The last time I was in Paris was in 1974 when I was 16.. that was so long ago I got there by steamship from New York.. the ss FRANCE in fact.
Back then France was still, well, France... every bike was French and there were zillions of the classic French roadsters with those wonderful alloy mudguards and that neat finish (like the engine panels of the "Spirit of St. Louis"!), mudguard mounted headlamps and some wild art nouveau-esque chainguards. I always remember them for their odd tyre size.. more "balloony" than English roadster and small diameter. But much racier looking. There were some fabulous cycle shops including Peugeot dealers which were quite lavishly done with all the branded accessories etc. It was at a Lyon dealer that I decided I'd buy a UE-8 when I got home.
The other classics of French transport were omnipresent: Citroen DS (the most beautiful car ever built), 2CVs and of course the VeloSolex.. The sound of a massed start of these in the Grand Bouelvards after a traffic signal change was one of the great sounds of Paris.
All gone. People who say nationalism doesn't matter and isn't it wonderful everything is made in China and Viet-Nam never heard a VeloSolex rush-hour Le Mans on a Paris summer afternoon.
Peter Kohler, owner of a '68 VeloSolex 3800 Washington DC USA