Not long ago, if you saw a wooden likeness of a Native American outside a storefront, the establishment inside was more than likely a cigar shop or tobacconist.
The new equivalent of the “cigar store Indian” is a bicycle, or a likeness of one, festooned with flowers and ferns. But smoking isn’t allowed (at least here in New York City) in the sort of business this new totem most often signals: a café.
I saw this one during my early morning ride. It was, at least, a bike I recognized: a Raleigh Colt. Like the classic Raleigh 3-speeds, it came with 26 inch wheels and Sturmey-Archer hubs. The main difference, it seemed, was that the frame design was tweaked (the boy’s version is a “camelback”) to allow for a smaller frame on full-sized wheels.
Anyway, I thought the café Colt was just another decoration until I got a second glimpse.
The flowers aren’t attached to the bike, and the rear tire is flat. I wondered whether someone had abandoned the bike there. Or do the café’s owners bring it inside at closing time?
