-1/8" head tube, standard BB, and 130mm rear spacing with 10mm QR will become the eternal standard?
And this bike features a fillet-brazed finish. Retrotec offers a choice of TIG, fillet-brazed, or lugged, so be sure to find your favorite.
Did you notice? Many Californian builders finish their bikes with similar part choices. Shimano is a Japanese company, but I believe it was carefully nurtured primarily by the American mountain bike market. Furthermore, their main office is in California. Fox Forks are also located in California, in a rural town called Scotts Valley. WTB, CrankBrothers, and Easton are all California-based companies. It’s hard to find another state (well, country, really) that can pull off an assembly like this, and I simply find it enviable. The ideas are there, there are people to communicate them, and people to build them. And they are actually being used. You can see with your own eyes what I wrote about in "FUTURE 1." (It used to be like that for cars, too, but as the market shifted to other countries, don't you feel like the value of the Japanese market is fading?)
His workshop is a garage built in his backyard. Every day, bikes are born in that small space, amidst a flurry of ideas and iron filings.
This year marks his 20th anniversary as a builder. Retrotec is the result of 20 years of cutting, polishing, and a relentless love for play.
Determining what needs to change and what should stay the same through manufacturing and using the products himself, then applying that to the next set of technology—it's a difficult process, but perhaps when wrapped in the comfort of "JOY," you just swallow it and move on, forgetting the unpleasant parts.
Curtis originally started building bikes with the Sycip brothers in a shared garage on a pier in San Francisco.
As they both started getting orders, they found that they couldn't pursue the kind of bike play they enjoyed in the city, and they couldn't focus on their work. So, they moved to places where they could settle down and set up their own shops. (Curtis went to his hometown of Napa, and Sycip went to Santa Rosa. Both are conveniently located about 100 miles from SF.)
I feel like this is a trend within the bike industry here as well, and it's starting to become popular in more remote areas. Build a reputation in the city, find clients and work, get recognized, discover what you want to dedicate your life to, and then move to a place where it's easier to live. You can always go into the city when you need to. If you can live like that, it's not just a little luxurious—it's a rich and abundant life. I sometimes secretly wish I could be that kind of person.
To be continued.
Retrotec
– Product samples [ Please take a look at the Flickr Retrotec set. ]
