Sheldon Brown (bicycle mechanic): Difference between revisions

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→‎Online: Remove unreliable source tag. There is no evidence that it meets any of the criteria for being unreliable. Editor who inserted it has made several of subsequent edits to this article and so has had ample opportunity to provide supporting evid
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There is bunch of his opinions in there and WP:SPS doesn't appear to recognize someone who's only coverage appears to be winning $50K settlement for smashing his bike into a 'illegally' parked city car.
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| quote = Why then, is there so much controversy surrounding chains? For such a (seemingly) black-and-white topic, there is an astounding amount of perceived ‘chain black magic’. How do they work? Why do they break? What’s the proper way to lube a chain – wax, oil plus additives, sewing machine oil, or something else entirely?
| quote = Why then, is there so much controversy surrounding chains? For such a (seemingly) black-and-white topic, there is an astounding amount of perceived ‘chain black magic’. How do they work? Why do they break? What’s the proper way to lube a chain – wax, oil plus additives, sewing machine oil, or something else entirely?
| publisher = SlowTwitch.com
| publisher = SlowTwitch.com
| accessdate = 2012-12-31}}</ref>
| accessdate = 2012-12-31}}{{unreliable source|date=January 2013}}</ref>


===Print publications, awards, and citations===
===Print publications, awards, and citations===

Revision as of 22:10, 19 January 2013

Sheldon Brown
Sheldon Brown, icebiking
Born(1944-07-14)July 14, 1944
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
DiedFebruary 4, 2008(2008-02-04) (aged 63)[1]
Newton, Massachusetts, USA[1]
Cause of deathHeart attack
NationalityAmerican
Other namesChristopher Joyce (nom de plume);[2] Carapace Completed Umber (alter ego)[3]
Occupationbicycle shop employee
EmployerHarris Cyclery
SpouseHarriet Fell
ChildrenTova and George
Parent(s)George Matson Brown and Madalyn Joyce Brown
Websitehttp://www.sheldonbrown.com/
Notes

Sheldon Brown (July 14, 1944 – February 4, 2008)[1] was an American bicycle mechanic and author on bicycles.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10] He had contributed to print and online sources related to bicycling and bicycle mechanics, and The Times of London described his knowledge of bicycles as "encyclopedic".[11]

Biography

Brown was the parts manager, webmaster and technical consultant of Harris Cyclery,[6] a bike shop in West Newton, Massachusetts. He was an enthusiast for[6] and maintained pages about old and classic bicycles and cycling, including Raleigh and English three-speed bicycles,[12] Sturmey-Archer hubs,[13] tandems,[14] and fixed-gear bicycles.[15] He repaired cameras,[4] and was an amateur photographer and his site features his photographic work.[16]

Brown maintained a English-French cycling dictionary and had lived and cycled in France and wrote on his family's travels in France.[17]

After developing nerve deterioration over the last years of his life, Brown lost his ability to ride an upright bicycle[2] and continued riding with a recumbent tricycle.[18] In August 2007, Brown was diagnosed with primary progressive multiple sclerosis and died in February 2008 after a heart attack.[19][5][11]

Online

Brown's website, developed with Harris Cyclery, includes technical information. The site remains current as of January 2013 - the commercial pages are maintained and updated by Harris Cyclery employees,[20] and the informational pages by his widow, Harriet Fell and his friend, John Allen, "a nationally recognized bicycling expert who helped found the Cambridge Bicycle Committee."[21][22] Brown maintained the site's glossary of bicycling terminology, online guide to wheelbuilding, as well as the mirror sites of the technical work of Damon Rinard,[23] Jobst Brandt,[24] and others.[25] Brown had also participated in online cycling forums such as rec.bicycles.tech newsgroup and bikeforums.net.[4]

Brown was a proponent of fixed-gear, single-speed bicycles for ordinary street use.[26] Brown developed a method to determine and compare bicycle gear ratios with Galen Evans and Osman Isvan. For any combination of front chainring, rear cog, wheel size and crank length, his method results in a number that Brown terms the "gain ratio".[27]

Also, Brown expressed personal opinions on chain cleaning, lubrication and wear,[28] a source of controversy in the field of bicycle maintenance.[28][29]

