...when he has a pizza cutter shaped like a bicycle even though he has only used it to cut pizza ONE TIME in his life! (Gift courtesy of Adrian M.)

Bicycling Memorabilia

Felix Wong's avatar
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As a cycling fan, I love to collect items related to this sport. Here are some of the bicycle memorabilia that I have in my home and that mean a lot to me.

  1. An autographed Bicycling Magazine poster of Lance Armstrong. I can’t deny that he was an inspiration for me when I started riding. I met him in 1993 at the Wheelsmith Bicycle Shop in Palo Alto, which was presenting him with a mountain bike for winning the World Championship that year. I knew from the USENET groups that he was coming, so I biked over from my dorm at Stanford to meet him. He signed the poster–complimentary from Wheelsmith–and a Winning Magazine article I had brought for him to sign. He wrote the article so I complimented him on it, and he said “thanks.”

    I brought the autographed poster to my dorm and proudly showed it to my friends. But of course, nobody else had heard of him. (This was long before he was said to be one of the three most famous athletes in the world, alongside Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods.)
  2. A Park Tool pizza cutter that my friend Adrian gave me. It’s a fun and useful tool that looks like a penny farthing bicycle. When I use it, I think of the good times we had riding together.
  3. A Park Tool toilet paper holder that my friend Dave gave me. It’s another quirky and practical item that also resembles a bike wheel. It adds some humor and style to my bathroom.
  4. A broken Spinergy carbon fiber wheel that I bought from someone in a USENET group for $20 that I hung over my fireplace mantle. It’s a reminder of how far technology has come in cycling and how fragile some components can be. It also makes for an interesting conversation piece when guests come over.

These are some of the bicycle memorabilia that I have in my home and that reflect my passion for cycling. Do you have any similar items or stories? Let me know in the comments below!

...when he had a bicycling poster personally autographed by Lance Armstrong in '93, well before Lance became the 3rd most recognizable athlete in the world...
...when he had a bicycling poster personally autographed by Lance Armstrong in '93, well before Lance became the 3rd most recognizable athlete in the world...
...when he has a pizza cutter shaped like a bicycle even though he has only used it to cut pizza ONE TIME in his life! (Gift courtesy of Adrian M.)
...when he has a pizza cutter shaped like a bicycle even though he has only used it to cut pizza ONE TIME in his life! (Gift courtesy of Adrian M.)
You know a cyclist is obsessed when he has a toilet roll holder shaped like the front end of a bicycle. (gift courtesy of David H.)
You know a cyclist is obsessed when he has a toilet roll holder shaped like the front end of a bicycle. (gift courtesy of David H.)
...when he has a vintage Spinergy carbon fiber wheel as his mantle piece.
...when he has a vintage Spinergy carbon fiber wheel as his mantle piece.