Hi All and Ray Green, (missed you at the Pedal Club lunch today)
A follow up on Rays story re Hennie Kuiper winning the worlds at Yvoir in
Belgium 1975 in a "hairnet" crash hat, only it wasn't his.
I was at this Worlds as mechanic to the GB team and Jan Kuiper, manager of
the Dutch team came into the GB pits in a panic at the start as Hennie had
forgotten his helmet, could we help ( Jan Kuiper had become a friend after
managing the Dutch team in many Milk Races). I had my son with me who had
been competing in Belgium and offered him the loan of his crash hat, offer
rapidly accepted.
As we know Hennie won the Pro title that year and I said to my son "forget
the crash hat, we won't get near him at the ceremony".
We headed for the ferry to the UK, and wrote the helmot off.
Two weeks later a parcel arrive addressed to my son containing a thank you
letter from Hennie, a Frisol jersey (his team at the time) an 50 guilders.
Hennie asked could he keep the helmet as he considered it lucky. Quite a
haul for a young 15 year old (now 46) and a measure of the professionalism
of Hennie Kuiper
Mike Mullett
Reading UK