Originally Posted by T-Mar

They're definitely not grand tourers. I refer to them as recreational or day tourers. I think there was a different evolution in the upscale recreational bicycles in North America and Britain, In the former it tended towards the diverse forms of sports bicycles and grand tourers, while Britain held middle ground. I believe much of it had to do with the respective environments. In America even when you wanted to go for a long ride, you still wanted to do it fast, so the sports bicycles developed. In Britain, the road and weather conditions weren't as good, so longer wheelbases, slacker angles and mudguard capability held out a lot longer. In America the longer distances between cities meant touring was often a multi-day affair so the grand touring bicycle became another alternative, whereas in Britain, with the much smaller distances berween cities, you could easily go somwhere and back in a day. You don't need, cantilevers, triple chainrings, triple bottles, racks, etc., unless you're carrying a large load and/or plan taking several days. Not that grand tourers didn't exist in Britain but day tourers were probably a bigger market.

As for the spacing and 27" wheels, the British tend to be a very conservative people compared to the Americans who love to embrace the latest technology. Crica 1980, both 6 speed frewheels and 700C clinchers were still relatively new. Even in North America, they were found primarily on the upper mid-range and higher and definitely weren't the dominant configuration. 120mm spacing and 700C was still primarily the realm of racing oriented models. While they were dominant in North America by the mid-1980s, I can envision things holding out much longer in conservative Britain. Look at how long they held onto their beloved internally geared hubs after derailleurs had taken over the continent.