Last January (2011), I put up the video below which described the conversion of a shopper bike into a fast "hot rod". http://marctoo.blogspot.com/2011/01/dawes-kingpin-shopper-bike-cycle-re.html The bike has just been refurbished and reconfigured as a comfortable day tourer. I am very pleased with how it has turned out and how nice it is to ride. I particular I hope to use in its new role when I am on my summer camping excursions.
Even
in this enlightened(?) age their remains an almost frenetic sense of propriety to
safeguard society from unseemly images or strong language, exposure to which
would no doubt irrecoverably corrupt those exposed to it. I initially referred
to this phenomenon in my March 8th 2011 blog “Bizarre Sense of Priorities”.
Whilst it might be justified in the more extreme examples, I wonder what it is
that the moral gatekeepers are hoping to achieve. For those charged with this
awesome responsibility, as an absolute minimum it should be expected that at
least there should be some consistency in deciding that which is acceptable
from that which is not.
For
example, the use of the word for liquid excrement has become acceptable whereas
the word for the solid variety has not. Thus one can be “pissed off” with
impunity but cannot describe their day as s—ty or this subject as complete
bulls—t. I add the hyphens to appease the blogging Gestapo and to do my share
in protecting any unsuspecting readers from possible moral turpitude. Similarly
the word “bitch” is quite in order to define the gender of a dog, but
unacceptable when used pejoratively as an assessment of a woman’s character –at
least sometimes, but not always. There are also a growing number of words involving
so called “political correctness” This is intended to convey the full meaning
without actually mouthing or writing the complete words of normal language and
offending the sensibilities. This is done by abbreviation as in f-word; b-word;
c-word; s-word; n-word; a-hole; etc. If this trend continues it will soon be
necessary to communicate in politically correct shorthand. “U r an a-hole &
full of s-word, so f-word off!” -and so on!
In the case of pictorial images there
are more inconsistencies. For some reason, the sight of certain parts of the
body is deemed to be so morally damaging that they must be covered –despite the
fact that 50% of the population possesses and unavoidably sees all of those
offensive parts on a daily basis! I remember way back in the ‘60’s the sight of
a female nipple in a publication was an offense, particularly amongst America’s
morally uprighteous. Despite this ban, one of the then fledging adult
publications, I think it was “Playboy”, within its pages deliberately included
an image of a breast, including the forbidden nipple. Predictably this produced the expected degree
of apoplexy amongst the self appointed up-tighteous custodians of morality. Representatives
of the magazine duly appeared at a subsequent hearing to justify such blatant disregard
of the rule. In their defense they showed the complete picture which turned out
to be that of Johnny Weissmuller in his cinematic role as Tarzan!
More
recently, the programme “Survivor” has achieved its success due at least in
part to the sight of scantily clad, attractive young people disporting
themselves in a variety of tropical settings. Here the public watchdogs have
generously permitted the sights of abundant mammary cleavage to remain intact -to
an arbitrary point, beyond which the offending area(s) are blurred out before
anything as inflammatory as a nipple surfaces. However, there is now a new
twist. During scenes where contestants are bending over, “bum cracks” now
receive the blurring treatment! This "crack down" is particularly inexplicable. With no risk of deadly
nipple exposure how on earth the mere sight of a portion of undulating anatomic
topography can possibly be considered to present any risk to the viewer is
beyond me.
The extraordinary and sustained furor
which erupted following Janet Jackson’s so called “wardrobe malfunction” at Superbowl XXXVII was
also inexplicable. She actually was wearing a small floral disc (I think the
correct term is “pastie”) to cover the demonic nipple so what was all the fuss
about? This is an example of the neurosis that seems to grip the US psyche and nourished
by the sensationalistic media. Just read the extent of the Wikipedia page on the subject:-
Happily
the rest of the world seems to be emerging from all this. Indeed there are an
increasing number of TV stations, which provided that the requisite “viewer
discretion” advisory precedes the transmission (-and which probably boosts
viewership!), are showing programmes with language and bodily exposure which
only a few years ago would have been out of the question.
I
conclude with a famous story from the Scottish comedian Billy Connolly which
gives some idea of how much more tolerent of Europe has become of "edgy" material. The joke was originally aired in the 1970’s when things were much more
restricted and there was much sucking of teeth and serious misgivings about how
it would be received. Nowadays it would be at worse considered to be in rather poor
taste.
