Steve, Couldn't agree more snob bait is great but "Poseur Bait" would be better. I prefer the old affectionate cyclist's terms of "Road iron" "Track Iron" or "Hack Bike". The last three I always associate with something I liked and was dear to my heart. My old favourite personal junk bike was a cheapo 50's Rotrax you can just imagine it being made after lunch on Friday after a heavy session on the Gales! The frame maker having the right hump thinking he would be better off working on Southampton docks than making ruddy bike frames for peanuts. It was not very well made but it certainly rode well and I was really upset when it got smacked by a London Transport RT. I have a Denny built MO but the Rotrax was special a real working class hero. Cheers and bets wishes from a very wet Huntingdonshire Mick Butler.
> My favorite would be something like "snob bait."
>
> Bicycles have had extraordinary social and
> historical significance. The way that they have been
> used, their contribution to societal change, and
> their place in history is extraordinary, especially
> for such a simple machine. The cheap and
> middling-quality bikes probably tell you more about
> this than all the Masis and Cinellis put together.
> Appreciating this aspect of cycling history takes
> somewhat more thought and understanding than
> appreciating a Hetchins or Colnago.
>
> I have an early Carlsbad Masi GC. I sometimes look
> at it and wonder why I bought the damn thing. It's a
> nice piece of hardware, but that's the end of it. It
> tells me nothing that I don't know already. But
> whenever I look at my Carlton, it tells me long
> stories about the England I knew in the 50s and 60s.
> Frankly, I like it a lot better.
>
> Steve Maas
> (Lost among the cheap hulks, rusting away in the
> rain, in)
> Dublin, Ireland
>
>
>
>
> ---------- Original Message
> ----------------------------------
> From: <emeneff@earthlink.net>
> Date: Sat, 13 Aug 2005 19:12:03 -0700
>
> >Looking at the pictures of the 60's Olmo on Ebay
> (auction # 7175935999)
> >made me think of a few choice adjectives that I
> have been exposed to
> >during the various times I've worked as a bike
> mechanic. Even though the
> >Olmo isn't that terrible of a bike, and it
> certainly is in remarkably
> >good condition considering its age. Many of my
> fellow mechanics were a
> >rather "colorful" lot and could be quite
> entertaining - either when
> >sober or in their more normal state. These are the
> kind of comments
> >uttered when you find out what kind of two-wheeled
> gem is the next
> >repair tag waiting for you to fix. Or what you say
> when you click on a
> >vague Ebay or Craigslist posting for "rare vintage
> bike" and find a
> >Sears Free Spirit that was backed over by the Chevy
> Impala.
> >
> >I hope Dale is O.K. with this. Be thinking of
> vintage "junque" from
> >within the CR time frame to make this more
> acceptable ! You know - the
> >rusty old department store thing with Campy
> Valentino derailleurs. The
> >kind of bike that would make a PX10 look like a
> Bugatti (apologies to
> >P.C. Kohler). Almost ANY Atala. No adjectives used
> to describe modern
> >Carbon Fiber anything, even if they are more
> deserving than the old
> >bikes.
> >
> >Here are a few of my favorites. Please send more.
> Profanity is
> >encouraged - BUT send those to me off-list. I'll
> try and clean them up
> >enough to compile and post later.
> >
> >1. Crapper ( a Dick Swann favorite )
> >2. Cheepo
> >3. H.T.N. Special (H.T.N. = Heavy Trash Night )
> >4. Oh Jeez . . . ! (usually uttered while rolling
> eyes skyward)
> >5. Cheepalaero - the El Salvadorian mechanic would
> use this description
> >on both bikes AND certain customers. In the
> trenches of bike retail and
> >repair this term ended up being used quite
> frequently. Usually, but not
> >always, out of earshot of the customer.
> >6. "Fine Item"
> >7. Endless variations of P.O.S. ( and I'm not
> referring to Point-Of-Sale
> >! )
> >8. Chancre
> >
> >
> >C'mon folks - I know we can do better than my
> feeble list ! These terms
> >are especially nice to have when you are joking
> around with your riding
> >buddies and someone starts taking their bike a
> little TOO seriously.
> >
> >Help a brotha out !
> >
> >Mike Fabian
> >Foggy San Francisco
> >
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Thats all for now. Keep those wheels spinning, in your memories if not still on the road. Be lucky Mick Butler Huntingdon UK.
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