Ben Kamens post finally got me moving on this. I've been working summers in a bike shop for the last two summers, and realised how much my attitudes towards cycling are due to a couple folks I ran across back in high school. I've wondered sometimes where they are now, and have decided to see if anyone here knows. One was the guy Dennis? or Brian? who owned "the bicycle corner" in Arlington Mass. The shop I hung out at in 80-82. He was always patient with me, and helped take the mystery out of almost any bike topic. He prompted me to get into my one year of racing, and while he didn't supply bikes- I wouldnt have deserved one anyway, I did get my real racing bike a couple months into the season. It's still my main bike. Anyway, this summer, It came to me that my manner in the shop was similar, and part of why folks came back.
The other was a guy at the races(Boston Road Club Wells Ave) who always seemed to show up with something different for equipment. He rode with the beginners, and explained tactics etc. I wasn't bright enough to heed any of his advice , being 18 does that I guess, but without it , I'd be just as clueless as most people about racing. Understanding a sport does make it much more fun to watch. I also learned lots about equipment I wouldn't otherwise have seen, one day he did a show and tell thing with a radial spoked wheel which was a real odd thing at the time. Any chance this was/is Sheldon Brown?
If anyone from around boston knows where these folks wre now, I'd like to know.
Thanks,
Steve Birmingham
Lowell, Ma