It's a sorry day when an old established company such as Rotrax bites the dust! My first lightweight was a Rotrax La Premiere, bought from Jack Baguley's shop at 48 The Crossway, Stoke Newington, just around the corner from Rensch's Paris Cycles, in 1951. It was a second-hand frame like most of Jack's stuff..he described the colour as "salmon pink" with black head and seat panels. I had to travel 196 miles each way,by bus from the north of England to buy that frame, and I remember vividly not allowing the bus-driver to stow it away in the bus's luggage locker on the return journey.
I remember too, about thirty years ago making the pilgrimage to the Shirley shop in search of transfers.
But only last week a surprising piece of information came my way..from Ernie Witcomb. He said that art some time in the 50s, his company, Witcomb Cycles actually owned Rotrax, and had at other times built quite a lot of frames for the Southampton company. It goes to show that often you never know who actually built the frame you are riding.
Norris Lockley..Settle UK