so what gives here? since this list is comprised of syncophants with classic and/or vintage bicycle obsessions, myself a die-hard from among the masses, let's try to examine the seedlings that 'grew' into these interests that consume us. what IS behind all the emotion we attach to this hobby? my version: as far as the 'masi' threadology goes, while i had heard the name and seen the bicycles nearly 4 years prior, my interest in the brand was galvanized (crystallized?) after reading the june 71 road test in bicycling magazine. it was written by m.t. hamilton (Mount Hamilton. get it?!) which was the nom de plume, or perhaps the coup d'etat, of a fellow named frank pabian. he raced for pedali alpini and came clean with me about the details of the article when i met him at the 79 red zinger international stage race. his article, the text, the phrasing...these were all lifted and used as ad copy for most of the catalogs for the u.s. made masi bicycles, though he was 'testing' an italian model. regardless... that article was so engrained in me for a generation that i could not accept that any bicycle could surpass masi in terms of mojo. fwiw, i do believe the italian bicycles were overflowing with the stuff. i completely bought into the lore and the history of the multi-generational firm. i did/do believe that they were the progenitors of the perfect racing frame, artisanly speaking. it was the bicycle industry equivilant of fashion's 'haute couture'; the irreplaceable petite mains (manes?), 'little hands', doing all the chores necessary, often at a loss on the balance sheet, to ensure the quality of all aspects of the assembly were without compromise. that's what i believe(d). that's the fantasy i had about it all... as it goes, with the passing of time as well as owing to various machinations within the industry, the veils of fantasy were slowly peeled away. i still hold my memories of all this close to my heart, but the reality of it is that, as the bicycle boom of the 70s took shape, the rose colored glasses would need stronger and stronger lenses. e-RICHIE Richard Sachs Cycles No.9, North Main Street Chester, CT 06412 USA http://www.richardsachs.com Tel. 860.526.2059