Our Bikes

It is amazing there has not yet been a bike post since Tom is actually obsessed with bicycles; the weather had finally cheered up enough so that we could take ours outside and take some nice pictures of them. Mine is a 1942 ladies Raleigh Sports, and due to it being a war-time bike has a complete absence of chrome, though whilst doing it up as my birthday present there has been a few touches added such as the lights and dynamo; apparently it is a very rare thing to have a matching set of Miller lights and dynamo. We had a massive stroke of luck in that a Brooks B18 ladies saddle, with the embossed leather flowers detail, came up on eBay for quite a lot cheaper than they sell for on the Brooks site! I also purchased a hand-made leather saddle tool bag from a chap who makes them to sell on eBay. I have named her Clara.

Tom's bike is a 1950 Raleigh Superbe which was about the best bike you could get at that time, she is called Edith. She has a 4 speed Sturmey Archer rear dyno-hub in stainless steel wheels and a Brooks B66 saddle and Glenbrook saddle bag. She has two lights at the front rather than an ordinary one! The pannier bags both mine and Tom's sport are actually army surplus radio bags, I dyed mine black but it has come out a nice bottle green colour instead; they make perfect panniers and are really cheap and hard-wearing, the perfect size to carry all the picnic food you could want and a bottle of wine.