If you were at the Vulpine Cyclogames last weekend, you’ll know competition was fierce to claim top prize in the CycleLove x Kinoko Best Bike Competition.

I’m happy to say that the honour was taken by one of my personal favourites, and with such a thoroughbred racing pedigree, it’s hard to find fault with the judge’s decision — as the winning bike was hand built by Japanese framebuilder Yoshiaki Nagasawa for professional Keirin rider Narihiro Inamura, a competitor in the Sydney 2000 Olympics.

Paul, an architect at Piercy&Co here in London, painstakingly built up his take on this stunning track frame last year.

Because the components were almost exclusively sourced from Japan, the resulting bike is tantalisingly close to NJS (Nihon Jitensha Shinkōkai or Japan Keirin Association) specification. Apart from the Vittoria tyres, tougher rims and a slightly more comfortable saddle than most track riders can enjoy, this is the real deal; a bike that is equally at home cruising the streets of London as it would be circling a Japanese track.

You can probably tell from the closeups that it was raining when I met Paul to photograph his bike yesterday, but somehow I think the drops of water only add to the mouthwatering effect.

As part of his prize, we’ve immortalised Paul’s bike as one of the myCycleLove bike logos that appear on this site (and at the top of this page) so you’ll be seeing it around here on CycleLove. Which might go a little way to reducing your jealously at not being able to take it out for a spin in the flesh.

Looking for the build spec? Scroll down… ;)

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Build specification

Frame / Size / Year
Nagasawa NJS Keirin 56.5cm

Handlebars / Stem
Nitto B123 Bars 380mm / Nitto N.J.Pro Stem 90mm

Fork / Headset
Shimano Dura Ace HP-7410

Front Wheel / Hub / Rim / Tire
Shimano Dura-Ace 7600 Front Hub / Araya RC-540 Rims 36H / Hoshi 14# Plain Spokes 290mm / Vittoria Open Corsa Evo SC Tyres

Rear Wheel / Hub / Rim / Tire
Shimano Dura-Ace 7600 Rear Hub / Araya RC-540 Rims 36H / Hoshi 14# Plain Spokes 290mm / Vittoria Open Corsa Evo SC Tyres

Crankset / Bottom Bracket
Sugino 75 Crank 165mm / Hatta R9400 NJS

Saddle / Seat Post
Kashimax Aero / Nitto SP72 Seat Post

Pedals / Chain
MKS Royal Nuevo Pedals / MKS Fit Alpha NJS Toe Straps / DID Racing Pro Chain

Gearing / Chainring / Misc.
Sugino 75 Chainring 49T / Euro Asia Duluxe Track Cog 18T

Posted to Bikes
by James Greig

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