Lou,
Those dates seem pretty accurate to me and correspond with my limited contact with Francisco.
I met him in late '74 or very early'75 at the the 14th Street Bike Shop owned by Metro Bikes (also called Denco Distributors). He had only been in the States a couple of years he told me then. I lost track of him in '77 when I left New York, so no idea after that.
Thank you very much for sharing the letter.
Greg Pitman Rancho Cucamonga, CA
Lou wrote:
>I received the letter below from Francisco Cuevas's grandson. His dates are a bit
>off (in the 70s) from what I understood regarding the relationship with Paris-Sport,
>but the tone and heart of the letter are worthy of sharing. Lou Deeter, Orlando
>FL
>
>
>
>As you all may have heard, this past Friday January 28th. 2005 my grand father Senor
>Francisco Cuevas SR. died in his home in Barcelona, Spain. He would have been 90
>yrs old this July. Francisco was born in Barcelona in 1915, by the time he was
>14 he started an apprenticeship as a frame builder.He built his first frame at 18
>and started racing. He had a small shop were he started making frames for racers
>and all types of riders.
>By 1937 politics in Spain were very bad, he then went to war against Franco in the
>Civil war of Spain. He married in 1940 and had my dad Paco in 1942 and my aunt Maria
>in 1946.
>By 1951 the political situation had become worse. So he set off to Argentina were
>he would start his life all over again.
>He built frames in Mendoza, Argentina and was the trainer and coach for the National
>cycling team. In 1955 my uncle Andres was born. By 1970 Argentina was in a terrible
>economic state and after the death of president Peron,the military was in charge
>of the country.
>Grandpa and my dad set off to the USA in 1971 and started to work in the bike
>shop business for Metro Bikes.
>In 1977 Mike Fraysee and his dad the late Vic Fraysee hired him, and Andres to
>build frames for them and their team under the Paris-Sport line.
>In 1984 grandpa and my uncle Andres his youngest son, started their own frame shop
>in Astoria ,NY and built about 200 frames ayear.
>I belive that grandpa and his sons have built about 5000 frames in three continents.
>
>A plain man who took his craft very seriously ,would spend hours making every frame
>as if it was for him. He was the one that would take me to races and would go on
>training rides with me. He was one of my greatest heroes and mentors.
>I will really miss him and will try to follow in his foot steps.
>Francisco is survived by his wife Maria, his sister Isabel, his three children,
>myself and my brother Diego.
>
>May his torch continue threw everyone he knew and those he influenced in our great
>sport. thanks Fernando Cuevas