Shakin’ Bones with BoneshakerMTB
About two years ago, The online store crew (including myself) were still working in the tiny space in the backyard of Hatagaya.
Around this time, we started to see more and more guests from overseas and I would often help our guests out with their shopping by translating.
One day, someone peaked in the backyard looking for help. Like always, I got up from my seat and went where the gentleman who was in need of help. The guy was wearing an orange PUNKANDYO zip up hoodie and I was wearing a Frog Skateboards hat, so we realized that we both have same kind of interests in clothing. (at least I did)
We had a brief conversation about bike stuff and the gentleman bought some MKS pedals, I believe they were the Bear Traps.
All I learned about him that day was that his name was Jake from Canada, who loves MTBs and had a sick fit.
A year later, I received a DM from someone saying that they will be coming to Japan and wanted to go for a bike ride. It was Jake.
We met up at the store. Jake had brought two friends with him Etienne and Anthony who are the main dudes behind PUNKANDYO. This was quite a surprise for me and my inner skate rat self was freaking out that these two were right in front of me. It totally made sense why Jake was wearing that hoodie.
We messed around and chatted in the shop. By the time they came to visit, we just had a huge Vans collab release and they took some goofy photos of me with this huge slip-on.
This is Jake.
He sticker bombed on the glass door of the entrance of the Hatagaya store.
“BoneshakerMTB”
I first thought BoneshakerMTB was his local bike shop, but it turns out that it was a project he was starting. We decided a date for a bike ride and said goodbye.
Ride day.
The dude taking the picture is Jake, the dude with a peace sign is Balti, one of Jake’s homie and that tiny dude on the right is me.
We met up with few of my friends and headed to Haneda Airport.
The two were smiling the whole time, which also made me happy.
( I gotta start taking better photos whenever we have guests around…)
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Thankfully, Jake and Balti were documenting the ride and Jake made this cool little edit.
I asked Jake what BoneshakerMTB is and what it means to him via email last month. Below is his response.
“BoneshakerMTB is a Canadian based cycling brand that focuses on inclusivity, and creating product to share their story worldwide. Founder Jake London, has organized group rides far beyond where he resides in Toronto, Canada. With the help of his friends, they have brought communities together globally to ride bikes and embrace cycling. BoneshakerMTB has gained popularity not only for hosting rides but for their off bike events including their Vintage Mountain Bike Show, Goldsprints and Show & Shine/Swap Meets. These off bike events create an atmosphere where cycling can be enjoyed by those who may not want to ride with a large group, yet can still enjoy and learn about the sport and its history in a gallery or social setting. “
“When Jake first started BoneshakerMTB, he wanted to create a community where everyone would feel welcome even if they were an extreme or entry level cyclist. With roots in mountain bike racing/riding from his youth (where the MTB portion of the name in Boneshaker comes from) he wanted to bring the fun and creative characteristics to their products that were once there in the 80’s/90’s & early 2000’s, before everything felt so commercial and high performance. Vintage mountain bikes and 26inch is still alive! Jake has been riding 26inch tires well before the current rebirth of the 26inch commuter resurgence, and has a real love for vintage mountain bike brands, parts and builds. “
“BoneshakerMTB hosts bi weekly rides in Toronto, along with weekend rides and events backed by sponsors which have helped to encourage all sorts of people to come out and shake their bones. “
What BoneshakerMTB means a to me (Jake):
“To me, BoneshakerMTB means getting out on your bike and having fun with friends and people you may have just met that day. No worries about competing or about having top of the line bike or gear, just get on the bike you’ve got, the one in your friend’s/parent’s garage, the one you found on marketplace or your local bike shop. The best bike is the one you’ve got and there is always time to upgrade your current bike or save up for your dream bike. BoneshakerMTB is about getting together with your friends and meeting people with similar interests to embrace cycling, whether it be a local city cruise or ripping dirt trails in the forest.”
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Jake had been hosting sick group rides even before we met. The rides always has cool sponsors, such as Vans, Patagonia, Modelo and more. Love the vibes in the videos so much.
(Photo via bikepacking.com)
The bike show he did was insane. There’s a cool article in Bike Packing dot com, so you can get an idea of his insane collection of bikes gathered for the event.
Gary at Gary’s Project also did a cool video on the event.
As you can see, Jake is a big fan of bicycles. I respect him for holding such crazy events and rides, because it is not easy for organizing any kind of events.
Jake also works as a general manager for a clothing shop in Toronto and helps out some stuff at PUNKANDYO. Such a multi talented individual.
I instantly became a fan of Jake’s personality and works he put out through BoneshakerMTB in a short period from when he started the brand.
We stayed in touch after he went back to Toronto and would talk about how we can carry their stuff here at Blue Lug.
I am stoked that it happened!
We got their B-Wheel shirts!
The first time I saw the B-wheel logo, it reminded me of Menace.
Love this section on Trilogy btw…
Crossbone top cap. You can’t have enough of top caps.
It’s only an aesthetic thing, but it always make me happy to have cool top caps.
I have mine on my Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross.
The joints of the bones is supposed to be facing up. I had mine backwards when I installed it , but Jake hit me up and said it’s the wrong way. My bad Jake!
Last but not least, stickers.
It’s the same design as the top caps.
The stickers are a bit big to apply on a bike frame, so I recommend putting them on u-locks and water bottles.
Again, I am super excited that we get to carry BoneshakerMTB and I can’t wait to do more projects with them in the future.
We have their gear available on our website, but I imagine the shipping is quite expensive for some parts of the world, so I recommend buying their gear at https://boneshakermtb.com/collections/all if you live in Canada or in close countries.
✌️
-Shin
