I heart my babysitter

She came over and watched The Bruce for an hour so that I could go ride. Since she was "going out of her way" I felt compelled to cycle for exercise and not just to be wandering around on a bike. The too-small-for-me-anyway Peugeot is OOS with disconnected break levers and the Precious Sorrento is OOS because I rode it into the ground and now I can't make it shift right. That left the Raleigh Marathon. So out she came. I gotta tell ya, I like this bike. I got a chance to adjust some things over the winter but haven't ridden it since my Father In Law gave it to me. I really like this bike. It's smooth riding and shifting. The riding position is sporty enough to get me out of the wind but relaxed enough that I did not feel at all uncomfortable. The bars have a larger diameter than the Peugeot's bars do and I liked the bend of them better and the cushynes of the old-school foam bar-wraps was very comfortable. The reach to the brake levers is much, much less than on the PRN. Of course, it did not feel as fast or as "lively" as the Peugeot. It doesn't speak french. It is WAY easier to get up hills with it than with the Triumph three speed though. It's a shame that I get so emotionally attached to these things. This is really a great, all around bike but it's an irreplaceable heirloom and if any thing ever happened to it...... I am supposed to be picking up a nice UO-8 in a week or two. I am hoping that that bike will combine the best features of the two bikes for me in a package that is designed and supposed to be RIDDEN not cherished or admired.