Chris,
Thank you so much for undertaking this interview and for posting it online. As an early adopter of Tom Ritchey bikes (frame #R133 from 1981), I have a deep connection to those bikes.
Mine was stolen a few years ago, and I'm still on the hunt for a replacement.
Now, if I can avoid the problem Norris raises before one of these ever surfaces, I might be able to afford it!
Thanks for the piece.
Owen Wrigley
Vienna, VA
> ------------------------------
>
> Message: 6
> Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2011 21:45:48 -0800
> From: AdventureCORPS <adventurecorps@gmail.com>
> Subject: [CR] Tom Ritchey, in His Own Words
> To: adventurecorps@gmail.com
> Message-ID: <BD138B3D-4875-4FBE-95D0-FACE7091B0F3@gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed
>
> In December, 2010 there was some discussion on the Classic Rendezvous
> (CR) email group about Tom Ritchey, the frame-builder and component
> and tire designer who was a co-founder of the first mountain bike
> company and built the first large run of mountain bikes ever sold.
>
> The main question on the CR forum was "How does one tell which
> Ritchey frames were made by Tom himself?"
>
> I've been a fan and friend of Tom's for a long time, so I contacted
> him directly with the questions, so that hearsay would be replaced
> with the true facts and history. Tom and I had an extensive back-and-
> forth, much of it via voicemail as he was traveling in Asia. I've
> typed up our correspondence, both written and verbal, which explains
> why it sounds a bit breezy and conversational, and present it here as
> "Tom Ritchey in his Own Words":
>
> http://www.XO-1.org
>
> Permanent Link:
> http://www.xo-1.org/
>
> Tom provided lots of historical photos, too, plus some current shots
> of him brazing a frame, so I hope you enjoy the post!
>
> Yours in sport,
> Chris Kostman
> La Jolla, CA
>
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> AdventureCORPS, Inc.
> 638 Lindero Canyon Rd #311 Oak Park, CA 91377 USA
> http://www.adventurecorps.com
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> http://www.the508.com
> http://www.XO-1.org
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