Great dispatch! I couldn't remember that Ray raced that early. I remember him speaking with a group of us at various bike conventions, but not too much about racing. He was more interested in the direction the bicycle industry was going in regards to discounting and rider's loyalties, etc., and our conversations were centered more along those themes. It's always nice to learn a little more about people one has known over 50 years. Ted Ernst Palos Verdes Estates, Ca
Ken: This is what I could dig up about Ray. He died in 2001. Good story.
RAYMOND FLORMAN \ BICYCLIST, SHOP OWNER St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO) April 4, 2001
Bicycling was Raymond J. "Ray" Florman's life, from the Missouri state championships and the 1948 Olympic trials to the Kirkwood bicycle shop he operated for several decades.
Although he didn't make the Olympic squad in 1948, Mr. Florman had a cycling career that spanned 62 years.
"He had a really remarkable championship career," said Edward Ruesing, an amateur cyclist from University City who was mentored by Mr. Florman. "He was Missouri state champion in 1936 and again in 1937. He was then national champion in the 80-plus age group in 1998 at age 81."
A funeral Mass for Mr. Florman, former owner of A-1 Bicycle Sales & Service in Kirkwood, was celebrated Friday at St. Peter's Catholic Church in Kirkwood. Interment was private.
Mr. Florman died March 26, 2001, apparently of complications from colon cancer at his home in Kirkwood. He was 84.
A native of Venice, Mr. Florman became interested in cycling as a teen-ager. Born with only one hand, he constructed a bike that allowed him to use both brakes with one hand control.
Mr. Florman became the Missouri state champion for cycling in the senior men's division in 1936 and again in 1937. Then, in 1998, he won the national championship for his age group at a competition in Florida.
During World War II, Mr. Florman worked at a war plant in Madison and rode his bike six miles from St. Louis, across the McKinley Bridge, to work everyday.
In 1953, Mr. Florman founded Normandy Cycle Co. in Normandy. He later changed the name to A-1 Bicycle Sales & Service and relocated the shop to the current site in Kirkwood.
His son, Raymond E. Florman of Kirkwood, eventually took over the business, but Mr. Florman continued to help at the store until he was 83. The shop sponsors the St. Louis Cycling Club.
Mr. Florman also mentored many other cyclists, including John Howard, an Olympian who won the gold medal in the men's road race in the 1971 Pan-American Games.
Doug Morrell ST LOUIS MO -----Original Message----- From: Ken Wehrenberg [mailto:wnwires@htc.net] Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2005 9:04 PM To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Cc: ktk17028@yahoo.com Subject: Re: [CR]Photos of RAYSPORT SUPER CORSA/Ray Florman
I think the Raysport was a private label for the Windsors that Ray Florman brought to his shop, A-1 Bicycles, in the St Louis area in the 1970s. A couple of days ago Ted Ernst (I think) mentioned Ray's name as a racer of the 50s or 60s. I know he passed away a short while ago. I remember him as missing a hand. Anyone here know how that happened?
Ken Wehrenberg, Hermann, MO