But for a hiring freeze, and a sum of student loans that needed to be paid back, we might not ever have heard of Rhode Island-based Chapman Cycles.

Brian Chapman will tell his story behind the tradition-bound bikes he builds in a seminar at the Classic Rendezvous Weekend in Greensboro, North Carolina on June 11.

You see, Chapman had it all figured out at age 18: go to university for a degree in mechanical engineering, get a job at New England neighbor Cannondale designing bikes, and live out his cycling dreams.

As it turns out, Chapman has checked off numbers one and three from the list, but when he finished his degree in 1997, Cannondale wasn’t hiring.

“I didn’t actually know anyone at Cannondale or have an idea what I would be able to offer the company once I had this degree but my 18 year old mind thought this plan was foolproof. Needless to say, Cannondale wasn’t hiring new grads in 1997 and I ended up at a desk job at Brown University because the school loans needed to get paid,” said Chapman.

As life often plays out, happenstance more than solid plans determined the path Chapman took next.

“In 2001 I met Chris Bull from Circle A Cycles who was a custom framebuilder (which I had no idea was an option for a job and this guy right down the street was doing it!). I thought all custom bikes had super crazy Glenn Erickson dragon lugs so I was clueless. I ended up ordering two bikes in succession before becoming an apprentice in 2004. It was there that I learned about fitting, bicycle design, building, painting, customer relations, and running a business.”

One of Chapman Cycles' entries in the Oregon Manifest bicycle design contest.   Photo: Chapman Cycles 

Chapman made the plunge to full-time framebuilding once his student loans were paid off. He quit his job at Brown in 2007 and worked full-time for Circle A Cycles until 2013. Two years earlier, in 2011, Chapman made his first frames bearing the label Chapman Cycles, and so it was in 2013 that he launched his own brand as a full-time operation.

“It’s been a good trip so far,” he says.

Chapman builds bikes that might seem a bit beyond his years, but which reflect the ethos of tradition of his native New England. Randonneur bikes and fittings for fenders and racks predominate on the finished bikes he lists at his website, but like any true custom builder, he’ll build what the customer wants - to a point. He won’t upset his stately bicycle designs with funky paint jobs.

“Some customers just wanted the weirdest stuff and we would always do it at Circle A. Nowadays I’m a strong advocate for one color and letting the bike speak for itself without shouting at you,” Chapman says.

So Chapman won’t let a frame leave his shop looking undignified, just as a father might not let his daughter leave the house in questionable clothing. It’s all for love, in both cases, and Chapman has a deep connection with the bikes he builds in his shop, truly one-at-a-time.

Photo: Chapman Cycles

“In reality, my favorite bike is the one that I’m working on at any given moment. I only build bikes one at a time so my attention is undivided when I’m working on it and I inevitably fall in love with the current bike. It’s hard to say goodbye sometimes, especially if the bike is my size like the purple one I just finished. Sniff! “

Chapman will be relating these tales of love and devotion to his craft on Saturday, June 11 at the Classic Rendezvous Weekend. Registration is still available online.