Stella, 1976-2011
Jul 24th, 2011 by craig
Stella, beloved bicycle and companion, passed away July 20, 2011. She was born in the spring of 1976 in Loveland, Colorado. She is survived by her owner, Craig Cottle, and her younger brother, Bike E. She will be greatly missed.
Stella began life as a missionary bike, doing lots of miles in Loveland and Arvada, Colorado as well as Hastings, Nebraska. She put on some miles in Alberta, Canada, as well as the Salt Lake Valley in Utah. In 1996, at the age of 20, she logged many miles in and around Las Vegas, Henderson and Boulder City, Nevada in preparation for the STP (Seattle to Portland ride – just over 200 miles) which she completed in June of that year. In her later life, she spent partial time doing a few miles around the Columbia River in Kennewick, WA, relinquishing most of the miles of that time to her younger brother, Bike E. She recently retired to Bellingham, WA, where she made trips to the Canadian border on a limited basis. Her last sanctioned ride was the Tour de Whatcom in July, 2010.
After a period of mourning, her usable parts will be donated to good causes, allowing her to potentially live on in High School projects in the Bellingham area.
Poor stella, she will be greatly missed.
Will these high school projects be close to home, or to help any high schooler in need of bike parts? 🙂
What is the name of her youngest sibling who must prepare to step up and honor her memory this coming Saturday?
It was a sad day at our house when we realized Stella was passing and could not be resuscitated. You have loved Stella and her sleek French style since the day you got her and she will be missed.
Oh Man that’s sad!.. I feel like a part of me just died too.. I have the exact same bike, and have ridden it thousands of miles. It’s not my only bike now but it’s still part of my bike family.
I have to wonder what was terminal? Did the frame break? Ah well, it looks like it had a good life.
You can see my Stella here:
http://bicyclelog.blogspot.com/2010/06/stella-10-speed-bicycle.html
Don – thanks for your comment, and link to your post. I just love seeing other Stellas!
Yes, the cause of death was a break in the frame, on the upright just above the crank. The weld held, but the actual frame came apart just above the weld. I took her to several places to see if they could somehow weld it back together, but there was no hope. It was a very difficult time, as I really loved that bike, it was so simple, clean and smooth. Of course, today’s bikes are much lighter, but I’d still choose that Stella over any of my newer bikes if I could.
That’s too bad but you totally got the value out of that bike. I’d hang the frame on the wall and use it as art in your rec room.
I wish I’d known sooner, I would have liked to have had the crank and bottom bracket.. 🙂 I put a Stronglight 99 on mine back in the day thinking it was cool since it had the star shaped spider. Of course Stella means star, at it was a nice upgrade. I saved all summer for that crank, but then my mom put the original cottered crank in the church rummage sale…
Hanging in the rec room would have been a good idea – however, here in Washington the high school seniors do a ‘culminating project,’ and one of those students made a hand crank generator for his project using Stella for parts. So she lives on!
Ah a Stella! Absolutely my most favorite bike ever!! No telling how many miles I put on mine, always dependable and sturdy with a beautiful ride. I keep dreaming and hoping that maybe I will come across one someday to replace mine that got stolen out of my garage. It was THE bike – far better ride than ANY of the new bikes I have owned/tried!! I too am sad for you because I know EXACTLY how you feel! Here’s to hoping I find another Stella in my future!
Thanks, Tim; I too have not yet ridden a bike I like more than I did my Stella
I have a Stella bicycle i am wondering if they are worth any $