Cool Wall - Raleigh

[Augustus]

Cool for me.


Reason - I think is that they are a brand in conflict but in a way harmony. Like a two department company. And they produced the durge that most of us have owned at times. Which even though probably rubbish in the greater scheme of things, still hold a place in many hearts as a right of passage.

But in amongst all that dross and cheapery, was a random high end or forward thinking 'pro' even model, coming in all leftfield to the rest of the range, under the same name.

A company that didn't have a problem with producing el cheapo's for you and me and still race tomac ones under the same name. Now there's courage of your conviction.

 

[Neil]

GT AREN'T cool

(sigh)

Overruled, and irrelevant to a thread about Raleigh bikes ;-)

Neil, please stop exciting yoursef about GT. It's finished. Over. Done.

"exciting"?

I'm struggling to understand the thinking, the rationale, that some people had for (wrongly) believing GT bikes weren't cool, to thinking that Raliegh bikes are.

When GT have the same heritage and history Raleigh have had let me know

Which has precisely what to do with being "cool"?

 

[perry]

Which has precisely what to do with being "cool"?

Wouldn't you say a British company that has been in existence for over 80 years was even a little bit cool ?

 

[Neil]

Cool for me.

Reason - I think is that they are a brand in conflict but in a way harmony. Like a two department company. And they produced the durge that most of us have owned at times. Which even though probably rubbish in the greater scheme of things, still hold a place in many hearts as a right of passage.

Which was why I ruled that the Raliegh Mustang (in the lilac / purple paintjob) was / is cool - not because it was good, not because it had any objective qualities, merely because of it's place in history, and the number of people who owned one, and look back with happy memories.

 

[Aeronaut]

the sort of bikes i remember flicking to at the back of the littlewoods catalogue as a kid, inbetween the toy section and the crappy xmas hampers..

i never did get my mr frosty ice maker

 

[Neil]

Which has precisely what to do with being "cool"?

Wouldn't you say a British company that has been in existence for over 80 years was even a little bit cool ?

1. I'm not arguing that Raleigh are cool or uncool, what I was questioning, was the thinking behind people declaring GT as a brand being uncool, yet Raleigh as cool.
2. I'd say heritage has precisely zero to do with whether a brand is "cool" - take a step back for a second, and define what it is that this ethereal concept of "cool" is representing...

 

[Neil]

the sort of bikes i remember flicking to at the back of the littlewoods catalogue as a kid, inbetween the toy section and the crappy xmas hampers..

i never did get my mr frosty ice maker

One of my friends had one of them - trust me, it was nothing but a big disappointment to me ;-)

 

[john]

Which has precisely what to do with being "cool"?

For someone who claims to have an understanding of cool you don't actually have a clue do you? :xmas-cool:

 

[Neil]

Which has precisely what to do with being "cool"?

For someone who claims to have an understanding of cool you don't actually have a clue do you? :xmas-cool:

Come on, John - it's nothing to do with history or heritage.

Perhaps a myriad of other factors, but not what they were doing 20, 30, 40 etc... years ago. History and heritage are precisely that, but nothing, that's right, nothing whatsoever to do with something being "cool".

Now something being retro ;-) that's a different matter ;-) But then, not all retro is cool.

And to be fair, I've not nailed my colours to the mast one way or t'other on the brand of Raleigh.

 

[jez-4-bikes-max]

Raleigh are a little like MG Rover I think.