When I was in my teens in the 1950's, my father bought me an expensive racer, light? I could lift it with one finger, it was a Merlin, built by Bob Jackson Cycles & ridden by a lot of the top British riders of that time, later, in the 1970's, they had a stand at a cycle fair in New York, & couldn't sell enough of them, they had to triple their work force back in the UK to cope, mine was silver with narrow red lines on the mudguards & frame, in those days bikes didn't have the shortass 'guards of today that splatter you with mud, I was very proud of it.
