Nowness takes a very interesting look behind the scenes of the Japanese Keirin sport.

“Before fixed-gear bikes became de rigueur for urban aesthetes, they were the weapon of choice for Japan’s fearless Keirin cyclists. A gladiatorial incarnation of track cycling that dates back to 1948, the Japanese sporting phenomenon operates by an intricate set of rules that sees competitors jostling for position on steeply banked tracks at lightning fast speeds, all but encouraging spectacular crashes. In today’s film for NOWNESS, Jonathan de Villiers (whose fashion photography and portraiture has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Wallpaper* and Fantastic Man) traveled to the national Keirin school in Tokyo and the Tachikawa and Yokkaichi velodromes to decode the strategy that governs the racing phenomenon. “I knew next to nothing about it when I went,” says de Villiers, “but I’m a big admirer of the anthropological documentary where you get taken into a whole different world. And what a strange, special and complex universe it turned out to be.” The state-run industry amasses tens of billions of dollars in gambling revenue each year.”

Keirin: Speed Racers on Nowness.com.

Enjoy!

We do not know much about the new store space that involved the Undefeated crew and Nike Sportswear. But it seems to be called CTRS and it seems to be a concept that evolves around the world of cycling. It also looks like they will be presenting their own bike or bike collaboration. More on all of this very soon.

Check out the welcoming text to CTRS after the jump.

We present you one of the most interesting releases by Nike to be coming out this summer. Just this morning we presented the Hyperdunk, the lightest basketball shoe to ever be produced by Nike, and here comes some more heat now. Once again the brand shows its drive to innovation and presents with the Dunk Gyrizo an interesting and practical product for anybody interesting in biking.
BMX, or Bicycle Moto Cross is the non-motorized version of motocross, but also includes freestyle and jumping. The sport is making its Olympic debut in Beijing this August and Nike athletes will be outfitted in innovative footwear and uniforms.

“Looks like a dunk, but acts like Lance’s cleat.” That statement sums up the power and impact of the Nike Dunk Gyrizo, a shoe specifically designed for BMX racing. The Gyrizo, which is Greek for wheel, is actually built on the same cycling last as Lance Armstrong’s cleat. The external portion of the shoe looks like Nike’s wildly popular Dunk model, but the design of the internal plate transfers power in the up and down strokes of the rider. A strap on the upper and a lace pocket keep laces out of the rider’s spokes while a durable outsole compound was integrated to accommodate a wider bike pedal. Kevlar lace and metal grommets are also used to maximize durability. Rubber and thinner midsole on the shoe allow a rider to walk easily before and after races.
The outcome is a shoe that does not only look good, but is functional at the same time, and more you cannot ask for. We also hear rumors, that the design of the shoe has been done by TET of WTAPS.
Check out more images after the jump.

Alta Bikes has been announced a while ago, but until now they did not go on sale. Now 20ltd, the website we reported about earlier already, released their latest 20 limited edition products and the Alta Bike is among them.
Norwegian Alta Bikes is a three-way collaboration between product designers Frost Produkt, furniture designer Norway Says and graphic designers Bleed. The result of this collaboration is an uncompromising 2-wheel purity. Alta One is stripped of all unnecessary equipment and sticks to the essentials. 20ltd is offering this fixed gear bike in submarine grey in a limited edition of 10 pieces. One Alta Bike launches officially you will be able to choose your own color.
In case you are interested in Biomega Bikes, 20ltd have one up right now, a limited edition with raw stitched leather saddle and handlebars.
Check out more pics of the Alta One after the jump.

For their Fall 2007 collection Gallery 1950 once again got together with Porter to produce this time an entire set of bike accessories coming in a pack. The pack consists of a messenger bag, a chain and lock and two pouches and is available in 5 colorways – basically the base color stays black and only the accent color changes. Definitely a nice and very complete set. Pics via Diary 1950.
Check out some more detailed pictures after the jump.

Danish designers Wood Wood live in Copenhagen, a city of passionated bikers. Some close friends being former professional bikers, it was a intuitive decision to found their own team to allow former professionals and a-class riders to keep on pursuing the urge to bike without any too serious goals.
Wood Wood have designed a Bike Outfit for their team which will only be produced 30 times. They will present the outfit (alongside the new collection SS08) on a press conference on Saturday July 28th – in a city also devoted to biking: Amsterdam.Saturday, July 28th 20074pm11 The Vip RoomOosterdokskade 3-51011 AD Amsterdam

We have showed you the Supreme bikechain before and also the blue Fragment Design bikechain. Now the two brands got together to release a collaboration bikechain in three colorways – blue, black and red. The bikechain will be available in the Honeyee Store and at the Supreme Daikanyama Store.