Last week, an ex-racer and bike shop owner held a ceremony honoring Israel's first generation of Bicycle racers. Most of these guys were immigrants from Morocco who were trained by French Pros ... (Mel Pinto, BTW, took a boat in the other direction).
Back in the 50's there was a racing scene in Israel that was brought over from Morocco. Some guys were even able to make a living racing as there were winning purses and sponsorships during very hard economic times. Some of these guys even participated in European Tours as part of the Moroccan or Spanish teams despite having immigrated to Israel.
Anyway, I went to the ceremony hoping to find out about their bikes. All the old-timers could remember was that they rode whatever they could get, usually hand-me-down bikes. The lucky ones brought bikes back from Europe after a visit, or had sailor friends get them something. Basically, they were happy with anything that worked. No sentiments, then or now.
Amir Avitzur Ramat-Gan, Israel
Nice fishing expedition, but no fish.