Beautiful new bike.

[SteveH]

Here.
About Elephant bike.
With only three gears, and being rather heavy (20kgs/44lbs unladen), it's perhaps not the ideal bike for a hilly town like Hemel Hempstead, but I can always get off and push up the steepest part of the ride home, when going home with the week's shopping. It can carry twice its own weight - 20kgs front, and 20 kgs rear - but I doubt that I'll often be carrying that much.
I took it on a 14 mile ride this afternoon, to try it out. It's stately rather than fast, but it gives a lovely smooth ride, and the gears change easily. The brakes are fairly powerful, as they need to be if you're descending a steep hill with a heavy load.
The route.

[ekim]

It reminds me of the butcher's bike I used to deliver meat with, except the front wheel was smaller and the front basket was huge.

[Rhiannon]

It's gorgeous, Steve. Love the heritage.

[SteveH]

It's gorgeous, Steve. Love the heritage.

Thanks.
Ekim - I rode one of those as well, in the mid-to-late 60s, when I was in my mid-teens and had a Saturday job with the local greengrocer.

[Roses]

It reminds me of the butcher's bike I used to deliver meat with, except the front wheel was smaller and the front basket was huge.

I must admit it reminded me of a bike for delivering goods too. But if it does the business for its lord and master, that is what counts.

[jeremyp]

Why have I got the theme tune for Open All Hours going round my head?

[Robbie]

A splendid bike Steve!

[SteveH]

Thanks.

[SteveH]

Sybil* is back!
It's a long and depressing story, which I won't go into all the details of, but it got nicked a few weeks ago. The local plods caught the thief within minutes, and came round to the house to confirm it was mine by showing me a photo of it at the cop shop. They needed to keep it for a week or two as evidence, which was frustrating, but at least I knew it was safe. This afternoon, it came back in a police van, so I will go for a celebratory ride tomorrow.
*I originally called her "Nelly", but my Pedersen, now in honoured temporary retirement in my bedroom, is "Basil", and my new Pashley Countryman is "Polly", and my Brompton (not roadworthy) is "Manuel", so this is "Sybil". The previous Sybil was my Pashley roadster, wrecked in my accident in 2014.

[jeremyp]

I've got a bike.
You can ride it if you like.
It's got a basket, a bell
and lots of things to make it look good.
I'd let you have it if I could,
But I borrowed stole it.

~~ Syd Barrett.