List,
Jim Cunningham makes some claims below that don't match my experience at the time.
Jim Cunningham wrote:
> Dear CR List,
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> The details are: > There is some truth to Steven L. Sheffield's suggestion that "all the > trouble with Masi/Medici is what killed Mario, and didn't want to sell his > tools to anyone associated with that operation. She was so upset at > everything that happened that she just wanted to get rid of the tools of the > trade that killed her husband as quickly as possible ... money is not what > mattered, but erasing the bad memories." > > I know that Mario had very reluctantly decided to do some consulting to > Masi, which is where he was going on the morning of his death. Certainly > hard work did not improve his health. Mario had only days before made > arrangements with me to bring his next batch of frames to paint, and we were > making other business plans. It is possible that Lisa or her friend felt > uneasy about that fact that I was sharing a building with the Masi company > at that time. I did not get that vibe however, as Lisa repeatedly thanked > me for the help I had given Mario and had offered to give me all his tools > in recognition of my loyalty to him. > > JFC ~ CyclArtist > Vista, CA > First great riding day in a while! > >
Shortly before his death Mario contacted Rene Moser, Masi Bicycle company manager in Rancho Sante Fe. Mario wanted to meet with the owner, Roland Sahm, to discuss the possibility of resuming his relationship with Masi. Mario may have been reluctant but he initiated the renewal of his relationship with Masi. His vision was to be the master framebuilder and instructor for Masi and also to build frames under his own name.
Following his meeting with Roland Sahm, Mario came to visit the shop in San Marcos. Ted Kirkbride and I gave him a tour of the facility. Jim Cunningham lived in a small building next door to the shop (San Marcos' orginal gas station) and he was home when Mario visited us. His windows looked out into the parking area, parking for our facility was in front of Jim Cunningham's building, yet at no time during the visit did Jim Cunningham come out to greet Mario.
During the course of the visit Mario noted the area Cyclart was using and commented that he did not want Mr. Cunningham touching his frames.
Logic, fuzzy or otherwise, leads to questions about Jim Cunninghams' representation of his relation with Mario Confente subsequent to the events at Bill Recht's facilities in Los Angeles. If Jim Cunningham was as close to Mario as he states, he would have known he was coming to the shop and if not, it would seem he would at least have come over to say hi.
In closing, I quote a respected framebuilder and list member "Why is this guy making a career out of working with Mario for six months?" And no, it was not R. Brian Baylis! A friend is fond of saying "that X&*!|!** reality checker is not working! My reality checker seems to mesh with R. Brian Baylis' and Ted Kirkbride's.
Regards,
Jim Allen