Hey there! ย ๐
It's been 30 days since I last wrote. ๐
In my defence, it has been one hell of a month for me personally. ย ๐
I got engaged, then two days later (two days before I said goodbye to my kids after two months together in Amsterdam) I learned our former intern and friend, Rei Miyoshi, had passed away in Japan at the very young age of 22.
Rei's passing deeply affected everyone here at Twotone and so many more here in the Amsterdam cycling scene but also across Europe and, of course, all the way back home in Japan to his closest family and friends. He was mourned the world over.
Rei was the real deal. He's been on my mind constantly and ultimately, beyond the grief, his memory is about seizing opportunity, ย giving it all you got and just believing that you can make it happen. Rei always just went for it and we all should too!
Everyone remembers when they first met Rei and the energy he exuded. I'll do my best to share the same stoke with those that I meet in the years and years to come.
Below, I re-shared the text I previously wrote about Rei on insta in tribute. I also included a link to his memorial service.
thank you for reading and I wish you a great week ahead,
Jon
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Rei
To say that we were honoured to know Rei as a friend, colleague, fellow traveler, racer and rider is an understatement.
Rei was the real deal. Everyone remembering Rei right now agrees, there was no other soul with more genuine stoke, sincere spark for life & spontaneous good-hearted fun. โฃ
Rei has been a part of the #twotoneams family since @bunyanvelo introโd @jonwoodroof & @frankvandersman to him at the @fahrradschau in 2018. โฃ
Rei was the kind of #whenindoubtleaditout spirit that in we in our company and, frankly, we feel we all should aspire for: donโt let lack of gear(s), experience, planning nor perfect circumstances hold you back. โฃ
JUST GO FOR IT!โฃ
Rei never shyโd from uncertainty, adventure nor any challenge he encountered. In fact, he often (seemingly effortlessly) just crushed it!โฃ
Rei was an official member of the Twotone team for a little more than 6 months here in Amsterdam. โฃ
We were honoured that he wanted to work with us. His stoke, enthusiasm & passion inspired us all during his internship.โฃ
In fact, the radness, results and memorable moments he left in his wake is amazing. He did great work for @berthoud_cycles, @pelagobicycles, @shimanogravel, @silca_velo & more. โฃ
He just made stuff happen! Often improvising, just committing to #fullsend, landing on two wheels with #panache. As our friend @8000watt would say, #fullforcevoraus. ๐ช๐ปโฃ
Losing Rei makes you reevaluate the mark youโre making with each day of your life. How are you helping? How are you inspiring? How are you living? How are you loving? And yes, how are your riding? ๐๐ค๐ปโฃ
Weโre forever grateful for our time with Rei & in awe of the outpour of gratitude from so many for Reiโs impact on their lives from every corner of the globe. โฃ
Youโll forever ride on with all of us each time make it up a climb without shifting, bunny hop over anything & simply laugh when we crash doing something stupid. โฃ
Weโll know you would have laughed too, helped us up & showed us how itโs done. โฅ๏ธ
More than an Intern, Rei felt like part of our family.
