Sheldon Brown: A brief note

I was walking around Ballard yesterday when I spied this sticker. I don’t know how old it is, but it brought a smile to my face when I thought about how much admiration and love I’ve been reading over the last several weeks since Sheldon’s passing.

I never met Sheldon, but I tried.

Within the first weeks of living in Boston in 2004, I found my way out to Harris Cyclery to chat about the changes I might make on my touring bike after experiencing the frustration of breaking down on Campy in nowhere Nova Scotia. As it turns out Sheldon wasn’t in that day and so while I had a nice chat with some fellows there, I was left to my own hunches and research. For this, like many questions, I turned once again to Sheldon’s site.

While I had the good fortune to go to Harris now and again for bits and baubles (my Brooks saddle came from there on Sheldon’s online recommendation) and developed many lusty ideas from their old-school merchandise that I’ve never seen stocked in Seattle, I’d say overall, it may have been an ok thing not to meet Sheldon that day. Instead of relying on an expert, I did my own research and drew conclusions on my-near-bike-future on my own, which in effect is what Sheldon seems to have been all about: Letting everyone be their own bike hero in their own particular way. In this way, he was a more generous soul than most.

It should come as no surprise that others would write more eloquently on Sheldon Brown than I, so I’d turn you to our own local legend, Kent Peterson (whom, by the way, I did bug in person about my bike and who was most generous with his time and knowledge). His post is right here.

Not a bad thing as all to inspire the kids to paste up a sticker or two. Right on, Sheldon Brown! Thank you.