so how long you been at it?

2fast4u2

how long have you been mtb'ing for and what was your first bike.



myself been riding since 1987 (god that makes me feel old) and first bike was a falcon fattrack in white and flo pink.(it was the 80's).

dan shard

6 months proper mountain biking (not including messing around as a kid)

Went to Llandegla on a rainy autumn day, did the blue in the morning on my 2001 GT aggressor, loved it so much I did the red in the afternoon.

Went back a few times doing the red until Feb this year when I hit the black for the first time, got home and decided I needed a proper bike, so bought the full suss cube AMS and done the black many times since.

Oxygen Thief

Two weeks (apart from when a young 'un).

Bought a Carerra Vucan '09 the other week. Will buy decent bike as soon as I move house and start new job.

The Northern Monkey

Properly?
I used to ride up in the lakes with my Dad when I was about 6 but I was on a crappy kids raleigh..

My 1st proper bike was a bright red Spesh Rockhopper but i've no idea what year... I think i was 8 or 10... so somewhere between 1994 and 1996 lol!

Upgraded it eventually with some manutou forks and xt v-brakes

cat_with_no_tail

4-5 years or so of "proper" MTBing.

miss notax

Only about 2 1/2 years, which is why I am still rubbish and slow :oops:

I'm still on my first bike - a santa cruz superlight which I adore.... I am actually that sad that if it broke I would probably just go out and buy another one

Splottboy

I was riding Off Road in 1968, at the Penylan Quarry and the Lambies, Cardiff.
Used to race mates and chase sheep...for fun, not sex!

Had me almost a commuter thing, from Reg Braddicks, and the stem and seatpost had Q/R's. There was a rack fitted to the back that I'd give mates lifts on.
I'd sit on the saddle and they'd pedal!

Got into Mtb "big time" bout 1986/87 in Essex/Kent XC Mtb race series and the WCU S.Wales races in the Rhondda.

Wow! That was a LOOOONGG time ago.

Oxygen Thief

Splottboy. I'm a Rhondda boy originally, but I now live in Newcastle but I am moving back in August for good. ANy good spots for me to check out? It's pretty much all a mountain so there must be endless places is there?

Cheers

Anonymous

been riding on building sites and wasteland, building drops, little jumps and so on on a bmx since the mid 80s.
Got my first Peugeot mountain bike when I was about 10, then a Kuahara something or other when I was about 11. Then a Saracen Aluminium rigid when I was 15, which got snapped and replaced under warranty twice. I got the old Wolfridge in 1998 (which is still going!) and bought myself a new wolf ridge last year)
So I've been riding off road and on quarries for most of my life, and started riding what later became trail centres as well when I was about 14 or so in 1994.

dan shard

yeehaamcgee wrote:

I was about 14 or so in 1994.

Me too!

x-isle

Splottboy wrote:

Reg Braddicks

Bloody hell, that's a name from the past.

I'm from Bedwas (near Caerphilly) and used to ride/race with Cardiff Ajax. Live in the Midlands now.

It's funny how a training run alway used to end in Splott....... Not been there for a VERY long time.........That was my road racing days, yeah shaved legs and all that!

I used to MTB in the winter as training and had a Carrera something. That was about 19 years ago! :shock:

Not been biking all the time though as Uni put a stop to that! Hic! Not been a roadie since, but MTBing for about 6 years now.

Splottboy

Bonjovial: You moving to North or South Wales?

I've done loads of stuff in Hamsterley Forest, Chopwell Woods, Waskerley Way etc.
Ran loadsa courses at Simonside Youth project for Lynn, one of the ladies who ran it.

Splottboy

X-ISLE: Reg Braddick, I believe, was a TOP roadie or tracky in the 50/60's.

My mother and him as kids used to go roller skating at Sophia Gardens.

SPLOTT! A lot of it's gone now, or totally altered. Canny's Lane and the famous "Bomb and Dagger" pub in Portmanmoor road gone too...Moorland road Jnr school/the library still going. Moorland road was Shirley Basseys old jnr school too!

Used to live in Railway St, Adeline St, Janet St and Splott Road x 2 places.
Just doing my family history, and we had relatives in the late 1800's in Walker Road, Ordell St etc.
Must be in my blood!

flowpro

Riding since 1990.

First MTB was some kind of Claud Butler thing Wow it was rubbish. Things fell of on most rides

First full sus was a proflex with 2" of elastomer Wow that was also crappy.

Now I have a Ibis Mojo Not so crappy.

hoochylala

2 Years approx starting a 2007 GT Avalanche 3.0

kaytronika

Bought a cheap Falcon at aged about 13. Took it up Rivington the day after and didn't look back.

in 1994 for my 15th birthday I picked up a GT Timberline FS from Charnock Richards Cycles for £300 without the RS fork and then spent most weekends and school holidays riding all over the North West. Joined the Leisure Lakes cycle club (Groovy Tribe) for a bit and joined them on a few rides to Lakes and Wales... Then went to uni and didn't really cycle regularly again... Bought a GT Avalanche in 2004 and stuck it in my parents garage.

