NAHBS made an announcement based on a signed license in hand, while Made went public with no such paperwork.

Key details surrounding these announcements have set the frame building forums alight in the past week, so Handbuilt Bicycle News endeavored to get to the bottom of it.

Responses to our requests made under public records law show that the license agreement for the North American Handmade Bicycle Show's 2027 return at the Palmer Events Center is dated Aug. 19, 2026 — the day before Don Walker announced the show with a Facebook post. Metro, which owns the Oregon Convention Center, told us on Aug. 27 it has no record of a contract for Made's announced move to the same weekend, and that negotiations are still pending.

Austin has settled a question put to us repeatedly. Walker did not choose Aug. 6-8 to collide with Made. Among the records the city released to us is correspondence from a Palmer Center representative to Walker stating: “The only availability in 2027 would be early August.” Walker took the one date offered, believing he would be two weeks clear of Made. That's tight, but it's doable. Walker stated, “If Austin had offered me the same weekend as Made is usually on, which would be 20-22 August in 2027, I would have flat refused.”

Austin's Palmer Center, designed by Centerbrook Architects, is the best-looking option we've seen for a custom bike show. Photo: Jeff Goldberg/Etso

Made has run close to the end of August for four consecutive years, with ending dates falling between Aug. 23 and Aug. 27. So Aug. 6-8 is a departure from that pattern, not a continuation of it. NAHBS, too, has moved its dates over the years, usually late Feb. to early March. In his application to the Palmer Center, Walker noted that “Historically NAHBS was held in late Q1 of each year, although we have considered a late Q3 timeframe.” In subsequent emails, Walker wrote “August isn't ideal...” Documents from Austin clearly show Walker accepting the Aug-6-8 offer, and in the same email requesting discussions about a February 2028 date. According to Walker has since been informed the center is already booked for Feb. 2028. With Austin's main convention center closed for renovation until 2029, the Palmer Center seems to be in hot demand.

Responding to our request, Metro's reply read: “Metro has reviewed its files and has determined there are no responsive documents to your request. There is not a[n] executed contract on file yet as negotiations are still pending. Additionally, there is no record of any other dates being offered for the event.”

We take that last sentence to mean nothing has been written down while negotiations continue, not that no alternatives were discussed. In our dealings with event organizers over the past 35 years or so we have learned that normally a few dates are discussed before the contract is issued. We have followed up with Metro to learn whether the Aug. 6-8 dates are held in the Convention Center's booking calendar, and if so from what date. Also, Made show organizers have been approached for a response. Neither had responded at the time of publication.

It is still not quite clear how and why this happened. If it was accidental that's one thing, but if deliberate that's a very different thing — and how exhibitors respond will tell us something. Some may wonder if a date clash even matters. It matters. The three biggest North American shows are not interchangeable. NAHBS, peripatetic by tradition, has represented US handbuilt culture in general rather than any one city's. Made is emphatically a Portland expo. The Philly Bike Expo is broader than either. For a few exciting hours on Aug. 20 a builder or related manufacturer, and committed show-goers too, could have considered attending all three. Now a choice is forced. In a small community a crack like that can widen into a split, which is the last thing frame building needs.

Some commenters have suggested letting the best show win. That would be a poor outcome for the industry and consumers alike. Choice is what the handbuilt sector uniquely offers, and exposure is what it most sorely lacks. A contest that ends with one survivor reduces both. How it works.

Position Statement

The United States is well suited for three or four large regional handbuilt shows, spaced sensibly across the country and across the calendar, each one feeding the others, and with smaller shows and seminars in between. A builder should be able to reach customers without choosing sides, and attendees should not have to travel 3,000 miles to meet their frame builder. The handbuilt bicycle industry historically has a rich diversity of output, and it should remain so.

Handbuilt Bicycle News is editorially independent of every show and every manufacturer. That includes anyone who pays for a listing in our sister title, Handbuilt Bicycle Guide — a promotional and advisory vehicle for frame builders, small manufacturers and events in this industry — or for promotional space here, which is open only to listed companies.