Recent content by Breezin

I'm missing the similarity bettween the two bars. Age appears about all in common. Material (alu vs. steel), forward reach are very different. Angle is only determined by how the bar is affixed in the stem.

Apparently Beryl had her bars angled down 20 degrees or more for most her early career, until maybe 1966. After that she went with 10-15 degree slope. I don't see the bar and stem on our 1963 Viking as different as on her 1962 Soens, could be one and the same, just transferred over. Our Viking's...

Thanks everyone for working toward this. An Eddy Soens it is. Nailed it in five pages! Yes, the bike next. BTW, Otis snapped a quick pic of his Soens today. Definitely not Beryl's, and you can see it is a tad too small for 6'5" Otis.

Beryl's 1962 Soens sure looks chromium plated to me. I saw somewhere that Billy Soens said he built 800 frames in 8 years, or something like that. At least one Soens did make it to the San Francisco Bay Area, Marin County to be more precise. Otis Guy bought it from Bruce Shattmaier in 1973 or...

Sorry, Matt, missed seeing your link to that awesome set of maps. A must get. So I now see that other Soens headbadge, with the conspicuous hour-glass outline. I recall mention that Eddie Soens coached Beryl Burton. Eddie also coached the Viking team. This is very likely the brand of Beryl...

Matt, good history there. My buddy Otis used to ride a Soens track bike, chromed plated, way over here on the west coast of the USA. The two Soens badges I found look much different, even the Union Jack badge. Maybe there's a third? --Joe

Yes, Ned and you could be on it, a Carlton. And who wouldn't love to ride one of those. I can imagine most of the resolution interpolation except for the bottom, her badge is so rectangular at the base. Maybe Carlton made a slightly different badge shape? Ellis Briggs: I don't see their badge...

Yes, the eBay bike is the one we have at Marin Museum of Bicycling. The wheels are different, 24-spoke Airlights with Scheeren rims. I would like to find a hi-res of that Herne Hill shot to absolutely verify the frame, but yes, the frame and most parts are quite similar. What do you suppose...

Yes, no room there. Clever you. Great photo. True grit. But nothing beats a straight bike. Thanks for sharing.

Sorry, never mind my tangent. I'm still hoping to learn Beryl's 12-hour course. --Joe

Maybe you hadn't noticed your stoker's feet up on the bars. ;)

Thank you, Jim. I figure there have been many "improvements" over time. Maybe 1960s-vintage Ordinance Survey maps would be helpful. I was riding in England in 1971, but my OS maps are from Stratford-upon-Avon and south. I'm surprised the Otley Cycle Club doesn't have a map online of Beryl's...

Sorry. Never mind my tangent. I'm still hoping to learn Beryl's 12-hour course. --Joe

Does anyone have a map of the 1967 Otley 12-hour time trial course? Beryl Burton rode 277.285 miles here. Apparently it was a 200-mile zig-zagging loop through Yorkshire, from Wetherby to Northallerton, followed by a 15.87-mile finishing circuit south-east of Boroughbridge. --Joe

Thanks for the skinny on this. Great detail for Beryl's Pursuit and Road frames. Looks like Beryl had long femurs, a good cyclist trait. Interesting the 1/4-degree finessing of seat tube angle. For a little more tire clearance I guess. Essentially 50cm frames, center to top. What is the source...