Billy
recounted how a man confided to his friend in a pub that he had murdered his
wife. Not surprisingly the friend refused to believe him whereupon he was taken
to the man’s house where the dastardly deed took place. “I buried her in the
back garden” he announced and invited his friend to look at her grave. Sure
enough there was a mound of freshly dug earth but surprisingly the rear end of
the body was still sticking above the ground. “Why did you leave her bum
sticking out?” the friend exclaimed -to which the reply was. “Well, I needed
somewhere to park my bike!” See:-
The other day, I was watching several young people being interviewed on TV. They were asked what they wanted most for Christmas. The age demographic of those questioned ranged somewhere between 9 and 14. All their replies placed various video games, I-pads, I-phones etc. as the preferred choice. Not one even mentioned any of the hitherto traditional choices such as sportswear, skateboards, bikes, musical instruments -or even clothes. I found this to be rather distressing and sadly in line with much of the younger population and increasingly amongst those not in the first flush of youth. More and more people are moving away from real experiences in favour of easy-to-access substitutes. As an example this has escalated to the point where it is not unusual to see groups of young people although in close proximity to each other are engaged in electronic communication with others who are not. The texting phenomenon in particular seems to have become preferable to direct conversation. These items of social media hardware it appears have now reached “must have” essential status.
" I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots" Albert Einstein Similarly with sporting activities, despite dire warnings on the alarming incidence of obesity, there are increasing inducements to participate in indoor electronic simulations, which although without question provide enjoyable entertainment, do relatively little for musculature or cardio-vascular health. There is certainly a place for all the foregoing but it all comes down to a question of keeping it in perspective. Many modern day parents, with the necessity of holding down two jobs, live stressful lives in an uncertain work environment. Arriving home in the evening, in order to get some restful relaxation, they are only too pleased to provide distractions for their children which do not require their active participation. The insidious nature of habit-forming, particularly on young and malleable minds, this could lead to the distinct possibility that video game representation of outdoor sports -such as for example tennis or golf, will become (-as they would have it) the default setting with indoor venues replacing those of outdoors. Extreme games featuring violence, war and associated mayhem can well imprint negative and undesirable effects on character development and at their worst, dull sense of compassion and skew perceptions of reality, right and wrong. As I write this, unbelievably a local school has decided to ban balls on school property in case somebody gets injured! By extension maybe pens and pencils should get the same treatment as they could be used as weapons! Where will it all end? With the exponential advance of technology there will be no limit as to what is possible. As an example, there could be no necessity to eat. It would be quite simple to introduce some form of union into the stomach which would be attached to a delivery hose from which would discharge a perfectly balanced mixture of nutritional substances at “meal times “or maybe by continuous “drip feed”. Maybe this facility could be integrated into gas station equipment so that human refueling can take place at the same time! On a more general level, this synthesizing of activities could ultimately result in a situation where to the young, actually being indoors becomes preferable to the outdoors -totally unheard of in my youth, In other words instead of a joyful immersion in the magnificent and wondrous world in which we live, the intention becomes one of providing insulation from it. Everything which exists comes from the earth and will ultimately return to it. In this respect there exists within all of us a latent spiritual affinity which in our current circumstances may need a bit of a nudge to reactivate. To ignore, bypass or suppress such fundamental feelings cannot be positive or productive on any level. Then there is the phenomenon of “virtual sex”. I’m not sure quite how this works; but the traditional, original form, being essentially multifaceted, must be sadly absent in the electronic version. Two-dimensional cyber images, being purely visual cannot reproduce the scope of emotions associated with the old school, time-honored conventional method with its fusion of affection, touch, closeness, tenderness, love, passion, peace, relaxation -choose your own noun. To be sure there are copious quantities of material intended to stimulate, but much of this involves gross graphic gynecological images which surely cannot in any way be considered as erotically uplifting.
In my far off youth, growing up in England, the subject of sex was taboo and kept under wraps. Perversely, for those doing the wrapping, mainly due to the “forbidden fruit” syndrome, this had the opposite effect of greatly heightening the erotic responses of any sexual contact -however mild in nature. At the time, Saturday evening community dances were common place from which many relationships evolved. Indeed these functions were considered the place to form liaisons with the opposite sex. Not surprisingly after an evening’s activities which by definition involved close physical contact, there was perchance a growing affinity towards a particular partner. This being the case, proceedings often drew to a close with a (fairly innocent) amount of consensual grappling behind the dance hall prior to dispersal to our respective homes. Despite being very mild by contemporary standards, the substantial hormonal disarray which resulted was commonly referred to by the youthful male intelligentsia as “Saturday night knee tremblers!”
