Competitive cyclists may be classified in a number of different specialty groups, including climbers, sprinters, time trialists, all terrain specialists, flat terrain specialists, etc. Many stages of the great bicycle races (i.e. Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana) are designed specifically for sprinters. Is anything more exciting than watching the final sprint that will be decided by seconds or split seconds? The Belgian racer Jean Aerts (Sept. 8, 1907-June 15, 1992) was one of the great sprinters of his time. He was the first man to win both the world amateur (1927) and professional (1935) road race championships in Belgium. Aerts’ sprinting ability enabled him to win eleven stages of the Tour de France, including six in 1933.
Like many famous pro racers, Aerts would have a bicycle that bears his name on the downtube. The bicycle pictured here (Belgian-made Libertas, perhaps) belonged to the beloved Wheelman Nolan Bay, who probably found the bike while living in San Francisco. It was already an “old bike” when he rode it in the San Francisco hills in the 1950’s and 60’s. I loved everything about this Jean Aerts when I first saw it years ago in Nolan’s collection: the Oscar Egg lugs, the pea-green paint with bright red graphics, the delicate “pencil” stays, the semi-wrap-around seat stays, the eclectic mix of components Nolan had experimented with through the years. When Nolan passed away, James Allen of the Pedalers Bicycle Museum in Springfield, Missouri allowed the bike to come to me.
What does a collector do when he receives a special bike with a mishmash of parts? If the bike belonged to a rider of note, one hesitates before restoring it to its original configuration. The Aerts’ original setup would have been the typical French build of the 1950’s: Simplex Tour de France rear derailleur, Simplex rod operated “suicide” front derailleur, Simplex chainrings, four cogs in back. In the case of my Aerts, I decided to honor, for the most part, the choices Nolan made decades ago. To accommodate the hills of San Francisco, Nolan had added a TA triple crankset, Ambrosio upright adjustable stem, granny gear, Suntour bar end shifters, etc. I believe the Lam brakes and levers are original to the bike. I did swap Nolan’s Araya rims for Weinmann, in honor of the Belgian rider whose name adorns the bike. And I added a Campagnolo Rally rear derailleur that belonged to my Dad. My friend James would call this “a memory bike,” for I think of Nolan and my father every time I ride the Aerts in the Galena hills of my home town.
Like many famous pro racers, Aerts would have a bicycle that bears his name on the downtube. The bicycle pictured here (Belgian-made Libertas, perhaps) belonged to the beloved Wheelman Nolan Bay, who probably found the bike while living in San Francisco. It was already an “old bike” when he rode it in the San Francisco hills in the 1950’s and 60’s. I loved everything about this Jean Aerts when I first saw it years ago in Nolan’s collection: the Oscar Egg lugs, the pea-green paint with bright red graphics, the delicate “pencil” stays, the semi-wrap-around seat stays, the eclectic mix of components Nolan had experimented with through the years. When Nolan passed away, James Allen of the Pedalers Bicycle Museum in Springfield, Missouri allowed the bike to come to me.
What does a collector do when he receives a special bike with a mishmash of parts? If the bike belonged to a rider of note, one hesitates before restoring it to its original configuration. The Aerts’ original setup would have been the typical French build of the 1950’s: Simplex Tour de France rear derailleur, Simplex rod operated “suicide” front derailleur, Simplex chainrings, four cogs in back. In the case of my Aerts, I decided to honor, for the most part, the choices Nolan made decades ago. To accommodate the hills of San Francisco, Nolan had added a TA triple crankset, Ambrosio upright adjustable stem, granny gear, Suntour bar end shifters, etc. I believe the Lam brakes and levers are original to the bike. I did swap Nolan’s Araya rims for Weinmann, in honor of the Belgian rider whose name adorns the bike. And I added a Campagnolo Rally rear derailleur that belonged to my Dad. My friend James would call this “a memory bike,” for I think of Nolan and my father every time I ride the Aerts in the Galena hills of my home town.
1950's Jean Aerts ©Daniel Dahlquist