History, Tradition, and the End of the First Edition

A little while ago, someone was looking for our address on the website. They couldn’t find it and wondered why. Well, we’ve moved. For those keeping track this is the fourth move in Sweetpea Bicycles two year history. It’s tough work finding landlords who don’t get dizzy, short of breath, and grasp at their chests when they hear the word “welding.”

There are hundreds if not a thousand framebuilders in North America. Most of them build a frame or two, and some build a few more for friends and family. But a scant few build a lot, and only a handful have spent a lifetime building bikes. So when Andy Newlands, who has been building bikes for three decades, asked us to move in, we felt incredibly grateful and jumped at the opportunity.

It’s rare to find a real mentor in this business. Someone who can take a look at the problem and say “it’s nothing” or “it’s screwed.” (The two questions you are constantly asking yourself when you start out.) And it is rare to get to work side by side with someone who knows what he knows because he has done it a thousand times and has painstakingly learned the language of his tools and materials. He teaches me things everyday, and on occasion, I get the satisfaction of helping him solve some fabrication problem.

There are a lot of bike companies out there that talk about their history and tradition even though they long since started building their bikes in China. But I feel a sense of awe, because the tools that I get to work with everyday reflect years of building, years of problem solving, and years of creative tradition. A tradition I feel honored to participate in and to continue in my own direction.

Which brings us to the first edition. When I started building, I thought it would be neat to praise the first bikes out of the shop. But being around a master builder and other amazing craftsmen has taught me that I will always need to be a student of my craft in order to truly grow. And while I feel like I have come into my own as a builder, I see a long road of learning and creativity ahead. This is an important moment. And so today, I am officially ending the First Edition to mark this new beginning and to reflect on the long past that came before me.