Edward Albert wrote:
" Bike riding is a dangerous activity. We all have the plates, scars, broken
collar bones, etc to prove it. When riding with others of unknown
ability one has to make a quick decisions about their skill: can they
ride straight, can they be depended on not make sudden moves, will they
be able to stay upright if lightly touched, etc. Our own well being
depends on it."
>From 1975 to 1985, at Como, Skypark and later Simi, hardly anyone fell. It
never occurred to me, either group riding or racing in the 70's, that I was
engaged in a "dangerous activity". It was just bike riding, safe and enjoyable.
My opinion is that the difficulty of use of toe clips and straps, combined
with no helmets, attracted only a certain individual. And once in a pack, you
had to behave or you were not welcomed. I had the pleasure of being yelled at
by Chester Kyle.
Contrast this to what we have today......it's chaos. In the local area, two broken necks, 4 broken backs, numerous hips and pelvises, 4 people have died. This is in the last 10 yrs. We never had this back in the day when I was really riding a lot. One local guy has gone through at least 4 bike frames in the last 8 yrs or so.
Although I miss the Wizards and Masis I had, what I really miss are the group rides of before. Gian Simonetti would come up from Carlsbad Masi factory Auto Fast Freight guys (Corky, Big Red, Baylis, Mike Howard, etc), and we would ride for hours on end, through the open fields in Irvine. It is something I will never forget.
Wes Oishi
Los Angeles