Dbubbleguy
'Lil Knee Scuffer
I'd like to start this off with a salute to my favorite old Bicycle Mail Order Catalog, of which I have 3 different ones...
Back in the early days of the bike boom (late 1960s-1970s) most bicycle shops were of the mom and pop run style businesses, mostly Schwinn dealers selling kid’s bikes. Then the moribund League of American Wheelmen had been reborn and there was an interest in “adult” bicycles. New fangled 10-speed bicycles with European parts for touring and racing were becoming the rage. In this pre-internet time period, the go to source for these bikes and parts were… Mail Order Catalogs. One of the premier purveyors of these goodies was Gene Portuesi’s CYCLO-PEDIA, which sold touring, sports, racing & camping bicycle equipment. Not only could you purchase real European style touring bikes (Louison-Bobets) but also Campagnolo, Huret, Mafac, Weinmann, Lyotard, Simplex, Stronglight, T.A., Mavic, Fiamme, Karrimor, Unica, T.T.T., Silca, components and tools. Plus there were how-to articles on bicycle camping, wheel building & truing, choosing a bike, and other useful tips. Last but not least, there was a Cadence Chart and a Gear Ratio Chart (somehow that was important back then…?). Those were heady days when we all wanted to emulate Eddy “the Cannibal” Merckx” (winner of 5 Tour de France races and 5 Tour of Spains). Below find a Cyclo-Pedia catalog cover and the all important Gear Chart.
Back in the early days of the bike boom (late 1960s-1970s) most bicycle shops were of the mom and pop run style businesses, mostly Schwinn dealers selling kid’s bikes. Then the moribund League of American Wheelmen had been reborn and there was an interest in “adult” bicycles. New fangled 10-speed bicycles with European parts for touring and racing were becoming the rage. In this pre-internet time period, the go to source for these bikes and parts were… Mail Order Catalogs. One of the premier purveyors of these goodies was Gene Portuesi’s CYCLO-PEDIA, which sold touring, sports, racing & camping bicycle equipment. Not only could you purchase real European style touring bikes (Louison-Bobets) but also Campagnolo, Huret, Mafac, Weinmann, Lyotard, Simplex, Stronglight, T.A., Mavic, Fiamme, Karrimor, Unica, T.T.T., Silca, components and tools. Plus there were how-to articles on bicycle camping, wheel building & truing, choosing a bike, and other useful tips. Last but not least, there was a Cadence Chart and a Gear Ratio Chart (somehow that was important back then…?). Those were heady days when we all wanted to emulate Eddy “the Cannibal” Merckx” (winner of 5 Tour de France races and 5 Tour of Spains). Below find a Cyclo-Pedia catalog cover and the all important Gear Chart.