Triggered by the Pashley thread, here's a more recent take on my version of Sheldon Brown's Raleigh Superbe/Competition. The first time I saw his bike, I thought it made all the sense in the world. Sheldon's bike-
I had done a lot of riding in high school, then stopped for about 5 years. Then I found a Peugeot 12 speed in a thrift store. It was pink, and too small for me, but it was .... light, and had a barely legible price tag, so I took it up to the counter. Twelve bucks later, I was a cyclist again! It didn't take long for me to replace the handlebars with "north road" bars, and I rode that thing for a few years until I realized that it was *really* too small.
Remembering my much larger, disused and neglected former trail bike, I dug it out of the garage and recommissioned it. I got some "racing" wheels from CL, stripped most of the gears, and slapped serious cruiser bars on it. I still have and love that bike-
Then I heard about Rivendell, and subsequently found the Sheldon Brown site. I had been trolling bike shop parts bins for cool stuff, and found a Raleigh Competition frame. I knew what I had to do-
Every time I rode this bike, I was struck by how .... good it was, how light, smooth, springy, handsome, and small. At the end of last year, I spotted a larger one at a swap meet, and took it home. It became this-
The current version is simplified, a fixed gear with a single brake. The rack and fenders are additions that I never got around to putting on the last Competition, but I use the rack all the time.
Rattier bikes to follow.
I had done a lot of riding in high school, then stopped for about 5 years. Then I found a Peugeot 12 speed in a thrift store. It was pink, and too small for me, but it was .... light, and had a barely legible price tag, so I took it up to the counter. Twelve bucks later, I was a cyclist again! It didn't take long for me to replace the handlebars with "north road" bars, and I rode that thing for a few years until I realized that it was *really* too small.
Remembering my much larger, disused and neglected former trail bike, I dug it out of the garage and recommissioned it. I got some "racing" wheels from CL, stripped most of the gears, and slapped serious cruiser bars on it. I still have and love that bike-
Then I heard about Rivendell, and subsequently found the Sheldon Brown site. I had been trolling bike shop parts bins for cool stuff, and found a Raleigh Competition frame. I knew what I had to do-
Every time I rode this bike, I was struck by how .... good it was, how light, smooth, springy, handsome, and small. At the end of last year, I spotted a larger one at a swap meet, and took it home. It became this-
The current version is simplified, a fixed gear with a single brake. The rack and fenders are additions that I never got around to putting on the last Competition, but I use the rack all the time.
Rattier bikes to follow.
