Gereetings all, To clarify a bit on Marcel Calborn... Marcel was an old time friend and associate of Ernesto Colnago. Marcel surely imported Colnago bicycles and did have Ernesto produce frames under the name Celo Europa. Back in the day his big shop was in Manhattan Beach near the pier. I have a picture of myself & Colnago at that shop from 1983 or 1984. Marcel also had a small shop in Corona del Mar next to Newport. Sometime in the late 80's/early 90's Marcel moved everything to Laguna Hills. Back then it was in middle Orange County/middle of nowhere coming from the San Fernando Valley. He still has, as far as I know, a very large shop full of racing bicycles with many Colnago race and show bikes. He has leveraged his friendship with Colnago and is a mostly Colnago shop. As far as being "the" importer that was Bikeology then West Coast Cycle in that time frame. Colnago has had a legion of importers in the US over the years. Marcel seems to have mellowed a bit but most of my many recollections of his shop was being ignored then talked down to. If persistent, which I was, he would tell a few stories, pontificate a bit then be all smiles. Then I got to buy a book or bit from his showcase or get a Colnago Pantographed part he swore he didn't have any left of....but somehow that he just found so I could have it. Not knocking the guy, he is an old world x-pro making customers earn their purchase.
Re: Cycles Marcel in Woodland Hills... IIRC it was in the same place as Woodland Hills Cyclery on Ventura Blvd near the cross street of Falbrook. I used to ride there and oogle the bikes..mostly Raleigh Pro's and who knows what else...I was probably 12 or 13. By age 15 I'd heard about Bikeology, Wilshire West Cycles and Marina Del Rey bike & cycle. Those shop made our local shops look provincial. Anyway, Cycles Marcel must have taken over after my formative visits to the original shop...a bit of a ride from where I grew up on Mulholland Dr. I rode my first Colnago not long after that and forgot all about Raleigh Pro's. 10-15 years later cash+opportunity and a nutty vintage bicycle obsession I bought and sold several Raleigh Pro's.....it just wasn't the same although I did enjoy the Raleigh Pro track. That one was a real gem...it's gone too.... I still have 13 Colnagos though ;^)
So to answer the original question...hard to say but leaning towards the Woodland Hills shop. Norris needs to have a follow up beer for more details. As for California Masi's..... SWEET!!!! I've had 5 or 6... only have 2 now...the other 6 Masi's I have are Italian.
Matt "a bit long winded due to the cold meds" Gorski Long Beach formerly of Woodland Hills, CA USA
On Wed, Nov 18, 2009 at 4:44 PM, John <jtperry330@me.com> wrote:
> All,
> I just found out today that Calborn was the importer of Colnago for
> the west coast (70's-80's ?), there are frames decaled Calborn ( there was
> one in the shop), and he is credited w/ celo-euorpa bikes.
> I might be misinformed about some of this, but those were the words from
> the shop owner. As an East Coast guy, this is all news to me.
>
> John Pergolizzi
> San Diego, Ca.
>
> On Nov 18, 2009, at 2:27 PM, JimAllen wrote:
>
> Marcel Calborn has a shop in Orange County called "Bici Sport". Used to
>> have farther up the coast to.
>>
>> Might be him
>>
>> Jim Allen
>>
>> Norris Lockley wrote:
>>
>>> Has anyone out there ever heard of a cycle shop somewhere in the Los
>>> Angeles
>>> area - I guess that that is a BIG area - called* MARCEL'S CYCLES* or
>>> that
>>> could possibly be* MARCELLE'S CYCLES* as I dont know whether the owner
>>> was
>>> male or female.
>>>
>>> We are talking 1970s into the 80s here.
>>>
>>> Some days ago I directed the List members to an article in the GUARDIAN
>>> Newspaper about the delapidated state of the Vigorelli track in
>>> Milan..and
>>> the ever-open workshop of Alberto Masi..
