“Black Sheep” is No Misnomer

36″ Wheels?  The ZAMer

The fifth annual National Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS) in Indianapolis was overwhelming. Mind blowing, actually. Over one hundred exhibitors laid out their wares to be gawked at by industry professionals and tourists alike. Mountain bikes, road bikes, track bikes, urban fixie commuters, tandems, polo bikes, and just plain ol’ regular (but beautiful) bicycles. Seeing all those beauties in one place made me feel, strangely, a little jaded. “What comes next?” I wondered, “where can we go from here?” I was certain I was standing among some of the finest and most beautiful bikes on Earth. The level of craftsmanship was extraordinary, my mind reeled trying to calculate all the hours of intricate and painstaking work that went into creating such exquisite machines. Hand-polished lugs, seamless welds, expertly executed geometry, and a dizzying array of sparkling paint jobs and powdercoat lay all around me, most of them looking too beautiful to ride (almost). How do you improve on the modern bicycle, right? Humans have been messing around with the general design for about a century, you’d think we’d have figured out the ultimate bike by now. Alas, perfection is unattainable, but the pursuit of it is the sublime quest that defines us as a species. Before I fell into a philosophical gloom (typical), I came upon Black Sheep Bikes‘ exhibition booth.

Standing out in the crowd was the 36-inch-wheeled ZAMer, an eye-catching behemoth of a bike that drew onlookers from all corners of the exhibition hall. Hailing from Fort Collins, Colorado, Black Sheep is notorious for aesthetically-pleasing and mold-breaking designs, and I doubt you’ll find any in your local bike shop. This thing shatters molds. After ogling the impressive if somewhat befuddling 36-inch wheels sitting underneath a flawless titanium frame, the ZAMer solidified my vote for the People’s Choice Award. After about fifty laps around the convention hall, I confidently scribbled its entry number on the voting ballot provided at the door. Boldness deserves recognition.

Black Sheep Bikes didn’t invent the 36-inch wheel–there are a few floating around out there.  However, this was the first 36er I was privileged to examine.

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