Bob and Lorine Tetzlaff

- the beginnings

Bob Tetzlaff, Los Gatos teacher and 1960 Olympian, and his wife, Lorine, were co-founders of the Los Gatos Bicycle Racing Club and original organizers of the Cat's Hill Criterium. Bob and Lorine give the following account of the beginnings of our classic race.

The Los Gatos Bicycle Racing Club (originally called the Los Gatos Bike Club) began in 1961 when Jack Hartman returned to his hometown of Los Gatos following the Rome Olympics and three years in the U.S. Army. He brought with him his Army and Olympic cycling friend, Bob Tetzlaff.

They met with longtime resident and cyclist of Los Gatos, Ed Steffani, to form the Los Gatos Bike Club. At the time, there were not very many active cycling clubs or riders.

The Club started off with a bang, with Jack Hartman doing well in the Track Nationals. Bob Tetzlaff won several championships as well, and numerous other fine riders were gaining national respect: Eric Schatmeir, Bucky De Mers, Eric Hinge, Dan Butler, Fred Markham, Chris Huber and Neal Stansbury. All were either State or National champions and/or Olympic Team members.

Early in the Los Gatos Bike Club's efforts was Los Gatos Criterium, held on University Avenue near Old Town. That race lasted a few years and then racing within the Town of Los Gatos fell dormant. In 1974, Lorine and Bob Tetzlaff met with Tom Moore of Moore Buick and the Cat's Hill Bicycle Race was born. Bob designed the current course, and Lorine named the event and did a lot of the serious financial and organizing work. Tom Moore provided the sponsorship money. Kidding about the name of the race, Tom said, "It'll never last." Well, as we know, it has become a classic event with nearly three decades of continuous competition.

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