Being There: Philadelphia Bike Expo 2025

Hundreds of cycling enthusiasts walked, rode, drove, or took the train to the 2025 Philly Bike Expo located at the Convention Center in downtown Philadelphia. Having myself taken the train from the creakybottombracket.com office, it was a quick jaunt from Jefferson Station, past Reading Terminal Market, and up the escalator off of Broad and Cherry Street. This was my first Philly Bike Expo since 2021, back when it was an autumnal event.

A sense of anticipation rolled over me as I walked with several fellow cyclists from the train station. The cycling industry - particularly the road/ gravel scene - has been knocked askance since the pandemic. To make matters worse, trade wars on a global scale were looming. I was hoping to find words through boutique cycling personalities to explain where cycling was headed over the next year. 

1980 Colgnago with Campy Super Record.

We followed the breadcrumb trail of cyclists to the front door of the Convention Center. Inside, Piscitello Law, Pennsylvania’s bike crash lawyer, staffed the bike park area on the first floor. Racks were filling up only an hour after the doors opened. Likely, many of the PBE-sponsored group rides were wrapping up and calling it quits at the Expo. I led some of my cycling buddies around in my usual way: zig-zagging the floor plan with an open mind before re-exploring on a detailed second lap. 

It was great to see Kermesse Sport at the Philly Bike Expo.

Along the avenues were artists and frame builders, events and components, travel tourism and tools, vintage builds and concept bikes. Tricycle food truck was on hand to feed a hungry audience. Once I reached the end of the first lap, our group began discussing booths to rediscover, but not before we unexpectedly ran into the Kermesse Sport stall located next to UnPAved. Director Brian Ignatin welcomed us with Utz chocolate covered pretzels. 

Naturally the stars of the show were the bike builds. Pedestaled bikes were affixed with a snap code. Each person could vote on their favorite bike. Meanwhile in the corner, the event photographer was snapping pictures of the bikes and its builder. An attribute that stood out about the 2025 bikes was the attention-grabbing paint schemes. Perhaps the flare has been inspired by the flashy components that have been pouring into the aftermarket scene. Liveries matched racks and cable housing in wild fades and heavy metal flaking. As much as these bikes stood out, several nude titanium builds as well as raw aluminum frames caught attention. Classics such as Ritchey Design bikes held a presence while fabricators such as JP Weigle and Bishop bikes captivated audiences.

Wheels Manufacturing booth had a tractor beam set up just for us.

Then there were the components and tools that stood out. Our group milled about at the Silca booth, considering their titanium cages. Some of the group moved next door to the Lezyne booth to grab a small hand pump for a future cycling trip to Italy. Wheels Manufacturing was explored because they manage to read our minds with tools and release as if they know we are coming. The group gravitated toward Wolf Tooth Components. Nittany Mountain Works frame bags, Portland Design Works, and Velo Orange booths were the scene of discussion for kitting out a potential upcoming bikepacking trip. We got to interact with the Schwalbe Tires lineup, something that needed to happen for a while.

Back to my original goal of trying to put into words the health of the cycling industry, I noticed many of the booths were scaled down than before. Vendors from previous years were absent. The word that best described those willing to talk about it was ‘perplexing.’ In years’ past, vendors brought cars with roof racks equipped with superbikes. Aside from the food truck, there were no cars on scene from the vendors. Some vendors combined booths in a twofer. And while the Princeton Carbon Works wheels spun lustfully amidst the backdrop of Harry Levreysen’s track bike, there was a sense of perplexity amongst those gathered to explore cycling. And while the conversation spilled over in the train ride home, some of us argued the Covid crunch is still being felt. People still ride alone instead of in group rides; trainer rides have vacuumed up numerous personalities. Big company overstock has saturated a market, leaving it directionless. 

Weis Manufacturing frames stand out for so many reasons.

In the meantime I was able to catch up with area personalities. Topher, the race director for Sly Fox Cross, was on hand helping out some local artisans. Tommy Barse, owner of Cutlass Velo Bike Studio in Baltimore, MD, spent time talking to me about exciting new possibilities for the year. Seeing Brian of Kermesse Sport was a pleasant surprise. These are the personalities that have kept me on the cycling scene for the past few years when inspiration has dried up. 

My group eventually called it a day after several laps. Mission accomplished with making small purchases. I walked out with a Cutlass Velo t shirt, something I’ve been after for a while. We made our way through the massive crowd gathered next door for the Philadelphia Art Show. We pondered using the Philly attitude in the overflowing Reading Terminal Market, packed with thousands of other Philly attitudes. 

One of the bikes featured by Bishop Bikes from Baltimore, MD.

It’s when we sat down on the train headed back that we began to unpack all of what we saw. The Philly Bike Expo is the destination for nearly all of the cyclists in our area. The creakybottombracket.com audience overlaps with the PBE crowd. The Expo provides beautiful bikes, destination cycling trips, fundraising ideas and teams, and component purchases. It’s that perplexity that has stuck with me. Tommy Barse suggested it was the long winter. I internalized it could be the road bike market has delivered dream bikes to every rider due to overstock. Either way, to meander through the aisles and be inspired is the reason to attend the Expo’s final day on March 9, even if the time change dings you. We went on Saturday, and the event inspired us to get out for a ride on Sunday. That’s a fair trade.