This year, the sun came out and I decided it was time to have another go at riding.

Have pottered around Rivington and Delamere on my own, loving it.

Splottboy

I almost cried with delight when I got my Proflex "Flex Stem."

And it did work...sorta.

Now, got a Proflex 768 Mtb, 28.5 lbs, 5in travel.

The Circle of Life, eh Simba?

izthewiz

Jumped over my dad at 5yrs old on a fat-tyre kid's bike in our back garden in 1975 (mum took photo), then worked my way through tracker bike (canti-tourer with cowhorns and 'cross tyres), bmx, tracker again, bought first proper mtb in '86 (Trek 950 which I still have) from a mate who worked in a bike shop in Iowa, US and was over here on student exchange.
Raced it XC once, rode up Snowdon on it in '87 with three mates - 3 hours up in rain, fog & sleet, 35mins back down the old rail route, with no suspension over the sssssllllllleeeeeeppppppppperrrrrrrrrrrssssssssss!, almost got shot at by a farmer!
Been knocking around on various home-built bikes ever since. Still gets the juices flowing.

.blitz

Started proppa MTBing in the mid-90s, basically to get to some of the remoter Munroes which was the priority at the time.

Oxygen Thief

Splottboy wrote:

Bonjovial: You moving to North or South Wales?

I've done loads of stuff in Hamsterley Forest, Chopwell Woods, Waskerley Way etc.
Ran loadsa courses at Simonside Youth project for Lynn, one of the ladies who ran it.

Back to my home town, Rhonda, South Wales?!

Going to get over to Chopwell this weekend I think. Get a lift over, ride roudn then cycle home

Cheers

kaytronika

Splottboy wrote:

I almost cried with delight when I got my Proflex "Flex Stem."

Heh my old riding partner had one of those for a while.
and a DCD.

El Capitano

2fast4u2 wrote:

how long have you been mtb'ing for and what was your first bike.

MTB'ing since 1989. Riding bikes since 1966, racing them since 1975.

First MTB = Peugeot Raider.

Splottboy

Rivingtons so cool. Ridden there many time.

I like the Dovecot, the one the rich old bird built so she could shag the ground staff !!!

Was also there for the Cmm-wealth games XC Mtb. Good day out.

projectsome

I've had a bike at one point or another for over 20 years but mainly for pedalling up and down the street like a hooligan

got my first proper mtb (gary fisher big sur) early 2008 but didn't hit any trails until late summer

I was more into roller skating in my youth

mkf

i'm around the 20 something years, at a guess i'd say late 80's
my first bike was a muddy fox explorer with biopace chainrings modcon of the era
first ride (jumped in at the deep end) race at leisurelakes when they were still in a metal container!!!!!!!!!
christ this thread bringing back some memorys

Northwind

I guess, 18 years? Though I got time off for good behaviour then fell back into bad habits a wee bit over a year ago. Still can't really believe how things have changed...

snotty badger

Started in about 1994 on a British Eagle ZFX 2, then upgraded to a 94 Univega Alpina 5.3 (which I have in my garage!)

After 2000 it was rare I went biking- beer and cars took over! Started biking again 2 or so years ago again- can't se me stopping till I'm proper old and decrepide!

Andy B

I got my first All Terrain Bike around 1986, a Raleigh Mustang

Had several bikes (stolen & replaced) from then till about '92

Then lost interest a bit

Then got back into it around 1997

Now own several bikes at once

Work in a LBS, no sign of losing interest now

Bikes owned include

3 Raleigh Mustang's (2 black & white ones & one marbled purple)
2 Claud Butler Vantage (I think that was the model)
Falcon steel framed ATB direct from the factory
Ridgeback 603
'97 Scott Peak
'98 Orange clockwork
'03 Orange Gringo
2 Orange 5's
'10 Cube AMS Pro Mag R1

Wish I'd not have stopped biking in the mid '90's, I missed out on some lush bikes

bobinho

Started in about 1993 with a Diamond Topanga then lost interest in my teens
and early twenties,have been back into it for about 4 years. Still have fond memories
of that old 21 speed,rigid forked Diamond Back!

reyrol

Hi
got my first bike in 1960 a triumph something with 3 speed sturmy archer gears ,i was a competative club runner from age 40 to 55 & then run to keep fit ,i bought a carrera kraken in august 2009 when i retired ,now i frighten myself up at Lee quarry

paul.skibum

Had a few bikes as a kid but didnt do much with them, bought by brothers old racer off him while I was at Uni in '90 and did it up to ride around on - used to scramble round the woods by the Uni until my bike was nicked in '93.

Got a rigid raleigh which took me down tow paths and the like in 2000, did the C2C in 2002 with some off road sections and loved it, started going to swinley and ordered a Merlin Malt 2 in December 2002.

First Alps trip in 2003, went again in 2004 and 2005, worked as a bike guide in Les Gets in 2006 and been back every year since.