Originally Posted by fogrider
the same thing happened to a friend...the crack was at the same place. I think the downtube is thin there and the welds for the shifter bosses weaken the tubes just enough that they crack about 12 to 15 years down the line.
I think you're right. The crack looked like it had started right at the weld of the right shift boss. Also, the downtube is probably the most highly stessed tube on a bike. I'm glad I have the head tube shift cable stops now.