jimmay2000 said:
Slaw, Just out of curiosity, how popular were touring bikes back in the day? These days they seem to be pretty rare, or else they are being called something else.
There wasn't the variety of bikes that are available today. You could get a road racing bike, a touring bike or a cheap shopper or ladies' style bike.
Of the touring bikes, there were your common 10 speeds which, at the lower end of the market, often had steel rims and crappy brakes. Then the better bikes had alloy rims, a better frame and components. These were popular with the commuters and students. But if you wanted a decent bike, you had to get it custom made from Hillman, Cecil Walkers or a couple of other places.
With the advent of the mountain bike around the early 80s, the scene has changed considerably. For road riding/touring there is the choice of any mountain bike, hybrid, flat bar road bike, cyclocross style bike, racing, triathlon style as well as the traditional style of touring bike. So there's still a few around, just that there are lots of other bikes on the streets these days. That's not even mentioning the plethora of mountain bike types.
I remember the time when if I saw someone else on the road with a helmet or panniers, I probably knew them or I'd often see them on Saturday mornings in at Hillman's.
BTW, I haven't ridden my Hillman since we moved house at least 5 years ago. Must see if the tyres still hold air and take it out for old time's sake.