For everyone's reading pleasure (...scans courtesy of Joel Niemi):
http://www.velo-pages.com/
Robert "Not Such A Big Wheel Himself" Broderick ..."The Frozen Flatlands" of South Dakota Sioux Falls, USA
-----Original Message----- From: classicrendezvous-bounces@bikelist.org [mailto:classicrendezvous-bounces@bikelist.org] On Behalf Of gear@xmission.com Sent: Tuesday, August 04, 2009 12:08 AM To: oroboyz@aol.com Cc: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org Subject: Re: [CR] Aquila and Flying Dutchman frames from The Big Wheelin Denver
Hi all,
I'll chime in on this as a means to further confuse the issue. Not long before Jack's 'new' Big Wheel store went away, and his death, I spent the better part of an afternoon talking with him for a feature/interview to be published in a cycling publication based in the Denver/Boulder area. (the feature was never published, and much of what Jack said was not publishable in a family publication...)
I had known Jack for several years, and he was very sure that the MTB had ruined the bike biz as he had known and enjoyed it, and he minced no words while naming names. (Hmmm, maybe another reason no cycling publication whose livelihood is mainly dependent upon advertising felt the need to publish Jack's views at the time, still during the height of the MTB boom).
Anyway, he told me then that Flying Dutchmen bikes were Dutch-built, and hinted at Rih as the main contractor, with '...odder small ones, bildas too, der who make dem faw us der". Those of you who knew Jack may recognize some of that...I'm smiling right now anyway.
Each frame that he showed me in his inventory had 531 decals and Campy dropouts, but older style than was typical of that time. Perhaps old stock. In the end, his heir(s) sold off the remaining frames and inventory, I think a good many at one or two Velo Swaps in Denver. They weren't great bikes in terms of detail and finish, but I wish I'd gotten one nonetheless, just to give me cause to recall listening to Mr. Van Ghent speak.
Greg Overton chiming in der, even if I din know nuddin', der near Denver, Colorado
Quoting oroboyz@aol.com:
> <<"According to his daughter Yvonne he started in the early 70's?
> with the Aquila house brand name, Yvonne couldn't recall an exact date.?
> The Aquila frames were built in France at the Gitane factory,?
> same thing with the Flying Dutchman frames Jack later brought into the
US,?
> they too were made in France at the same factory." >>
>
>
>
> Hmm.??I think things got confused in the word-of-mouth repeating of
> that story.
>
> I bought and sold a number of those bikes. ("Aquila", "Flying
> Dutchman") and that talk is about Jack Van Gent (now defunct Big
> Wheel Bicycles in Denver) and his daughter Yvonne Van Gent... Jack's
> house brand Flying Dutchman frames were at least in part made by
> Aquila in Italy. I don't think nor believe Gitane had any hand in
> them. He also sold the Libertas brand which I assumed were Dutch or
> Belgian.
>
>
> Dale Brown
>
> Greensboro, North Carolina USA
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: verktyg@aol.com
> To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
> Sent: Mon, Aug 3, 2009 5:38 pm
> Subject: [CR] Aquila and Flying Dutchman frames from The Big Wheel in
Denver
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> I found this comment in a Bikeforums.net thread from 2006 in reference
> to Flying Dutchman bikes:?
> ?
>
> "According to his daughter Yvonne he started in the early 70's?
>
> with the Aquila house brand name, Yvonne couldn't recall an exact date.?
>
> The Aquila frames were built in France at the Gitane factory,?
>
> same thing with the Flying Dutchman frames Jack later brought into the
> US,?
>
> they too were made in France at the same factory."?
> ?
>
> Gitane made Royal Asport and a few other brands of bikes but is anyone
> aware of an Aquila or Flying Dutchman connection to Gitane??
> ?
>
> Chas. Colerich?
>
> Oakland, CA USA?
> ?
>
> ?
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