RIP Sheldon Brown

RIP Sheldon :(

Again, it was his site that got me into ss and fixed in the first place, top guy.

I think that would be a lovely idea. I'm sure that, whilst they might rather not be bombarded by thousands of individuals, a pleasant and honest note on behalf of the hundreds of users here in London, I suspect almost all of whom have variously been aided, if not downright inspired by his encyclopedic knowledge, wisdom, and good humour, might bring a little solace to the family. That way, they might know the scale of his reach and that we are all thinking of him.

Only if one of the moderator types fancy it, of course…

I think a link to this thread might be a good idea too.

RIP the man who was probably the biggest fan of Brooks saddles the world has ever seen!

:(

a minute's silence is not enough... RIP captain brown...

very sad

Wow. Very sad.
How old was he?
Surely all that cycling should have done good!?!

RIP Sheldon.

And thanks.

That guy was a mine of info. His influence and general lust for life will be sadly missed.

Rest in Peace Sheldon.

damn, that's sad news :(

John Peel a couple of years ago, and Sheldon Brown now. Not good.

A true cycling legend.

RIP

JOL Wow. Very sad.
How old was he?
Surely all that cycling should have done good!?!

He wasnt well for a long time, but it didnt get him down :)

Sheldon Brown I have not chosen to bore people by whining about every ache and pain of my 62 year old body on my Journal/Blog , but a major problem has been gradually developing over the course of about the last 3 years that can no longer be ignored, because it has forced a major change in lifestyle on me.
I have developed a gradual nerve deterioration (motor neuropathy) in my legs, which is accompanied by muscular atrophy/spasticity. The first symptoms were general clumsiness and a number of trips/falls. At first I thought this was related to balance issues, but it turns out to be more related to incoordination of my legs, particularly my right leg.

Although the onset of this has been verrrry gradual, it started getting noticeably more severe in the autumn of 2005. I was very grateful to have made it through the run of the Christmas Revels without falling down on stage. Since then the condition has worsened, and I'm now just barely able to walk without assistance.

I haven't been able to ride a bike since early September, 2006 though I can still ride my Greenspeed trike , very slowly. Getting on and off and getting clipped in to the pedals is a bit of a challenge.

I've been seeing neurologists since October, 2005 (I'm currently on neurologist #4.) I have had 11 MRIs, one CT scan, two needle EMG tests, a nerve conduction test, several different evoked response EEGs, three lumbar punctures (spinal taps), 3 Lyme Disease tests, and a muscle biopsy.

I've been treated with Prednisone (steroid) and IV immunoglobulin. The Prednisone helped a bit, for a while. The immunoglobulin did nothing for me.

The worst for me was February 2006, when I was very much afraid that it was ALS ("Lou Gehrig's Disease".) Fortunately, the needle EMG and the fact that the symptoms are confined to my legs see to have pretty much eliminated that as a possibility.

I finally got a fairly definitive diagnosis in August of 2007. My problem is almost certainly multiple sclerosis, of the fairly uncommon "primary-progressive" variety.

I really don't mean to be gloomy.

In most ways my life is a dream: after 27 years of marriage, my wife and I are still very much in love.

We've got two great kids, both of whom are doing well in graduate school and appear to be on track toward happy, productive, independent lives.

We live in a comfortable house in a safe neighborhood. I have work that I love and a kind, understanding boss who values my contribution, even though it mostly comes over the computer keyboard these days, sometimes at the shop, more often from my home.

My condition is a major inconvenience, but doesn't appear to be life-threatening, and there is no pain involved, so I really consider myself a very fortunate person in general.

MS isn't all that bad, at least not my case.

Farewell Sheldon, thanks for the knowledge

R.I.P Sheldon.

We riders owe you a massive thanks.

Legend. He must have helped millions of people. RIP.

If Sheldon's family ever read this thread, i want them to know he has helped, challenged and inspired almost every cyclist I know to get off their arses, get on their bikes and get their hands dirty. I have been to his online resource more than any other site on the net, and every time a useful nugget was there in black and white.

I hope one day you could see your way to documenting Shldon's bicycles in some way... I'd REALLY like to see the 67 geared monster if it still exists!

With love from me and all the cyclists who relied on him, almost every day.

Rest in peace Mr Sheldon Brown.

ps This morning I will be playing Bob Marley's Mr Brown very loudly.

addie That has saddened me greatly. May every fixed conversion out there be a testament to the great bearded one.
He guided me through every stage of my first tender conversion and is still the first port of call for technical queries…

He did the same for me last year and, I'm sure, for thousands of other cyclists worldwide.

A sad day indeed. RIP.

Shame, he was a true ledg. The Cogfather.

If someone was to email on behalf of all here, it should be signed with all our usernames.

indeed - or, all our real names.

I hope that his site is made into a book, which i'm sure will still be in print 100 years from now.

Sad news - a decent guy who brought a lot of cycling-related joy to a lot of people, and helped me out a lot with his website.

As a youth, I grew up with Richard's Bicycle book which I thought was the bible.
As an adult I found Sheldon's site - the true fount of all spoked knowledge, an inspiration to ride, tinker, build, experiment and enjoy.

A fantastic mine of information that has helped me when ever i had the need to get hands dirty, graze knuckles take apart and rebuild my bike.
Very sad news.

NB: The idea of a e-mail from this site with peeps names is good. Real names would be best...Stick mine down.

aw man, sad, sad news. :(
a real loss to the cycling community.

RIP Sheldon, I feel sad to have never ridden next to you.

I echo everything said on this thread and feel for his family and friends. I do hope that they stumble across this thread and see the impact that he had on so many lives.

a friend of mine reminded me of this poem by D.H. Lawrence that, for us at least, best sums up how we saw Sheldon. Not just his bicycle-related information philanthropy -- he appeared to us as one who saw the world in the way that every human being should -- purposefully, positively, thoughtfully and generously.

What is He?
D.H. Lawrence

What is he?
-- A man, of course.
Yes, but what does he do?
-- He lives and is a man.
Oh quite! but he must work. He must have a job of some sort.
-- Why?
Because obviously he's not one of the leisured classes.
-- I don't know. He has lots of leisure. And he makes quite beautiful chairs.
There you are then! He's a cabinet maker.
-- No no!
Anyhow a carpenter and joiner.
-- Not at all.
But you said so.
-- What did I say?
That he made chairs, and was a joiner and carpenter.
-- I said he made chairs, but I did not say he was a carpenter.
All right then, he's just an amateur
-- Perhaps! Would you say a thrush was a professional flautist, or just an amateur?
I'd say it was just a bird
-- And I say he is just a man.