I was a mechanic at a Raleigh dealer when your bike was new and I remember the Competition well. I was quite proud when I was considered good enough to assemble them. The Huret Jubilee derailleurs are worth more than $100 by themselves. They were the lightest available at the time, and beautifully finished. Be extremely careful of the front derailleur if you need to work with the mounting bolt at all. Only tighten it enough to keep the unit from moving on the tube. The mounting clamp is extremely fragile and I can tell you from personal experience that the snap you will hear if you over-tighten this bolt will dishearten you forever.

I think one of the reasons for the wide clearances was that Raleigh knew that many customers would not want to deal with tubulars, but the bike was to be an entry-level racer, and there were no other options at the time for that purpose, since 700C rims and tires didn't become available in the US until around 1976 or so. That extra clearance was built in for 27" wheels while respecting the Brits expectation that you would be able to fit mudguards as well. I believe the geometry was the same as the International.

Pretty much any Juniors race in the mid-1970s would feature Competitions and Crescents at the starting line.

Stephen Barner
Bolton, Vermont