As a fan of handmade steel bicycle frames, especially those of English design, one of my favorite framebuilders was a gentleman named Ron Cooper. Ron got his start working at A.S. Gillott as a teenager in 1947, before branching out on his own in the late 1960s. The British bicycle industry was robust during this time, but also very close-knit, with some individual builders working for a variety of different companies throughout their career.
Winter can be kind of rough for cyclists sometimes, at least for those who don’t have a winter sport that gets them outside. Winter can also be a good season for a little downtime, to either recover from the year’s efforts, or to take your mind off the mind-numbing chore of riding a trainer indoors. As a fan of cycling as a sport, along with its history, I am constantly seeking out new books to read, and I know that others may do the same. As such, I am pleased to present the 2019 version of A Cyclist’s Winter Reading List.
On June 28, 1969, a young Belgian cyclist, dressed in the white and red colors of the Faema squad and wearing dossard #51, took his place on the start-line of the 56th Tour de France; his first appearance. He almost didn’t start, however, and who knows what his career would have looked like had he not.
2019 marked a number of milestones for the Tour de France. It is the 30th anniversary of Greg LeMond’s 58-second defeat of Laurent Fignon. t is also the 50th anniversary of Eddy Merckx’s first of five Tour de France victories in 1969. 2019 also marks the 100th anniversary of the introduction of the maillot jaune, the yellow jersey worn to signify the leader of the race, and that is a story in itself.
