Know the rules The Paceline Forum Builder's Spotlight


Go Back   The Paceline Forum > General Discussion

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old 01-24-2018, 08:46 PM
magoo magoo is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 101
Anthony Mezzatesta

I just read where Anthony passed away unexpectantly last Fri. He was a custom builder in the Pittsburgh area. Anthony did some modifications for me a few years ago. Very nice work and very inexpensive. I've often wished I could have afforded him building a frame. He was only 63 years old.
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Old 01-24-2018, 09:06 PM
William's Avatar
William William is offline
Administrator
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Herding nomads won't
Posts: 30,048
Wow, I'm very sorry to hear this. He was kind enough to participate in one of our Builder's Spotlights a couple of years ago. RIP Anthony.


Take a moment to check out and remember his fine work...

Spotlight on Mezzatesta Cycles...








William
__________________
Custom Frame Builders List
Support our vendors!
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Old 01-24-2018, 09:46 PM
keevon's Avatar
keevon keevon is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2007
Posts: 1,601
Very saddened to hear this. I took rwsaunders' Weigle up to Mezz a number of years back to have the fork straightened and frame aligned. Ended up spending an hour or two talking bikes and shooting the breeze with Anthony - it was a very enjoyable afternoon.

He'll be missed!
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Old 01-24-2018, 10:00 PM
CSKeller's Avatar
CSKeller CSKeller is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Colorado Springs, CO
Posts: 678
So sorry to hear this. I discovered him when I was looking for a custom bike back in '98/99. His frames are stunning! A frame from him was near the top of my list until I met Rich Gangl, who lives only 80 miles away from me.

Anthony Mezzatesta will be greatly missed by the cycling community.

Godspeed Anthony!
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Old 01-24-2018, 10:49 PM
mhespenheide mhespenheide is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Burien, WA
Posts: 6,080
Ah, shoot. Very, very sorry to hear this. In '88-90 I was a junior racing with the Hudson Valley Velo Club and Tony sponsored our team with custom frames. There were a lot of evenings in those winters that I hung out in his basement watching him work, pestering him with questions. He was unfailingly polite and gracious and took me seriously even when he totally didn't have to. I'd always had the notion in the back of my head to get a frame from him ... "someday".







.
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Old 01-25-2018, 06:17 AM
paredown's Avatar
paredown paredown is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: New York Hudson Valley
Posts: 4,456
Quote:
Originally Posted by William View Post
Wow, I'm very sorry to hear this. He was kind enough to participate in one of our Builder's Spotlights a couple of years ago. RIP Anthony.


Take a moment to check out and remember his fine work...

Spotlight on Mezzatesta Cycles...



William
Thanks for the link--some lovely lug work on some of those bikes....
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Old 01-25-2018, 09:35 PM
rwsaunders's Avatar
rwsaunders rwsaunders is offline
Everything is connected
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Seaburgh
Posts: 11,219
Like keevon said, I had a pleasant experience with Anthony a few years back and a funny side note, before he worked on my JPW, he called Peter to make sure that that it wasn't stolen...they were friends from years ago.

I recall asking him why he wasn't building more frames as his day job was working as a service technician of some sort and frame building was a side job. He said that when he relocated from the east coast, he lost most of his business as it was local and through word of mouth and the internet was non-existent at the time.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Old 01-25-2018, 09:57 PM
mosca's Avatar
mosca mosca is offline
Literally Stiff
 
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Sudden Valley
Posts: 905
I thought I remembered that name from the old Hot Tubes column in Bicycle Guide. This is sad news, he was one of the originals of American custom frame building.
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Old 01-25-2018, 10:09 PM
weisan's Avatar
weisan weisan is online now
ZhugeLiang
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Back in Austin, Texas
Posts: 17,516
Totally love this!

Quote:
Who would you want to build a bike for you?
Only me. There are a lot of great builders out there , but I know my capabilities and I believe I'm the best.
This is not arrogance, but speaking truthfully.
__________________
🏻*
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Old 01-25-2018, 10:29 PM
djg21 djg21 is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Saratoga, NY
Posts: 5,324
Quote:
Originally Posted by magoo View Post
I just read where Anthony passed away unexpectantly last Fri. He was a custom builder in the Pittsburgh area. Anthony did some modifications for me a few years ago. Very nice work and very inexpensive. I've often wished I could have afforded him building a frame. He was only 63 years old.
Anthony was a good friend. He built bikes for my team in the 90s when he was in the Hudson Valley, and we tried to stay in touch when life pulled us both out of NYC, but in different directions. I last spoke to him last year,

I still have my 25 year old Mezzatesta frame built from Columbus multishape tubing in my basement, and it has been doing duty on my Computrainer for years. My wife has her old Mezzatesta frame, built of “NBI” (Nothing But Initials”) tubing (actually vitus). It’s on my bench waiting to be rebuilt,

Tony was a trained as a jeweler, and hand cut some of the most beautiful lugs you’ll ever see. He was multi-talented — an opera singer and a great Chef as well. I fondly recall having an Italian dinner with his wife Cathy and him at his home in NY, and meeting his mom in her apartment on Bleeker Street in the City. Tony will be missed. My thoughts go out to his wife Cathy and his family.

Last edited by djg21; 01-26-2018 at 06:25 AM.
Reply With Quote
  #11  
Old 01-25-2018, 11:33 PM
bob heinatz bob heinatz is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 812
He sure did great work. Beautiful lug work.
Reply With Quote
  #12  
Old 01-26-2018, 06:23 AM
djg21 djg21 is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Saratoga, NY
Posts: 5,324
Link to Obituary

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/pos...&pid=187928854
Reply With Quote
  #13  
Old 01-26-2018, 07:13 AM
Ed-B Ed-B is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Posts: 330
My Mezzatesta is the red bike shown in the builder's thread starting at post #84. I think I read that Bicycle Guide article about him in 1998, but I didn't recall it when I bought this bike on eBay a few years ago. It's one of my favorites, and I feel fortunate to have this example of Anthony's craftsmanship.

Ed.
Reply With Quote
Reply


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 04:47 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.7
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.