Obituaries
Frank Brilando ME ’52, Niles, Ill., helped create an iconic bicycle—the Schwinn Sting-Ray—that gave countless kids a breakthrough dream machine on two wheels. Advertised as the “bike that changed cycling,” the sporty Sting-Ray featured high-rise handlebars and a banana-shaped seat, a dramatic redesign among bicycles when it made its debut in 1963. Besides the innovative Sting-Ray, Brilando, who worked as a designer and engineer at Schwinn for more than 40 years, also helped create the Schwinn Varsity and Continental bicycles, and the Airdyne fan-resistance stationary exercise bicycle. He also assisted in the launch of the first derailleur-equipped mass-produced bicycles in the United States. A two-time summer Olympics cyclist (1948, 1952), Brilando contributed to the initial United States Consumer Product Safety Commission on bicycle safety standards.
