[CR]Dick Clements

(Example: Framebuilders:Pino Morroni)

From: "Peter Brown" <peterg.brown@ntlworld.com>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
Date: Wed, 6 Dec 2006 18:57:54 -0000
cc: whinge2me@yahoo.co.uk
Subject: [CR]Dick Clements

Several days ago Sam Wise wrote:

Over the last 2 years, I've sent several messages to this list, asking about bikes from the 70's, badged Clements, but with no mention of Ernie. In my last post, I mentioned that several appeared on ebay, always in Yorkshire. Another has appeared, and this time, the seller claims that it was built by Dick Clements. I've never heard of a Dick Clements, but have any of you? Attached is a link to the auction, which has a couple of pictures. I'm really keen to track down what these bikes are, since I used to have one

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a322/Samuelw72/Image081.jpg

I am sorry that it has taken a while to get this information to you, but I needed to get it from ex listee Nigel Land, who was away. Nigel writes:

Ernie Clements original 50s machines were from his company which was based at Wellington in Shropshire, but I am fairly sure it is not one of those. He completed the relocation of Falcon Cycles to Brigg in North Lincolnshire in 1979, a year after he had sold the business to Elswick-Hopper in a share and cash deal that made him a main board director of E-H, while remaining Managing Director of Falcon. He kept a presence at Barton through a private venture dating from around the same year and partly financed by Jack Tighe, a successful track rider from the 1950s who had built up a large industrial painting company from a base in Kirton Lindsey - about 5 miles from Brigg. The company was known as Tiger Sport and Leisure, based at the old Hopper works in Marsh Lane, Barton, and after a few years, in 1986, Ernie hired one of his ex-racers, Nigel Dean, as Sales Manager, just a year after Nigel had bought Stan Miles' bike shop in St Albans. Nigel had been a road racer since 1971 and first rode for Falcon in 1978. Ernie's teams had many names during these years and Nigel last rode for Ernie Clements as a member of the Falcon-Campagnolo team in 1982. Ernie used Tiger Sports to make and market a range of Clements branded racing cycles, which were produced from some time after 1979 until 1988. In that year Ernie sold the business to Nigel, who produced Nigel Dean branded cycles from the same workshop.

I have never seen one of these bikes but I think they must be the Clements brand that Sam is referring to. In all my researches and in my interview with Ernie, the name Dick Clements has never cropped up.

Peter Brown, Lincolnshire, England