Hello to all.
I'm new to the site and simply wanted to officially check in.
My name is Mark Winkelman & I live in Dallas, Texas. Like many of you, I've been a cycling nut essentially my whole life. I started riding seriously in 1973 and completed my first century the next year at age 13. I used to do some distance touring and I raced on an amateur level in the mid-70's in ABLA/USCF. I wish I could say I'm still in the same shape now, but alas, no. But I do ride regularly and strictly on pre-1983 bikes. It's a great nostalgia trip. My theory is if it was good enough then, it's good enough now. My daily rider is a 1979 Raleigh Team Pro. About five years ago while shopping for new riding shoes, I had to break down and go modern with clipless pedals. But I'm glad I did. Those are pretty nice. Oh, and a modern seat. Pure 1970's other than those two things.
I own nine vintage rides: 4 Masi's, 4 Raleigh Team Pro's, 1 Schwinn Paramount. I'm the original owner of my silver 1975 Masi Gran Criterium.
After watching the incoming e-mails for the past couple weeks, I can tell there's a tremendous amount of knowledge among the ranks here. It's nice to observe the sharing of the knowledge and the camaraderie.
On a final note, if anyone has a nice original paint P-13 racing Schwinn Paramount (23"-24") they're interested in selling, please let me know. A full pantographed 1972/73 Colnago is on my wish list too.
Thanks,
Mark Winkelman
Dallas, TX
USA