Hello,
The other day a post of mine to a bike club mailing list was forwarded to the Classic list. I began to poke around and found that I had overlooked the fact that there was a mailing list associated with a page I had checked out a few times before. So here I am.
My name is Rob Hawks, and I'm from the Richmond Annex area of the East Bay (near San Francisco). I've been tinkering with bikes since Hector was a pup, and worked in bike shops to make my way through college back in the late 70s and early 80s. (I worked at Allied Cycle in Detroit, then at Velocipede Peddler in East Lansing). I still have the bikes I bought from each of those shops when I worked there, although one of them is not much to talk about, then or now. For a time I also owned a late 60s vintage Cinelli, which a friend has right now.
I'm not a collector, but my interest in old bikes and parts stems from a small hobby of building up beater bikes as commute bikes for friends of mine, and also to keep my own commute bike running. That commute bike is a Bianchi Limited which I think is from the mid 80s but I'm not sure. If anyone knows anything about this bike be sure to pass it on. I have a fondness for lugged frames, which is why I like this bike although it's hardly a collectable. I get a small kick out of finding bikes and parts at garage sales, or going to swap meets and picking up parts, mostly used, for modest prices.
I've received only one digest so far, but from glancing over it, I'm sure I will like being on this list. I also appreciate the admonition to avoid heated debates on this list. *THAT* will be refreshing.
rob