Richard asks:
> velo sport claims to be the
> 'sole u.s. masi importer'.
> did they import them from
> rancho santa fe that long ago?
Velo Sport in Berkeley was the sole importer when I started working there just after the shop opened in 1962 (if I remember the date right).
The bikes came from Milan where Peter Rich had struck a deal with F. Masi. Sometimes the bikes were completely apart (which meant spending a day assembling them and building the wheels) and sometimes they were virtually 100% assembled coming to Velo Sport by air freight with each bike wrapped in a big folded sheet of cardboard.
Some time later, Sugden & Lynch of Menlo Park also imported them from Italy. Basically, Masi wanted to sell to whatever importer would give him consistent orders and prompt payment.
Much later, interest developed in Southern California for Masi but I don't know who the first importer down there was.
Hugh Enox