Hi Jan:
Yours is an interesting point of view, but I doubt that Merckx' meticulous attention to everything he did, both before and after his accident, could ever be interpreted as "desperation" in the commonly held sense of the word, that is, to lose all hope.
In any event, Merckx is still around, has good English, and few would dispute has the best palmares in bike racing history.
Certainly he would make an interesting subject for an interview.
There hardly seems any reason to speculate about any facts he himself might be able to provide. For example: which bike was actually used in the Hour record ride-the Brussels bike, the Cambiago bike, or yet another bike?
This opportunity will not last forever.
Regards,
George
George Hollenberg MD
CT, USA
> At 11:52 PM +0000 5/8/08, gholl@optonline.net wrote:
>
> > What is more interesting in these drawings, are the fine
> >differences ( too numerous to be repeated here) specified by
> Merckx
> >for bikes he designated for different races. Such attention to
> >detail marked his career-the most brilliant in the history of
> bike
> >racing.
>
> I have read many times that after his back injury, Merckx never
> again
> was totally comfortable on a bike, and thus was changing the
> dimensions all the time in the elusive search for the bike that
> would
> fit perfectly. So this is less a sign of perfectionism than one
> of
> desperation.
>
> What is amazing is that most of Merckx' career, and most of his
> victories, occurred after that accident... showing you how much
> determination the man had!
>
> Jan Heine
> Editor
> Bicycle Quarterly
> 140 Lakeside Ave #C
> Seattle WA 98122
> http://www.bikequarterly.com
> --
>
George Hollenberg MD
CT, USA