Sheldon Brown, RIP

There is a notice on the Harris Cyclery site that Sheldon Brown has passed away. I didn't know him personally, but I had exchanged emails with him a couple of times, and I feel as though I've lost a good friend. My first try at converting a bike to fixed gear was made easier with information from his site. Indeed, I even used a model of bike he had converted himself. The Harris site is an amazing resource of biking information mainly due to him. He had been in declining health for some time, but this is still a heavy blow. The cycling community has lost a champion.