I graduated college in 1982 (where I rode my brother's Peugeot UO-8), and moved out to the San Francisco Bay area in Dec. of that year. I spent the next eight years greatly enjoying all the Bay area had to offer including lots and lots of cycling. Initially, I rode a Trek 412, which I bought from Palo Alto bicycles that year with my first pay check. A few years later, I got hired as a mechanic at a family run bike shop in Palo Alto and spent the second half of the decade wrenching. I also used to flip bikes, picking up Raleigh 3-speeds at San Jose flea markets and selling them outside of my house in Menlo Park. Interesting in that I really don't remember much of what bikes we carried at that shop nor at the next shop I worked, Garner's Pro in Menlo Park. The latter was pretty high end, and other than Specialized mtbs, I can't remember what we carried nor did I lust for any of them. I was perfectly satisfied on my various Raleigh 3-speed beaters and my '77 Super Course, purchased from the owner of the first shop.

Neal