Just a quick report for you all who were not attending Velo in Chicago. The turn out from vendors for the first year of this event was strong, but mostly dealers, shops, company reps etc with a very small contingent of private vendors selling "vintage" items. The vintage stuff was mostly lightweight racing components, with one vendor selling balloon tire bikes and components.
I left the house in Shorewood, WI early and drove to Libertyville, Ill to meet friends Keith Helon and Ed Brooks, and from there on to Chicago. Upon arrival at 9:00AM, there was a long line stretched around the side of the building from the front entry, but once doors were opened, we moved in quickly. Right after entering we met up with David Cooper as well. Through out the morning we met friends from the CR, Tom Hayes, Jon Baron, Greg Parker, Jan Johnson and Larry Osborne all the way from the deep South. Sorry if I missed any members I had conversation with, but at 55 the memory is beginning to fail. Must be a long "senior moment". I'm not sure how many folks attended the event, but the crowd was substantial for a first year. From what I heard through a few people yesterday is that Velo News is committed to developing this event and its growth over a period of years. My only thought is that vendor spaces for the individual private hobbyist/ collector are a bit steep at $75 per space. Hopefully this event will continue to grow in size and see more vendors from the lightweight and vintage community. In all we did a great time seeing fellow CR members.
On another note, the folks from the Cronometro Swap held yearly in Madison, WI had a booth to announce their 14th annual swap this year. Usually the event is held in February, but this years event is scheduled for Saturday, January 15th from 9:00AM to 4:30OM at the Alliant Energy Center @ 1919 Alliant Energy Center Way in Madison. From what I've been told this is the second largest swap in the country and full of vintage goodies. For more info their contact number is: 608-255-0351 and website @ http://www.cronometro.com.
Peter Naiman Alias Hetchinspete 4420 North Ardmore Avenue Shorewod, WI 53211-1418 __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com