I believe that the “in your face” nature of pornography is similar to extreme video games in that it has a desensitizing affect and in the process cheapens, demystifies and de-romanticizes the entire experience. Could this be the reason for the huge market in the upsurge of medications and other aids to overcome what appears to be a burgeoning epidemic of impotence? Could this be due to the fact that these products were not yet available in the pre-computer era or that there was no market for them? In the case of my confreres and myself, without question it was certainly the latter. In fact bromide, the medication supplied to inductee military personnel of the time (and with good reason), was aimed at achieving just the opposite!
I had enjoyed refurbishing the two folding Raleigh Twenty bicycles I acquired earlier in the year (-see April and August blogs). Being of sound and rugged design, the process had been most satisfying. It had resulted in two classic vintage bicycles in excellent condition and ready for another thirty years of use!
However, this design although extremely successful, was somewhat specialised with its small wheels and folding hinge. I was interested in how the Twenty would compare with its contemporary, the conventionally configured, iconic Raleigh “Sports”. Sheldon Brown, the sadly-missed bicycle guru described them thus:
“For many years, in many parts of the world, the Raleigh "Sports" three-speed bicycle was considered the ultimate in human-powered transportation. These bicycles were not toys, and, despite the model name, they were not sporting equipment...they were serious vehicles. The men and women who built them, by and large, also rode them, as their primary means of transportation. They were designed to provide solid, dependable transportation for the British public, at a time when only the upper classes had motorcars. These bikes were built to last 100 years, with reasonable care.”
Indeed in England I had used a very similar design to convey myself to and from my first ever job. This was a “Robin Hood Sports”, one of several badge-engineered products from one of several companies bought out by the Raleigh Group. This was my father’s primary means of transport. It was made available to me on an “as required basis” -a status which rapidly evolved from “as required” into “permanent”! Equipped with generator/battery lighting, it was totally reliable and as Sheldon said was -a complete transportation system. Looking back through my rheumy old eyes I had often wondered what progress has been made in bicycle design over the past 50+years. How would such designs compare with the current plethora of types being produced?
In August a neighbour, knowing of my interest in bicycles, informed me that an acquaintance of his had asked him to dispose of a couple of bikes in which he had no further interest nor even required any payment!! Having a garage already overfull with bicycles, my initial interest was somewhat lukewarm. However, I agreed to take a look. To my amazement I was confronted by not one -but two vintage Raleigh Sports, one made in 1973 and the other in 1979! They both had a yellowish hue and looked decidedly sorry for themselves. However, having rubbed an exploratory finger over their frames I immediately discovered that their unappealing jaundiced appearance was due to sawdust! The 1973 men’s model had been given a rich brown burgundy colour and the 1979 ladies model sported a light blue finish. My neighbour informed me that they had been stored in a saw mill! My interest temperature index now rapidly elevated from lukewarm towards a state approaching incandescence! I agreed to take them both off his hands and consigned them both to the garden shed for future consideration -which turned out to be the following day!.
Neither had been used much. This was evidenced by the brake blocks which showed little wear as did the rubber pedal surfaces. Both had been set up poorly and most of the components needed readjusting. I also discovered that the 1979 ladies model had been assembled in Canada at the Raleigh plant in Quebec.
I stripped both bikes down to their principle component parts. As I expected at the time, a good cleaning plus a generous chunk of TLC and polishing was necessary. After the initial cleaning, oiling the chromed components prior to using a combination of crumpled up aluminum foil and metal polish, was sufficient to remove virtually all the rust even on the wheel rims Similarly, the paintwork responded to thorough cleaning plus Turtlewax car polish. In fact I used Turtlewax to finish up the bright parts as well to deter future rust. I removed all the ball bearing surfaces (apart from the 3-speed unit). They were all in need of attention. 30+ year old oil and grease does not make a pretty sight. All were thoroughly cleaned, new ball bearings fitted and packed with grease. Two of the cotters that retain the crank arms onto the pedal spindles were damaged during removal and replaced. This part of the process was the most troublesome. These cotters (particularly after 30+ years in situe) are notoriously difficult to shift –even with a special tool!
Due to sidewall cracking I replaced the original Kenda 26 x 1 3/8" tyres on the 1973 men’s model with new Kendas and tubes surprisingly available from the local Canadian Tire -plus new rim tape. The tyres on the 1979 model were in much better shape and remain for now. I suspect that they had been already replaced sometime.
