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Hi Mark,
It was Jeanne Omelenchuk whom you are referring to. She was an olympic class speed skater and track cyclist, six day racer who retired in the mid 70's to take a seat on the city of Warren, Michigan city council.
Her husband was George Omelenchuk, a Ukrainian born machinist/cycle builder, who also made a serious mark as a racer and builder during the post WW2 six-day period. George's bikes are special to me, and a good friend of my family. He built a cycle for my father in the late 40's which I still have. George was a complete cycle builder. He manufactured his own frames from (sometimes) self-extruded tubesets with machine mitered/lathe turned ends for correct fit, into lugs which he cast himself. He even built his own hubs which were super wide flange alloy/steel, roller bearings. Beyond that extreme, george pefected the extrusion processes in his machine shop. he manufactured his own rims of aluminum. The pair on my '49 Omelenchuk are drilled/lightened between the spoke holes on the exposed face of the rim (opposite the bead seat). Radical. the bike weighs 16 pounds and is beautiful work of machinist-built art.
I think I'm the only person with an interest in George O. Having placed several ads in Michigan papers, the bike trader, etc., over the years, the responses were few, except for a call by Jeanne, who still lives in Warren.
Feel free to share this with your CR friends.
Take care,
Ken Denny
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