A blast to the past through modern day Boston!

"Don't sneer at old 3-speeds. They are serious bikes, built for serious use. They are meant for utilitarian cyclists, and they are still extremely appropriate for riders who don't usually go more than a few miles at a time. They are particularly at home in stop-and-go traffic, because they can be shifted even while stopped. Their English heritage: full fenders, oil lubrication, and totally enclosed gear system makes them relatively impervious to wet conditions. They may be heavy, but that is not because they were built to be cheap, but because they were built to endure extremely rough usage and neglect. Properly cared for, they will outlast us all."
-Sheldon Brown

This is something of a mantra here at the Old Spokes Home. We have made mission of restoring vintage 3 speeds. We have a huge variety of parts that enables us to repair even the most obscure part of your Sturmey Archer AW. This past Sunday, October 4th, was a brilliant display of vintage 3 speed love down in Boston. Thanks to the bicycle advocacy group Massbike, Boston was swarmed by around 100 riders dawning vintage cycles and clothing to match! It was the Boston Tweed Ride.

The ride was billed as " a cheeky ride winding through Beacon Hill, Back Bay and looping back along Memorial Drive in Cambridge. With a stop for Tea at 4:00."  Vintage bicycles were encouraged though not recommended and the only rule appeared to be no lycra.    There were ongoing fun contests such as:  "most graceful mount and dismount" and "best bike knitted out in tweed".

Wait a minute....leisure ride?, vintage bikes??, stops for tea???   This sounded like something we could get behind!  So we did.  Glenn and his friend Mary headed down to Boston with his awesome World War II Raleigh "black-out" police bike:

and Mary with her sweet Humber Sports "DHF" (double hollow fork):

And here is group shot from the Massbike:

Just look at all that tweed!

The Tweed ride, which appears to resemble our beloved Decade Ride, is a wonderful way to celebrate the leisurely bicycle tradition.  It reminds us that you do not have to race or wear spandex to enjoy what the bicycle has to offer.  You can sit upright, wear tweed knickers, and at the most you only need 3 speeds.  Rides like this one recall a valuable history, one that we cherish and try to keep alive everyday.

Boston 1888:

And in 2009: