Retro Peugeot Site

I know I haven't been so much with the blogging lately, but here's a very cool site for all those old Poo-show lovers out there: www.retropeugeot.com. They've got galleries, old brochures and catalogs, and lots of info to help with dating your bike (that is, establishing the date of manufacture, nothing kinky). Looks like mine is definitely a UO-8 model and it falls in the 1974-1977 range, based on the chunky plastic headbadge. My favorite lines from the 1977 Owner's Manual:

"We hope we have caught your attention on the importance concerning careful maintenance of your machine for both your safety and pleasure. But we must remind you that your dealer is at your service, to advise you and to perform all the repairs requiring a certain technical competency and special equipment."

Seeing as how my "dealer" was a second-hand store down the street, I really doubt it. More posting soon, I hope.

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DIY Bicycle Stuff at MAKE Blog

Check out the bicycle archive at MAKE Blog.

Hold up. I just went back and read the text on this image under the fellow peddling the bike:
"A bicycle can be used both as a means of transportation and as a power drive for a small grindstone. An enterprising youth might make a few extra dollars this way, sharpening knives for country folk."

Oh, those feckless country folk, with their dull knives. I'm imagining an "enterprising" city youth riding about the back roads asking "country folk" if he can sharpen their knives with his weird portable grindstone. Something tells me those knives would be sharp enough to run said youth plumb off the farm. People in the past sure were goofy. Said the historian.

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Disuse is Misuse

My wife and I have a small collection of the very odd little turn-of-the-century periodical The Philistine, published by the Roycroft press under Elbert Hubbard. We picked up this number from 1911 yesterday at a local book shop and I thought the communique on the back cover was a nice statement of the Old Bike Blog ethic.

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"One Got Fat"

This is wrong on so many levels. Apparently, in 1963, bicycle safety films were meant to scare the ever-loving crap out of kids. "Now Filbert will be the first to agree that if it's worth riding, it's worth taking care of." Grim. And the monkey masks are terrifying. But check out the bikes--some sweet rides those little monkeys got. Via BoingBoing. Also, there's a (an?) hilarious review of the film at I-Mockery.com.

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Sheldon Brown, 1944-2008

From the Harris Cyclery website:

Dear Harris Cyclery friends and customers,
It is with heavy hearts that we convey to you the news that Sheldon Brown has passed away. Our thoughts go out to his family at this time. The cycling community has lost one of it's most passionate members.

Word is that Sheldon suffered a massive heart attack after enduring four years of a debilitating rare form of MS. Sheldon Brown's pages, which I link to below and at right, are both an inspiration and an absolutely priceless resources for the do-it-yourself bicycle enthusiast and for anyone interested in bicycles. Browsing through his massive site, you can also learn about almost every aspect of the man, from his eclectic passions and his wonderful family, to how to adjust your Sturmey-Archer hub. I never met him, but looking through his site makes me feel like I did, and my best wishes go out to his friends and family. Ride in Peace, Sheldon.

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