BTW, I'll bet a lot CR folks don't know that Sheldon's wife, Harriet Fell, was among the group of four American riders who successfully finished the Paris-Brest-Paris 'Randonneurs' in 1975. These hardy pioneers were the first Americans to complete a PBP since Charly Miller finished fifth in the 1901 professional race. Harriet and the others opened the door for the rest of us who followed in their tracks-- this August there will be at least 500 US riders in Paris seeing if they can make the 1200 hilly kilometers in 90 hours.
CR content: She wrote a great account of randonneuring in bygone days at:
http://www.ccs.neu.edu/
Bill Bryant Santa Cruz, CA
on 6/20/03 10:41 AM, Sheldon Brown at CaptBike@sheldonbrown.com wrote:
> Folks might be interested in the origin of the Franglais term "gentleman."
>
> This actually referred to an obscure type of racing occasionally seen
> in France. The event was a time trial for couples, with the woman
> generally drafting behind the man for the whole distance.
>
> Sheldon "Prefers To Trade Off With My Wife, 'Cause She's At Least As
> Fast As I Am" Brown
> Newtonville, Massachusetts