Remembering Sheldon Brown on Bastille Day

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Sometimes news travels very slow even in the age of the Internet. For me at least it took me until just a few days ago to discover bicycle guru Sheldon Brown passed away in February- February 4th to be exact. Through his simple yet effective website sheldonbrown.com, he dispensed his wisdom of all things bicycle and more. I enjoyed reading the site when I needed to tinker with my numerous bicycles. He also wrote a lot about older bikes in particular the 3-speed Hub Raleighs. I still don't understand them but Sheldon made them interesting. I guess you could also credit Sheldon with influencing the revival of fixed-geared bikes because he wrote a bit about his own pieced together creations. It got me into searching for old bikes. He is probably also known for his unusual bike helmet with an eagle on top. I think the eagle even has name- Igor.
Anyways today is his birthday. He would have been 64 I think. I only knew him from peering into his life via his websites- I guess it was pretty vicarious. Nevertheless like hundreds of tributes to Sheldon have said before this (in different words of course)- the bicycle community is missing a distinct character in its pantheon. The informative website he built will continue to be a legacy and inspiration for those left behind. Keep on riding!

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