[CR]T.I.RALEIGH SUBJECT / ISSUE

(Example: Racing)

From: <Carltonflyer@aol.com>
Date: Fri, 17 Dec 2004 14:07:46 EST
To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
Subject: [CR]T.I.RALEIGH SUBJECT / ISSUE

Hi all, Just to clarify a few things regarding the T.I.Raleigh team story/issue.

I worked as team mechanic for both the T.I.Carlton team and later T.I Raleigh team between 1969 right through the 70's.

1969 was when Tube Investments decided to co sponsor the Carlton Cycles team which was also the case in 1970.This was the year that the world cycling championships were held here in Great Britain.That very year Gordon Johnson from Australia won the world professional sprint championship at the velodrome in Leicester for whilst riding for T.I Carlton. The following year in 1971 the team became T.I.Raleigh and the team jerseys were at that time white with red sleeves and a black and yellow chest band,these were almost the same as the previous years T.I.Carlton team strip, although the Carlton strip had blue sleeves instead of red. 1972 also kept the same team strip and it wasn't until the following year in 1973 that the distinctive T.I.Raleigh team strip came in to force. The team was at that time just an 8 man team and the team bikes were slightly different in that the headtube was yellow rather than black.Also the transfers differed slightly to the later models which were slighty larger and they only read Team Raleigh and not T.I.Team Raleigh.The only T.I on the frames were infact the small circle in yellow with T.I. in the centre.These were fitted to the tops of each of the fork blades and also one at the bottom of the seat tube. The following year was when The T.I.Raleigh Team took off into the big league, when in 1974 they headed off into Europe and became the legendary team that we came to know.In the winter of 1973/4 we at Carlton Cycles under the guidance the late great Gerald O'Donovan, plus the Dutch team mechanic  Jan Le Grande and also Carlton's top frame builders Bob Keeling and Eddy Haslehurst built the very first T.I Raleigh team Framesets in Reynolds 531 tubing.Whilst on the subject of tubing,Carlton Cycles were the very first ever to build framesets in the Reynolds 753 ,these were infact built by the late Eddy Haslehurst.The first one being built for Britains Dave LLoyd for his attempt in breaking the straight out British record for 50 miles in which he succeeded in doing.Eddy also built a couple of Carlton team bikes for the Carlton Weinmann team riders in Reynlods 753 for British Professionls Sid Barras and Keith Lambert.No more 753 framesets were ever built at Carlton Cycles,these were all built at the special developement works in Ilkeston. Later in 1974 saw the opening of the special developement factory at Ilkeston

where the production of the team bike began.Carlton Cycles at Worksop also continued to build a vast number of T.I.Raleigh framesets and bikes,most of which were exported both to the States and across Europe.

I hope this is of some use to you .

Best regards

Dave Marsh  United Kingdom