[CR]"...American list terms a Simplex suicide front changer Urrgh!..."

(Example: Production Builders:Peugeot:PY-10)

From: "Peter Brueggeman" <pbrueggeman@ucsd.edu>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
Date: Wed, 26 Apr 2006 10:34:09 -0700
Subject: [CR]"...American list terms a Simplex suicide front changer Urrgh!..."

To expand on Mick Butler's comment "This would have been originally fitted with to use the American list terms a Simplex suicide front changer Urrgh!"

Urrgh is right. There's nothing suicidal about lever front changers and yet one occasionally hears a CR listee use that confusing term. As you know the term suicider shifter comes from motorcycle's that shift by lever directly into the transmission, and in order to do so the hand is removed from the handlebars while travelling at motorcycle speeds. This simply doesn't apply to a bicycle's lever front changer; the only similarity is the direct transmission to the gears. A bicycle doesn't go very fast compared to a motorcycle at speed, so what is the suicide in taking your hand briefly off the bicycle's handlebar? And for those of you who take your hand off the handlebars to shift a downtube shifter, or shift a Cambio Corsa, or drink your water bottle, or blow some snot out of your nose. Do you call those "suicide downtube shifters" or "suicide Cambio Corsa shifter" or "suicide water bottles" or "suicide snot rockets" ...........

Peter Brueggeman
pbrueggeman@ucsd.edu
San Diego California