I really can't add any exact year (but it should have been 1976 or 77 right after we opened Toga Bike Shop-now-cycles de ORO) but I recollect taking my team to the BIG Biltmore-McDonalds stage race in Asheville NC and sitting in the riders meeting with all the other teams.. All the biggies were there, a full bore 7-11 squad with Eric Heiden and a Canadian team with Steve Bauer, etc. Anyhoo, chief referee Al Macdonald addressed all of us about the neutral wheel service and mentioned that surely no team was using the old 5 speed (120) wheels as all the support wheels were 6 speed. My whole team scrunched down in their seats as all we had was 5 speeds!
Dale Brown cycles de ORO, Inc. 1410 Mill Street Greensboro, North Carolina 27408 336-274-5959 fax 336-274-6360 <A HREF="http://www.cyclesdeoro.com">cyclesdeORO.com</A> <A HREF="http://www.classicrendezvous.com./main.htm">ClassicRendezvous.com</A>