Both bicycles were then carefully reassembled, brakes and chains adjusted to nominal, the three-speed shifters set up carefully and all that remained prior to a test ride was to replace the much too short seat post with a longer one already in my possession. This also required the temporary replacement of the original Brooks saddle on the brown men’s bike which was incompatible with the seat post. The latter has now been modified and the original Brooks saddle replaced.
I did a 10km "shake down" ride on the brown bicycle and was surprised initially at how heavy and sluggish it felt compared with modern chromoly and carbon-fibre frames, However I soon realised that the gearing was much too high and with it the years rolled back and I recalled slogging up some of the Chiltern Hills on my 8 mile commute to my work at Booker airfield. Now with over 50 years more life experience I did not accept the situation and very soon had replaced the original 17 tooth rear sprocket with one of 21 teeth. This was a great improvement and it did not take long to adapt to the extra weight and to pedal accordingly. Apart from the foregoing, everything was just fine. It is easy to ride and very comfortable thanks to the springy Brooks saddle and. In fact it was like riding a new bike.
Finished 1973 men's Raleigh Sport with temporary saddle.
Left crank secured by its cotter pin!
Right crank, chain wheel and chain guard.
Rear shot showing the shiny wheel rims.
3-speed Sturmey-Archer hub.
The 1979 ladies model has lower gearing as standard which solves that problem. Because the frame is smaller, my rides have been of short duration but again everything feels fine. In fact the brakes are slightly better than the men’s bike. My daughter who is also a cyclist, carried out a short ride and gave it her seal of approval.
1979 ladies Raleigh Sport
Right side showing transmission
Simple steel rear brake; heavy but effective.
Paint and chrome are slightly better than on the brown bike.
The restoration work has been particularly rewarding in that the results of both bikes have exceeded expectations. Both had had limited use and are now in virtually as-new condition.
The cost of the brown men’s bike -including new tyres, tubes, ball bearings, a new 21 tooth sprocket a new brake cable and a new cotter pin was $70, whilst the blue ladies model -including one new cotter pin and ball bearings was $10.
In conclusion, my comparative assessment of the two bikes against those of contemporary design is that whilst they are not the best choice for rides of several hours or in very hilly terrain, for local round town riding or for transportation to and from work involving distances up to 10km or so each way, they are still difficult to beat. Moreover, being equipped with mudguards and chain guard gives extra protection for inclement weather and trouser legs from oily chains. There is no need to dress up. Just get on and go! These factors, plus their extreme sturdiness and reliability make them a very desirable possession. I never cease to be amazed at what some people throw away.
P.S.
There is now a video of the project: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FogQEptThG8
The
dire warnings surrounding the date of December 21st 2012 are
frequently associated with the predictions of the Mayans relating to the
Precession of the Equinox. This involves the effects of the lining up of the
winter solstice sun with the centre or so called “Dark Rift” of the Milky Way
which marks the end of their Long Count calendar. This Galactic Alignment only occurs every 26000
years. The actual window during which this is predicted to take place is
between the years 1998 – 2016. However, contrary to the widespread and dramatic
outpourings from the sensationalists and purveyors of hyperbolae, the Mayan
prognosis was never intended to be irrevocably associated with an apocalyptic termination
of civilization as we know it. Rather, although considered likely to involve a
period of uncertainty, danger and peril it could also present an opportunity to
reassess the current state of human aspirations and achievements to enter a new
age with a renewed, refreshed and transformed reality.
The
effects of this phenomenon have been widely predicted to be at their maximum in
2012. However there is an alternative school of thought which believes that its
peak would occur a year earlier –late in 2011. In general, for many years, diverse
races and cultures, particularly aboriginal, throughout the world have
independently identified this “2012 era” date as being critical and considered
pivotal to future human well being and spiritual evolution.However,
forecasting of this kind is now redundant since the first symptoms of what is likely
to come have already made themselves apparent. Astonishingly there has been a
reluctance or unwillingness to accept this
reality that these difficult times are here now and that whatever the eventual
outcome might be, the next few years will be challenging at best and
catastrophic at worst.
In
the following list of subjects, there is ample evidence that things are
spinning out of control and that in some cases may be doing so exponentially. They
may be broken down into two significant groups:-
Group 1.
1.1. Astronomic
1.2. Tectonic
1.3. Meteorological
Group 2.
