Well spotted Chuck! I could say that I had left in the anomaly of the date for the introduction of the Spidel group at 1981 to just see who in the Class was paying attention, but I wouldb't be being very honest! About five minutes after I had posted the contri I thought "...there's something wrong there...if Dangillaume was riding the equipment in 78, it must have introduced before 1981!"
My excuse is that I had just drunk a bottle of Gaillac white wine to accompany a plate of Atlantic salmon..and at around 13.5% it had got the better of me. Therre's so many similarities beteween French wuines and French bikes...they're so often idiosyncratic. The Gaillac from a small rgeion near Touluse uses two types of grape that are not grown wnywhere else in the world. So much for globalisation!
The Spidel group set was announced at the Paris Cycle Show, at the Porte de Versailles inn September 1977, with M Haubtmann, of Stronglight and M Nollet, of Maillard Industries doing the honours. Coincidentally at the same Show the Brothers Huret, Roger, Alain, and Gerard jointly announced "Le Tout Huret " groupsets, based on the Duopar gears for touring and the Success and Jubilee gears for road racing and sports.
Meanwhile back on the Shimano stand, the Nippon company chose to introduce to Europe its Uniglide range of freewheel, to run along with its uniglide chain!
Can it really be nearly thirty years ago already!
Norris Lockley..growing older by the day..Settle UK