1980’s Copenhagen… The city is near bankruptcy. Unemployment is at 17.5%. “The city was stuck in a vicious circle of deindustrialization, unemployment, high welfare costs, suburbanization, an outdated housing market and strong segregation” (Read more here). Left-wing squatters in Norrebro began taking over empty houses “using them for free housing and as alternative cultural and community centers,” culminating in the infamous Battle of Ryesgade. Like Holland’s Provo’s, this grassroot movement included bicycles in its politics and massive demonstrations were organized. All of this prefaces Copenhagen as the cycling paradise we know today. All of this is represented in the Bullitt B-106.
B106 “Space Design”
Somewhere in this anarchy are two guys: Hans and Lars. Today we know them as Larry and Harry, the founders of Larry versus Harry. Also known as: Bullitt. At this time they’re about twenty years old. As the rumour goes, Larry called Harry with a wild idea: “Let’s make a Flash Gordon movie.” No budget, no equipment, no idea how to pull it off. Whether they squatted or paid the rent we can’t be sure, but B-106 Space Design Inc. became their late-night punk-rock playground. B-106 Space Design Inc became a workshop where spaceships and art were built from scratch and big ideas collided with even bigger imaginations.
They never did make the movie, but they kept the wild ideas going. Thirty years later, Bullitt was borne. Designed to cut through gridlock, it opens up space; another sort of space-ship. Only this spaceship immortalized the Steve McQueen movie BULLITT. The kind of bike you could take to a car chase. Painted in razorblade grey this bike cuts through the bullshit. It’s kind of punk rock that way. The B-106 might be the most punk rock bike Bullitt has ever made.
Big corporations like FedEx buy it for the same disruptive reasons; it can outdeliver a van by 19% per day in 17% less time. For families, it’s a better way to carry your kids to school. It glides effortless through gridlock, past all those people paying by the second for their heart-corroding stuckness. You can read all the reasons that cargo bikes rule here. It doesn’t matter how rich you are riding one, you always feel a little punk rock.
B-106 History
The B-106 celebrates this; and the friendship of Larry and Harry. The story goes that many years later Hans was working for a carpentry company. Any mechanic knows that there is a sort of carpentry to the bike. Holes line up where they should and the hammer stays in your toolbelt. (This is not the case for any other cargo bike). Lars was designing cargo tricycles for Winther, a massive cargo bike company out in Aarhus. All of this sets the stage.
After all, if you had been to Copenhagen in the 80’s you would have seen two-wheelers used for freight and carpentry and three-wheelers used for kids. Both are Danish inventions. However, you would have seen three-wheelers on the car-free island of Christiania; home of the very first squats back in 1971. Why? Because the rest of 1980’s Copenhagen was choked with cars. Fine for carrying construction gear; a bit nerve-wracking when carrying kids. This is why the carpentry company Hans worked for used cargo bikes; they simply got to the job faster.
As bike lanes developed from the 1980’s protests, Bullitt cargo bikes intersected the needs of freight and family into a single platform. The two-wheeler was always a faster bike than the trikes Lars was designing, but it wasn’t until the city became safer that a two-wheeler could be designed for kids. This is what remains so compelling about Bullitt: it’s the only bike that is designed to work before you have kids, during your having kids, after your having kids, or hell… no kids. It’s commercial grade quality for family grade transportation. It’s truly made for everyone. And, of course, it’s a little punk rock.
The B106, Precisely
The B-106 celebrates this history. It’s not just a history of a friendship, it’s combined with the history of a city that their bike helped transform. Of course, now it transforms cities everywhere! It’s a history of wild creativity, a perspicacious eye to changes afoot, and precision. A lot of precision. A precision that came on one hand from understanding the use-case (Hans the carpenter, Lars the family man) but also from the presupposed trades (Hans the carpenter, Lars a bicycle engineer). So, besides the pretty paint job what are you getting here?
We may as well start with the paint. As the story goes, Hans envisioned the paint to look sharp and rebellious while Larry took on the challenge to make it real. Silver coating is one of the toughest colors to perfect. Unlike other finishes, it can’t be polished, leaving no room for error. The coating process is typically reserved for car rims in automated factories, but Bullitt brought it to the hands of craftsmen.
Hour of Power
The Bullitt B-106 features – for the first time ever – the new Shimano EP801 motor. While this motor has the same 85nm of torque as a Bosch motor or Shimano EP8 motor, it has much higher peak wattage, meaning it can dig in deep on those cargo-laden uphill slogs. Unlike the EP8 motor, the EP801 features the new Free Shift and Auto Shift. Free shift allows gear changes without pedaling, and Auto Shift automatically selects the optimal power setting based on riding conditions. Using Bluetooth, you can also dial in the motor tuning like never before.
Of course, the best part about Shimano is the motor is part of a larger drivetrain ecosystem. Shimano already makes the best gear-hubs and derailleurs, and the B106 offers you either the low-maintenance Shimano Nexus-5 drivetrain or an externally derailleur Shimano XT system. The Nexus-5 hub is the only hub we’ve used that can withstand the incredible torque that both rider and motor can deliver – especially under load. It’s famously low maintenance, but, it lacks gear range. Not that this is a big deal; you can simply crank up the power if you’re running out of gears.
But, if you always want a gear for every situation and prefer to conserve batteries for longer day/overnight trips, then the XT derailleur system is phenomenal. The largest gear cog is the size of a dinner plate, and that means a very very low gear that climb nearly anything; even without using the electric assist. So, if you’re more of a purist, need the longest battery life, or just have properly whopper hills then get the XT. If you prefer lower maintenance and battery life isn’t as important (remember, you can get about 80km out of a single charge) then the Nexus-5 drivetrain is the way to go.
Limited Numbers!
The best thing about the Bullitt is that it sizes-up for everyone. Want to sit like a hunched over bike messenger? Easy! Want to sit upright like a Dutch cyclist? Also easy! (Keeping in mind the Bullitt is usually 50% lighter than Dutch cargo bikes…. have mercy!). But, there are only very few available! The B-106 is expected to arrive Spring/Summer 2025, and Canada was only allocated five bikes, so order yours today! The deposit is $750 and refundable anytime (we’re not too worried about selling it if you cancel). Got a question? Great! Shoot us an email at info@pedaal.com and owners Eric or Timm would be happy to help you out.
