...at the U of Maryland and around D.C. in general when i was in college there from '71-'75, I'd venture a guess that the majority of drop barred bikes i saw were gaspipe Peugeot. I think I ran through three or four in those years and immediately after. But i was not buying new bikes. There were also a crappe tonne of 3 speed Raleighs and Raleigh products with lesser names on them that were going begging, because everyone and his uncle wanted a "10 speed bike". So I ended up riding around town on those a lot, because they didn't get stolen as much.
I didn't have a what would be considered a "decent" bike (in terms of the frame tubing and components) until I fished a middle of the line Stella out of a pile in a salvage yard in about 1983 or 84.
I now realize it was most probably stolen.
Like some others, I remember thinking that the guys who could afford Schwinns must be trust funders.
