oroboyz@aol.com wrote:
> << Bevil Hogg was the "representative of a French bicycle company" who had
> "married an American girl and wanted to stay here" with whom Burke
> decided it might be possible to make bicycles. He later left Trek to
> form Kestrel.....Tom French was the original head of sales. He later left
> (c.1983) to join Blackburn. >>
>
> As some of you know, I was the first Trek rep in the southeast back in
> those days.. Must have been about 1976-7 until 1980?
>
> The way I understood it was that Bevil Hoog (a South African) and Tom
> French worked in a bike shop in Wisconsin and they also imported French
> Stella bikes. Dick Burke may have had some financial involvement in that.
IIRC, Hogg and French ran the Vitesse bike shop in Bloomington IL and
later expanded their franchise to Wisconsin. I know the original Campy
tool kit at Trek had "Vitesse" engraved on all the tools.
> IIRC Stella burnt down at the peak of demand and Burke started Trek with
> Hogg & French... Tom and Bevil left to found Kestrel. Kestel then later
> was bought by Schwinn. Tom went on to be pres. of Blackburn, (with Jim
> Blackburn himself, before the Bell buyout) and Bevil went on to bhe the
> president of Everest wheelchair co.
Tom joined Blackburn well before Hogg left Trek to form Kestrel. Tom may have been involved with Kestrel from the beginning, but he was with Blackburn after Trek and before Kestrel started up.
--
John (john@os2.dhs.org)
Appleton WI USA