2.1. Political
2.2. Societal/religious
2.3. Economic
1. The first three are those over which we
have little control other than to perhaps mitigate their effects;
-
and
2. The second three comprises things over which we collectively,
given the resolve, have the power to totally restructure.
Group1 can be considered collectively since already it has
given ample evidence of its awesome presence. Astronomically we are now already
well within the 1998-2016 window of the Precession. The expected increase in
solar flares has not had really major adverse effects (-thus far!). However,
simultaneous with this there has been a massive increase in catastrophic geophysical
activity which could be connected -at least in part. The effect of some of
these earthquakes has been greatly augmented in some cases with attendant devastating
tsunamis. The so called “Ring of Fire”
has been particularly active from New Zealand through Sri Lanka and SE Asia and
earlier this year in Fukoshima, Japan. The
west has not escaped either, typically as witnessed by the devastating Haiti
earthquake of January 2010 and now as I write this in late October, there is breaking news of a large (7.3 Richter) earthquake in Turkey.
As
far as weather is concerned, who can argue that the extremes experienced around
the world are as severe as or more so than at any time in recorded history. In
some cases, particularly in North America, there have been
extraordinary local anomalies; so much in fact that in some regions some parts seem
to be on fire whilst others are
under water.
The
succession of hurricanes has wrought appalling devastation and suffering.
Katrina, one of the deadliest in the history of the United States which
virtually decimated the New Orleans area was the worst but just one of a seemingly
endless series. Tornadoes in 2011 are occurring at record pace. Worldwide, at least 566 people have perished due to tornadoes including an astounding 550 in the United States compared with 564 US deaths in the previous 10 years -combined!
Rain
deluges have become commonplace in 2011 and many parts of the world; floods have
resulted in total misery and the ruination of the local inhabitants. In Bangkok in particular,
the current flooding is horrendous, whilst in other parts of the world, particularly in Africa the complete opposite is occurring with extreme
drought conditions and with it acute water shortage, famine and starvation.
Another major consideration concerns the ongoing melting of polar ice. Should the melting be sufficient to expose the heat-absorbing tundra beneath, there will be a corresponding acceleration in the rate of ice melt. The consequent rise in sea level will pose an increasing threat to low lying regions of the world. These climate changes being experienced are unlikely to moderate in the short
term. In addition to human influences there seems to be evidence of an
unrelated increase in temperatures due to solar variations. Nevertheless, everything possible must be
done to reduce the trend. As has already
been loudly proclaimed, we must stop the incredibly inefficient and damaging
practice of burning things to get energy. It is now more than ever essential to fully develop every
existing alternative and particularly to establish once and for all the
feasibility of the exotic and elusive Zero Point Energy .
Group 2, despite the fact that it is fully manageable there
continues to be an escalation in all three of the individual factors. All are the
results of power grabbing, mind control of the population or insatiable greed
–sometimes all three!
There
seems to be an escalation in the rattling of significantly more deadly weapons than
sabres in certain countries such as North Korea and Iran with India and
Pakistan not far behind..
Attempts to introduce some form of democracy in
many Islamic states seems doomed to failure since the basic tenets of their
doctrine are not consistent with the notion in which all the people have an
equal say in decisions that affect their lives. It should encompass
social, economic and cultural conditions that enable the free and equal
practice of political self-determination. The deadly and seemingly
insatiable appetite for extreme violence by the Taliban continues unabated. Suicide
bombing continues, fuelled in the main by willing participants spawned from the
pathetic ignorance and life-long mind control of uneducated young followers. Now
we hear the U.S. is withdrawing its troops from Iraq by the end of 2011.What
then?
Even when considering the current “Arab Spring” uprisings across the
Middle East, a successful outcome based upon past experience is likely to
result in a revised form of population control -different faces, -same
oppression. Sadly there are signs that
this seems to be occurring already in recently liberated Egypt. It will be
interesting to follow the fortunes of Libya following the uprising there and the
death of Gaddafi with Syria and Yemen amongst others waiting in the wings. In other faith-based groups too, there has
been an unfortunate escalation in fundamentalism, presumably due to feelings of
powerlessness and insecurity.
The
current state of world economics is front and centre in current news. Even when
faced with impending financial meltdown there is still reluctance to bite the
bullet. Current demonstrations in Greece and elsewhere against proposed austerity
measures are responded to with strident demands for increases in social
spending from non-existing financial resources. Their frustration is
understandable since the current debacles were not directly of their making.