Print publications, awards, and citations

Brown was a contributing writer for Bike World magazine (USA)[30] and for Bicycling magazine (USA),[30] then for the trade magazine American Bicyclist.[30] Brown wrote the "Mechanical Advantage" column for Adventure Cyclist, the magazine of the Adventure Cycling Association[30][31]

In October 2003, Brown reported on his site that he was issued a certificate of commendation for his contribution to cycling by the UK's Cyclists' Touring Club (CTC).[32] CTC's Chris Juden mentioned Brown's site in his response to a letter to the editor email.[33] Lennard Zinn, technical editor for VeloNews, cited Brown in his regular Technical FAQ with Lennard Zinn column,[34][35] and Frank Berto cites Brown's writing in The Dancing Chain.[36]

References

  1. ^ a b c Commonwealth of Massachusetts Standard Certificate of Death
  2. ^ a b c Brown, Sheldon. "Sheldon Brown's Home Page". Retrieved 2008-02-04. Unfortunately, due to health problems, I have not been able to ride bicycles since early September, 2006.
  3. ^ Sheldon Brown. "Postings by Carapace Completed Umber". Retrieved 2012-12-27. Although I am well known to have no sense of humor whatever, my alter ego, Carapace Completed Umber, is silly enough for both of us. This page collects some of his postings to various bicycle-related newsgroups.
  4. ^ a b c Kerber, Ross (2008-02-08). "Homespun wisdom". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2012-12-25. To a worldwide readership, Brown was a sage in cyberspace. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  5. ^ a b Boulanger, Gary (2008-02-04). "Sheldon Brown: 1944 - 2008". BikeRadar. Bath, England: Future Publishing Limited. Retrieved 2012-12-25. Sheldon Brown, the human encyclopedia of bicycling knowledge and a famous employee of Harris Cyclery in Massachusetts, died of a massive heart attack Sunday evening, February 3. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  6. ^ a b c Singel, Ryan. "Sheldon Brown, Web's Cycling Guru, Dies". Wired. Retrieved 2012-12-25. Brown worked as the technical guru and Webmaster for Harris Cyclery in West Newton, Massachusetts. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  7. ^ Candy Kosow Gold (Feb 06, 2008). "Newton cyclist, guru, long-time bike shop mechanic dies suddenly". The Newton TAB. Retrieved 2012-120-27. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  8. ^ "Friends pay respect to Sheldon Brown". VeloNews. Feb. 5, 2008. Retrieved 2013-01-19. Bike-tech wizard Sheldon Brown died of a heart attack on Sunday. He was 63. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  9. ^ Matt Wiebe (February 4, 2008). "Tech Guru Sheldon Brown Dies". Bicycle Retailer and Industry News. Sheldon Brown, who could explain the intricacies of 40-year-old Sturmey Archer hubs with the same patient clarity with which he would explain suspension or integrated shifters, died from a sudden heart attack Sunday night. {{cite web}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help); Missing or empty |url= (help); Text "http://www.bicycleretailer.com/north-america/2008/02/04/tech-guru-sheldon-brown-dies#.UPq2iicjVQB" ignored (help)
  10. ^ By John Mahoney (Feb 6, 2008). "Sheldon Brown, the Web's Foremost DIY Bike Guru, Passes Away". Popular Science. Retrieved 2013-01-19. Maintained the most prolific online bike encyclopedia since 1997 {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  11. ^ a b "Sheldon Brown Obituary". The Times. 2008-03-03. Retrieved 2012-12-25. His knowledge of bicycles ... was encyclopedic {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  12. ^ Brown, Sheldon. "Servicing English Three Speeds". Sheldon Brown. Retrieved 2008-02-05.
  13. ^ Sheldon Brown. "Sturmey-Archer Bicycle Hubs". Retrieved 2012-12-27.
  14. ^ Sheldon Brown. "Tandem Bicycle articles". Retrieved 2012-12-27.
  15. ^ Sheldon Brown. "Articles about Fixed Gear Cycling and Equipment". Retrieved 2012-12-27.
  16. ^ Sheldon Brown. "Sheldon Brown's Photography Page". Retrieved 2012-12-27.
