Local great cycling legend: Bob Gibbs
Bob & Mary Gibbs (both '51 MSU alums) their Bike Friday tandem and beagle Bebe in 6/01; Mary passed away in 12/03. Photo by Tim Potter, Patriarch's/ Kedzie 50th Reunion, Kellogg Center, MSU, June 2001.	Bob & Bebe on their trusty mid-late 80's Jamis at the 2nd Annual Lucinda Means Memorial Parade/ Smart Commute Awards Ceremony, May 23, 2006. Click here for more photos from the events. Photo by Tim Potter. Photo courtesy Record-Eagle/Craig McCool Bob Gibbs, 87, oils his bicycle chain to get ready for the ride home from Harbor Springs to Traverse City Friday after participating in the 300-mile Michigander bike tour.
Bob, a World-War II vet who survived the beaches of Normandy on D-Day, commuted 24 miles year-round thru rain, sub-zero blizzards, etc. from his E. Lansing home to his office in Dimondale at the State Secondary Complex from the late 50's thru his retirement in 1980. His daily commuter, a single-speed late-30's Wards Hawthorne, is on display in the Bike Project workshop as well as his 1st 10-spd., a Flandria (restored). We sorely miss seeing the 3 of them pedaling around town and hope that these bikes will inspire others to pursue the pleasures of the road on 2 wheels as Bob & Mary. Bob is also well known for riding to the starts of all the rides he does, whether it's a couple miles away or a couple hundred. A couple years ago Bob rode to Big Rapids for the start of a ride to Mackinaw City (link to article) and back again from Harbor Springs to his summer cabin in Traverse City (an additional 90 mi)! Bob is also doing some racing in his golden years; see this page for results from the 2004 Iceman race where he finished 14th out of 18 in the 45+ mens category and 108 overall (out of 155 finishers)! His finish time of 57:43 also places him 6th in the 35-44 age group! Bob's dedication and enthusiastic support of cycling in the Lansing area has been an inspiration to generations of cyclists who've had the pleasure to know Bob and Mary.

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