The Frame

Wow, I got so lucky. I recently was introduced to the late great Sheldon Brown, bicycle guru and really neat guy. Upon entering Bikes Not Bombs in Jamaica Plain, MA, I was handed an old Raleigh Lenton frame and Isabella said "this was Sheldon Brown's frame. he donated it to us." A size 23" it was the perfect fit for me. I was ecstatic! I spent another two hours in the shop checking out old used pedals, stems, hubs, and Mexican chocolate. I strapped the frame to the back of my Cold Cold World Chernobyl Mountaineering pack (great for the city too!) and headed down Green Street to the Orange line. After all, it was a long 4.5 hour bus ride back to Orono, ME, where I currently reside.

In the hotel room that nite, I started filing the dropouts. They needed another 2mm or so for the new flip/flop hub. The fork dropouts needed filing as well, but I was stopped in my tracks by a security guard knocking on the door at 11:30pm asking what I was "sawing" in my room. I showed him the frame and scattered other stuff on the floor. He believed me that I was just working on the bike (not bombs) and asked if I would cease as the folks below me were "going crazy." I wasn't quite sure if he meant they're having crazy sex or were losing it over the filing I was doing. "Hey man I gotta get these hollow bolts to fit the old Raleigh." He wasn't amused.