>>>
>>> It was my close mate, John Helliwell, of Supertramp fame, who had phoned
>>> me
>>> about the article, and I must admit it took me some time to cotton on to
>>> his
>>> drift. Then I realisid that he was wondering whether his own MASI Gran
>>> Criterium had exited from those famous gates..he is quite a romantic at
>>> heart...and ended up on the sales floor at Marcelle's cycle shop
>>>
>>> I shattered his dreams by suggesting that the bike that he had bought in
>>> California, while the Group really was on a roll, was probably a product
>>> of
>>> the workshop that Faliero had set up in Carlsbad, rather than anything
>>> even
>>> slightly Italiano..and spaghetti..Ferrari
>>>
>>> When John brought it in for servicing in May 1997 during a short break
>>> from
>>> that year''s Tour- I dare not admit that I had never heard of
>>> Supertramp,
>>> but I did wonder what this lean guy dressed in a long black coat ,very
>>> narrow drainpipe trousers, almost like jophurs, large black almost
>>> surgical-type boots, silver pendant hanging over black rollneck sweater
>>> and
>>> a very impressive rocker's haircut to accompany his seven o'clock shadow
>>> beard. had to do with cycling; my usual customers were normally dressed
>>> in
>>> well-worn out-of-date cycle-shop rejected trade jerseys from yesteryear's
>>> long-gone trade teams.
>>>
>>> I told John earlier today about Classicrendezvous and mentioned the fact
>>> that I thought that several of the frame-builders on the List had cut
>>> their
>>> file teeth in the Carlsbad workshop. At the time of meeting John all
>>> those
>>> years back the only MASI I had seen was the one on "Breaking Away"..or
>>> was
>>> it another film?
>>>
>>> Casting my eye over his bike at the time I thought it looked far too big
>>> for
>>> him and said so, because he does not look that tall but he does stoop a
>>> little possibly from having those heavy saxophones slung around his neck.
>>> ..or possibly it's the weight of his wallet. He told me that the guy at
>>> the
>>> shop had fitted it up for him ..all Campag Record or Nuevo Record..so he
>>> just rode it..didn't ask questions.
>>>
>>> I taped it up, found it was a 23"....with an enormous head tube...so I
>>> assumed a short top-tube..but No..that was quite long again 23" or just
>>> over..Odd, I thought. Not long afterwards I got him onto a 22" TVT
>>> carbon,
>>> then onto a CORIMA..then a VITUS..all 22". Now, unfortubnately he rides a
>>> Specialised..and his time-trial results have gone down the tube...but he
>>> is
>>> still fastest veteran in the Club, but I am threatening a come-back next
>>> year.
>>>
>>> If by chance, any of you ex-MASI men are reading this, and can find the
>>> time
>>> RIGHT NOW to jot me a few details and souvenirs about Carlsbad, I'd like
>>> to
>>> share them with John over a few beers tonight after the meeting of our
>>> club,
>>> the Settle World-Wide-Wheelers, of which John is both President and
>>> Treasurer.
>>>
>>> If you are more used to remembering John in his customary position of
>>> rocking back on his heels with his tenor sax thrust forward..then visit
>>> our
>>> website at http://www.settlewww.org.uk. you <http://www.settlewww.org.uk.
>>> you> can see him on his bike..in the starting blocks for the Wednesday
>>> evening 11.3 mile hilly time trial.
>>>
>>> And just in case you're missing hearing his trademark sax solos, John is
>>> back in the groove blowing the riffs with his own group Creme Anglaise.
>>> Unfortunately John thought the name sounded very classy..shades of la
>>> creme
>>> de la creme..Little did he know that it just means "custard" in French.
>>> Hear
>>> John at http://www.johnhelliwell.com
>>>
>>> By the way how does the Gran Criterium rank in the MASI hierachy ? Any
>>> tales
>>> from the workshop will be passed on. Oh ! I told him not to look too
>>> closely
>>> at the mitring of the tubes in the bottom bracket !!!
>>>
>>> Norris Lockley
>>>
>>> Settle, UK