The
current “Occupy” demonstrations and sit-ins worldwide, whilst being effective
in raising public awareness, in general seems to lack focus with several
unconnected groups using some protests to air their own particular disparate agendas.
All this noise is unlikely to faze the wealthy and powerful 5% who it is claimed
control the distribution of wealth with the ultimate objective of creating a
New World Order. Should the other 95% develop a cohesive strategy utilising a
rifle rather than a shotgun approach, it is likely to become (-hopefully without literally resorting to the means implied by the preceding metaphor!), less peaceful and benign. Across the vastness of China,
regional inequities are on the increase, but now with greatly improved
communications, it is becoming increasingly difficult to conceal this from the masses.
The notion of up to one billion unhappy people taking issue with the status quo
is too mindboggling to envisage.
Whatever
the catalyst for change might be, global stability and ongoing development
requires a quantum change in perception with a resetting of all behavioural datums to those solely beneficial to the world in general and to the human predicament in particular.
Is
all this the manifestation of arcane prophesy or merely an extraordinary coincidence? Whatever the reason,
the period from now until the end of 2012 (and for some time thereafter), is likely to be one
for the history books.
I have
often wondered what the reason could be for adherents of many of the world’s
religions to wear such a variety of headgear? The shape, colour configuration or
construction method all seem to play a significant role. Amongst the plethora
of fez’s, turbans, berets, skullcaps, cowls, homburgs, hijabs, mitres and many
others there is no discernable similarity amongst them. What then exactly is the
objective?
Is it a visible
demonstration of their piety to their particular God that by so doing enhance
their standing with him/her/it? Does God have a favorite hat? All would agree that
deities in general are expected to possess the omnipotence, wisdom and insight to
see inside each individual’s mind and soul. Therefore, since nothing can be
hidden and every thought like an open book, on this basis, the choice of headgear seems redundant. The only logical reason must be a desire to advertize or flaunt their
specific faith set to each other. This exacerbates existing schisms between
them, each holding the fervent belief that the millinery mandate of each
religion is (-like their faith) the only one acceptable to the Almighty.
The origins
of some are equally puzzling. In the case of Orthodox Jews, what could possibly
be the connection between their large brimmed black fedoras and Abraham or
Moses? Their hair ringlets pose the same enigma. The conventions of the
Anglican Church in which I was immersed at an early age decreed, with a novel example
of sexism, that whilst women are required to wear hats in church, men must take
theirs off! The notion that God would be sensitive to the relative merits and
configurations of various pieces cloth headgear seems ludicrous.
This
argument can be extended to other items of attire. The range of sartorial
elegance across the faith groups is also varied but -and here is an element
of logic. In many cases it is not practical whilst in formal religious attire
to fulfill the multifarious job commitments of today’s modern society and hence
the wearing of hats provides a visual if superficial identification of each
group.
To honestly
confront their Maker in a state of pure humility and supplication, surely the sole
configuration would be to appear as God made us -“au natural” or completely
naked, thus removing any inequalities in social status or relative affluence.
However, for various reasons of culture, convention, tradition or to be
subjected to sex-obsessed moralizing, this is clearly a non-starter. Some
compromise would be required.
Ideally, a
simple, loose but all-embracing garment similar to those worn by those visiting
Mecca for the Hajj would be a step in the right direction. In addition to satisfying the moral imperatives
of the non-nudists, it would also camouflage the effects on many who have over the years indulged in abundant living, hence becoming progressively less (-more likely more!) than God had
made them!It could be argued that now, apart from variations in skin tone and bone structure it would introduce an sizeable element of uncertainty in identification of religious or racial background. The general acceptance of this “uniform”
garment would perhaps help to reduce the exercising
of much of the cross-cultural prejudices and intolerant attitudes of one national or religious group over
another.
Finally, after several delays I have finally finished Raleigh #2 to my satisfaction. It is now shod with Schwalbe Maratthon 1.75"'s mounted on Alex DM24 rims. It now proudly possesses a Brooks B17 saddle with matching honey brown bag. I have also removed the mudguards and added a waterbottle cage to the headtube. Total weight saved on the conversion 2.75kg (6 lb).
The alloy rims give a noticeable improvement in acceleration but the stopping power has not improved as much as I would have thought. I am now fiddling around with various brake levers. So far however, the originals seem as good as any.
Overall the bike is more sprightly and handles very well with the new "Marathons".
It is now quite suitable for longer rides although its performance will not equal my lighter and much more sporty Dawes Kingpin. However the ride should be a little more relaxed and plush!
