A cyclist never forgets his first real bike shop. I found mine, Carbondale Cycle, in Carbondale, Illinois, in the mid-1980s, while I was working on my doctorate at Southern Illinois University. I remember the warm smile of Somsak "Saki" Thipkhosithkun as I entered the shop for the first time, with my 1967 Schwinn Continental in tow. I had recently rediscovered the joy of cycling, and it was my great good fortune to meet Saki, who first communicated to me that cycling can be a way of life. Saki's warmth and enthusiasm for bicycles were infectious. To borrow a phrase from Theodore Roethke, where cycling is concerned, Saki's heart kept open house. The right bike shop can provide a cyclist with a community he or she can find nowhere else. Saki loved racing, but he welcomed this Clydesdale cyclist into his community, and for this I will always be grateful.
Saki's family has provided me with a brief biography:
"Saki was born in a small town in Northeastern Thailand called Nahkhon Phanom and was born in March 1957 and died Dec. 9, 2002, at the age of 45.
Saki's last job was to work alongside his brother, Somchai, at Carbondale Cycle, established in 1971. Saki's unmatched mechanical skills and people skills earned him many loyal customers and friends near and far. Carbondale Cycle sponsored a cycling team that attracted dedicated riders, and Saki joined them whenever he could. Once or twice he rode a seventy mile trail on Sundays. He was crazy about the Tour de France; he needed a daily update when he was hospitalized for cancer.
Saki had a great life. The phrase 'Only the good die young' fits him well.'"
Saki Thipkhosithkun:
Saki's family has provided me with a brief biography:
"Saki was born in a small town in Northeastern Thailand called Nahkhon Phanom and was born in March 1957 and died Dec. 9, 2002, at the age of 45.
Saki's last job was to work alongside his brother, Somchai, at Carbondale Cycle, established in 1971. Saki's unmatched mechanical skills and people skills earned him many loyal customers and friends near and far. Carbondale Cycle sponsored a cycling team that attracted dedicated riders, and Saki joined them whenever he could. Once or twice he rode a seventy mile trail on Sundays. He was crazy about the Tour de France; he needed a daily update when he was hospitalized for cancer.
Saki had a great life. The phrase 'Only the good die young' fits him well.'"
Saki Thipkhosithkun:
Saki's last personal bike was a carbon fiber Trek US Postal, new at the time, currently on display at Carbondale Cycle, but Saki also loved cycling history and vintage steel. I long admired a vintage Zeus Saki built with period-correct components, with "Carbondale Cycle" painted on the top tube. The last time we spoke I was trying to coax him into trading his Zeus for a too-small Olmo in my collection. I could tell by his expression, and the way he said "An Olmo?!" that he was tempted by my offer. But I completed my degree and left Carbondale for my first teaching job before we shook hands on the trade.
The shop kept Saki's Zeus behind the counter for a few years after his death, and when I happened to visit friends in Carbondale I tried to buy it, to no avail. Eventually the bike disappeared.
But I never forgot it. So I've done the next best thing to owning and riding my friend's bicycle. I've found a nice vintage Zeus, and fitted it with a race plate that reads "Carbondale Cycle," number "57," for the year of Saki's birth. I plan to visit Carbondale again, and ride my Zeus out to Giant City State Park in Makanda, as I have done many times since age seventeen.
The shop kept Saki's Zeus behind the counter for a few years after his death, and when I happened to visit friends in Carbondale I tried to buy it, to no avail. Eventually the bike disappeared.
But I never forgot it. So I've done the next best thing to owning and riding my friend's bicycle. I've found a nice vintage Zeus, and fitted it with a race plate that reads "Carbondale Cycle," number "57," for the year of Saki's birth. I plan to visit Carbondale again, and ride my Zeus out to Giant City State Park in Makanda, as I have done many times since age seventeen.
Saki had a vintage TA bottle mounted on his Zeus, and so do I:
Saki as I remember him in Carbondale Cycle:
Carbondale Cycle and Saki's Zeus ©Daniel Dahlquist