  17. ^ Sheldon Brown. "Sheldon Brown's France Page". Retrieved 2012-12-27. Our family lived in France for the 1988-89 school year, in Chevreuse, a small village 30 km southwest of Paris. We loved the place and the people, and we miss them very much.
  18. ^ Brown, Sheldon. "The Bright Side of MS by Sheldon Brown". Sheldon Brown. Retrieved 2008-02-05. I haven't been able to ride a bike since early September, 2006 though I can still ride my Greenspeed trike, very slowly.
  19. ^ "Sheldon Brown: 1944 - 2008". Retrieved 2008-02-05.
  20. ^ "Harris Cyclery Bicycle Accessories". Retrieved 2012-12-27. Copyright © 2005, 2008, 2012 Harris Cyclery
  21. ^ Fell, Harriet. "What's New on sheldonbrown.com". Harriet Fell and John Allen. Retrieved 2010-12-22.
  22. ^ Kristen Lombardi (August 2002). "A dangerous & now deadly bicycle policy". The Boston Phoenix. Retrieved 2012-12-27. John Allen, a nationally recognized bicycling expert who helped found the Cambridge Bicycle Committee.
  23. ^ "Damon Rinard's Bicycle Tech Site". Retrieved 2012-12-27. Damon Rinard maintained and hosted the Rinard Tech Pages up until May, 2001, when a change in employment made it impractical for him to continue. Since this site is too good to be allowed to disappear from the Web, Harris Cyclery is now hosting it, with Damon's permission and cooperation. {{cite web}}: line feed character in |quote= at position 146 (help)
  24. ^ Jobst Brandt. "Frequently Asked Questions about Bicycles and Bicycling". Retrieved 2012-12-28.
  25. ^ John Schubert (February 2008). "Sheldon Brown 1944-2008" (PDF). Adventure Cycling. Retrieved 2012-12-28.
  26. ^ Sheldon Brown. "Singlespeed Bicycle Conversions". Retrieved 2012-12-27.
  27. ^ Brown, Sheldon. "Gain Ratios". Sheldon Brown. Retrieved 2008-02-08.
  28. ^ a b "Chain Maintenance". Retrieved 2013-01-10. Chain maintenance is one of the most controversial aspects of bicycle mechanics. {{cite web}}: Cite uses deprecated parameter |authors= (help)
  29. ^ Greg Kopecky (Dec 16, 2012). "Chain How-To - Part 1". SlowTwitch.com. Retrieved 2012-12-31. Why then, is there so much controversy surrounding chains? For such a (seemingly) black-and-white topic, there is an astounding amount of perceived 'chain black magic'. How do they work? Why do they break? What's the proper way to lube a chain – wax, oil plus additives, sewing machine oil, or something else entirely?[unreliable source?]
  30. ^ a b c d Sheldon Brown. "Sheldon Brown's Home Page". Retrieved 2012-12-27.
  31. ^ Sheldon Brown (July 1999). "Who Needs Fenders? All but fair-weather cyclists" (PDF). Adventure Cycling Association. Retrieved 2012-12-27.
  32. ^ Cyclists' Touring Club (October 6, 2003). "Sheldon Brown's Journal". Sheldon Brown. Retrieved 2012-12-31. One of the oldest and most highly respected cycling organizations in the world is the 125 year old Cyclists Touring Club. I'm very, very proud that they have voted to issue a Certificate of Commendation to me for my Website and other Internet activities.
  33. ^ Juden, Chris. "Cranks & Bottom Brackets Q&A". Retrieved 2007-05-24.
  34. ^ Lennard Zinn (Oct. 26, 2010). "Technical FAQ with Lennard Zinn: A detailed look at canti' geometry". VeloNews. Retrieved 2013-01-19. Nobody said it better than the late Sheldon Brown in his eloquent description of the geometry that determines the leverage ratio of cantilever brakes {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  35. ^ Lennard Zinn (Oct. 18, 2011). "Technical FAQ with Lennard Zinn: Fixie chain tension and nipples threads". VeloNews. Retrieved 2013-01-19. As for getting the tension exactly right, you can't improve on Sheldon Brown on this one. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  36. ^ Frank Berto (2009). The Dancing Chain. Van der Plas Publications. p. 393. Sheldon Brown. "Chuck Harris and the First American Derailleur." Rivendell Reader, Fall, 1998.

External links

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