1987 AeroLite Pedals Ad
I like this advertisement. But not really for the ahead-of-their-time pedals. I’m more interested in the photo of Scott Tinley.
It’s taken at the 1986 Avignon Triathlon. And shows that for a few years Tinley and Mark Allen were probably travelling to France without bikes.
It seems they’d either borrow something from a local athlete or pick up a temporary local sponsor’s bike.
Image: Tri-Athlete (FR) Octobre 1987
At Avignon in 1985, Allen was on a blue, un-badged bike. While Tinley’s bike was covered in Mercier stickers. But was it actually a Mercier? 5th that day was Mercier sponsored-athlete Jean-Luc Capogna.
In Nice in 1985, Allen, Scott Molina and Tinley were on brown Peugeots. With chrome forks. Maybe the carbon-bonded PY-10-FCs.
At Nice in 1986, Allen was again on the Peugeot. Maybe the same one. Stored somewhere in France. Had he bought it? I’ll ask him via Instagram. In Hawaii, two weeks later, he’d switched to his grey Schwinn. Proof. Maybe. That the brown Peugeot had stayed in France.
When Scott Tinley won Hawaii in 1985. Just two weeks after Nice. He was also on a Peugeot. Was it the same one as in Nice and Avignon? Although he’d swapped out the drop bars for the AeroLite Delta Wings.
Just updated my list of vintage triathlon projects.
Re-create the 1994 France Iron Tour. Riding between the stage towns.
Be in Embrun during race week. And do the course over several days.
Explore Avignon. Find out where the course went. Do as much of it as possible. Ride Avignon - Mont Ventoux - Avignon. Like Pigg and Allen did the day after the race in 1989.
Organise an annual non-competitive vintage triathlon.
What are your vintage triathlon projects? Comment below. And I’m happy to be corrected on the bike identifications above. or other facts.
