Griff King-Spooner wrote:
>
> ............having started riding in those halcyon days of the late 50's I
> seem to remember the then serious club cyclist usually had a rolled up
> plastic ice cream flag/banner (Walls or Lyons Maid etc.) these offered
> excellent protection for their spare tub (fastened under the saddle always
> with a spare toestrap), these were obtained (usually purloined!) from the
> local corner shop where they were often hung outside as adverts by the
> entrance door. On a similar thread of banal and inane trivia
> ...........anyone over this side of the water remember "bonk bags" that were
> made out of spare deckchair canvas,(ah, those austerity years!) these durable
> items of essential and fashionable apparel were worn commuting to work or on
> the Sunday clubrun, I was still using one that my sister made for me back in
> 1961 well into the 80's, also for those who aspired to the dizzy heights of
> sartorial elegance, does anyone still wear "Plusses" and a "French Beret"
> when out riding? these tiny and racy headcoverings were worn only by "real"
> cyclists........does anyone have photo's of clubruns back then?......you
> will see what I mean!
Griff, along those lines (but in the '30s and '40s), see:
CYCLING BEFORE LYCRA - Allan Nelson
http://www.a-nelson.dircon.co.uk/
from my links page at: http://www.velo-retro.com
Chuck Schmidt SoPas, SoCal
.