[CR] GEMINI Frames and Henri Depierre and Ocana

(Example: Events:Cirque du Cyclisme:2002)

Date: Tue, 3 Mar 2009 20:16:53 -0800
From: "brad stockwell" <brdstockwell@yahoo.com>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
In-Reply-To: <67721.10129.qm@web44903.mail.sp1.yahoo.com>
Subject: [CR] GEMINI Frames and Henri Depierre and Ocana


On the topic of Gemini frames and the connection to Ocana's tour-winning 19 73 Motobecane team bike:  there is an explicit comparison amid my vas t shrine to Zeus on WoolJersey:

Here are two zoomed-in images of Ocana's 1973 head-tube: (http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/bc_stockwell_bikestuff/zeus/1973zeus/7 3tour_Ocana_Motobecane_fork.jpg.html) (http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/bc_stockwell_bikestuff/zeus/1973zeus/7 3tour_Ocana_Motobecane_lugs.jpg.html)

And next to those are pics of a Gemini that was for sale on Ebay a few years ago: (http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/bc_stockwell_bikestuff/zeus/1973zeus/g emini_headtube.jpg.html) (http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/bc_stockwell_bikestuff/zeus/1973zeus/g emini_fork_crown.jpg.html)

One tie-in to Zeus is that in late '74 Ocana joined the newly-formed Zeus -SuperSER team and in the ensuing era Zeus issued frames which had a hole p attern in the headlugs and forks which although much less refined s eems to recall the Gemini styling. (http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/bc_stockwell_bikestuff/zeus/1977zeus/7 7flyer_bike_00premium.jpg.html)

Ocana (according to Ron Kitching) used a Zeus freewheel for the '73 tou r, see below: (http://www.wooljersey.com/gallery/bc_stockwell_bikestuff/zeus/1973zeus/7 3tour_ad_Zeus6sp_Ocana.jpg.html) Well it's clear enough that he went for the light stuff.  In one of the  other detail pics in the album you can see that he has hacked the whee l guides off his campy brake shoes and that the rest of the brake hardwar e looks worked over.  Of course he also deployed aggressive dri lling patterns on the brake levers and chainwheels -- when I spoke with dri llium guy Frank Spivey he enthusiastically mentioned Ocana's bike.   

Brad Stockwell
Palo Alto CA USA