Rei was memorable out the gate. Modest yet engaged. Immediately sharing audacious plans but no real plan on how achieve them yet cooly confident that he would. โฃ
I told him to hit me up when in Amsterdam on his European travels. He blew my kids away with BMX skills, origami & special treats & gifts from Japan. โฃ
Months later, Rei approached me about doing an internship at my company. I would have been a fool not have found a way. I knew that then & am now so goddamn glad that I did. โฃ
In the summer of 2019, I picked up Rei with #ottogram & #miragram at the airport. Rei always had his share of bad luck (we all do) & his bikes were lost. No worries. He knew theyโd turn up. โฃ
โOk, Rei, where are you staying?โโฃ
He hadnโt quite figured that out yet. So, again, I hosted him. It was then that he began to feel like my & @kristysparkโs 7th kid. โฃ
Getting an apartment in Amsterdam is hard for anyone. Even locals. Rei took months to make it happen. He lived on the road between gravel events he attended for Twotone like @grinduro, @ltdgravelfest.cc, @gravel_fondo, @bbb_camp & @eurobike_show. โฃ
He stayed on a houseboat for awhile, even the office more than a few times & finally found a crib in the 2nd half of his time here. โฃ
Throughout it all, he was dedicated to getting results for not only #twotoneams clients but also in the @amscrosscomp often was really just between me, him & @sjors_mahler with nail-biting footage by @manny.granny. โฃ
Speaking of Manny, aka Brayden, Kristyโs 16yo son, Brayden looked up to Rei in so many ways. โฃ
Rei was a free-spirited bike nerd that could bunny hop higher than most, table any jump & climb any peak with one gear. โฃ
Brayden saw someone living the dream, traveling the world on two wheels & without a care. To Brayden, & everyone that met him: Rei was the real deal. โฃ
In Rei, I also saw myself. I was once also a starry-eyed globetrotter without โproperโ planning in my youth. I am grateful for the chance to have enabled Rei on his way like so many had done for me. โฃ
My family will always remember Rei as our 7th kid. โฅ๏ธ
Rei's Memorial Service
Most people could not travel to Japan to attend in person. People from all over the world attended via FB live.
Cycling
โTo succeed at Further you need to be part road cyclist, part mountainbiker, part hiker, part fell runner, mostly belligerent, an expert strategist and with a broad vocabulary of swear words. being an olympian might also help. or you can just do your best and see what happensโ
โ JO BURT
FURTHER
I participated in the inaugural edition of the race last year. And, contrary to my self-imposed rule of strongly favouring first year events only, Further was so 'nice', I had to do it twice.
Well frankly, the pickings are slim in 2020 for viable event participation, so kudos for Camille for making something so sadistically alluring that a select few fanatics will sojourn the Pyrenean Bermuda triangle of southwest France, Andorra & Spain to endure a few days of pain.
Due to Corona, there will be no border crossings. And, of course, each rider will largely be solo throughout the event. I'll post my tracker link to my profile on Friday morning.
p.s.
a teaser of what to expect; images from last year & James Mark Hayden's recent recon footage.
Stoked is the new Epic โ Legor Cicli
Last issue had Mattia rippin' in a radical edit for ENVE and this week a feature for Brooks (...with whom we just kicked back off with!).
Congrats on building buzz about your framebuilding and the keep the stoke going, Legor Cicli!
Car Killer 2: Tern Unveils Next Generation GSD Electric Cargobike
Twotone helped produce the photoshoot and video that launched the original Tern GSD in 2017.
It became an instant classic (I even have one of my own), and now, with the launch of the second iteration, this iconic machine looks set to win new admirers. Read more here.
Work
Ampler E-Bikes Road Show Comes to Amsterdam
Thew Ampler Road Show's next stop is Amsterdam! Take a free test ride around Oosterpark and find out how their lightweight, fully-equipped e-bikes can take you further without breaking a sweat.โฃ
See you ๐๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐๐ฒ, ๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ฌ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ญ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฆ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฐ๐๐๐ง ๐๐ ๐๐ฆ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ ๐ฉ๐ฆ!
The Benelux Wahoo Kickr Launch
It was radical to see everyone again last week at the launch of the new Wahoo KICKR in Dordrecht. Thank you to Stan of Snobici for the photos!
The 7 Best Coworking Spaces in Amsterdam
Amped to have Workspace 6 perched on the top spot on this recent Amsterdam co-working recap!
Radness
DIRTY KANZELLED
The day before I braved 5 airports in 3 days to retrieve my kids from Florida, I rode the Dirty Kanzelled.
Bruno of Fietsbenen did a great job capturing the spirit of this event.
Kudos to Laurens ten Dam (also racing Further!) & Stefan Bolt for making this magic happen. It was the positive vibe we all needed as lockdown lifted here in Holland.
Already feels like a lifetime ago!
Read more on liveslowridefast.com