SPEEDWAY, IN (BRAIN)—With the 2011 North American Handmade Bicycle Show scheduled for Austin, Texas, February 25-27, preparations are already underway, with significant members of the Austin cycling community—Mellow Johnny's and the Bicycle Sport Shop—pledging their support for the world's No. 1 custom bicycle show.
In addition, the Texas Handmade Bicycle Show has teamed up with NAHBS in a promotional partnership, according to a press release.
Show founder and president, Don Walker said, "We recently met with representatives from these companies on a site visit to Austin, and each is being very, very helpful with logistical support as well as helping us get the word out about the show."
Agreements with the three businesses mentioned include distribution of NAHBS promotional materials and organizing extra-event social functions in the case of Mellow Johnny's and the Bicycle Sport Shop, and liaising with the Texas framebuilding community in the case of the Texas Handmade Bicycle Show.
Walker lived in Texas for six years, and held the inaugural NAHBS in Houston back in 2005. For him, taking the show to Austin is something of a homecoming. "I was excited to go back to the state I still consider home. I am looking forward to more trips there over the coming months to make sure this show is the best yet. The cycling community in Austin is vibrant and has been very welcoming to us. Overall it makes the most sense to be in Austin for 2011."
The Austin venue was, according to tradition, announced on the final day of the 2010 show, in Richmond, Virginia, and so far the news has been met with widespread approval from exhibitors, specialist press, and industry insiders. The consensus is that this is about as good a pick as the show could have made for its next edition.
The business model for NAHBS includes traveling to a new city each year, on a large circuit that takes the show around the United States, introducing a wider audience to the wonders of the handmade bicycle. "This way the show doesn't get stale. We're hitting a fresh, excited new audience each time. We may go back to a venue every five or six years, but by then it's like arriving there for the first time, only better, because people who might have missed it first time around hear how great the show is and they make sure to be there next time," Walker said.
Exhibitors who wish to take advantage of discounted Earlybird rates should submit their application prior to June 15. Click on link for more info.
