Cycling when you were young

sampras38

cycladianpirate wrote:

First bike was a Raleigh Chipper - that's not a typo - it was a scaled down version of the Chopper in bright yellow as I recall. After that a series of second hand stuff until I acquired my (then) dream bike - a Raleigh Record Ace!!

Rode everywhere - even in the freezing winters of Toronto - and didn't think anything of it. As for maintenance - a liberal dose of All-In-One when the chain got rusty and that was your lot.

Come to think of it, isn't it time that modern bikes and components MTFU'd?????

Wasn't the cut down version of the Chopper a Tomahawk?

keef66

Junior school had a couple of different sit up & beg type Sturmey Archer 3 or 5 speed bikes built from parts off the local tip. Me and a mate used to venture 20 or so miles from home. Gas pipe construction, steel wheels, massive, sprung saddles. Must've weighed a ton

When I got to grammar school I bought a racer from a mate who worked in a bike shop.
5 speed Huret derailleur, alloy wheels, weinmann brakes etc. Felt like a bloody rocketship! Age 11-14 me plus mate were venturing 50-70 miles at a time.

Next I acquired another second hand bargain from a former cycling buddy. He was upgrading to a moped, so for a small consideration I got a Raleigh Tour of Britain 10 speed bike. I swapped in all the alloy components from the old bike, which must've shaved at least 5 pounds off the weight. Now we were doing 70-120 miles in a day with a proper saddle-bag full of food, tools, maps etc. Yorkshire coast, dales, N York moors, youth hostelling trips etc.
It was my primary means of transport to / from parties, weekend jobs, girlfriends etc right through my student years, until my first job meant a car was a neccessity. Still then used it for weekend rides. Then I went and lent it to a mate who had it nicked from Sainsbury's car park.

I have no doubt that the hours I spent on a bike in my formative years contributed immensely to my general fitness, and to the ease with which I returned to cycling after all that marrying, home buying, child raising etc. Nowadays it's what keeps me sane.

paulbox

cycladianpirate wrote:

First bike was a Raleigh Chipper - that's not a typo - it was a scaled down version of the Chopper in bright yellow as I recall. After that a series of second hand stuff until I acquired my (then) dream bike - a Raleigh Record Ace!!

I had one of those.

I grew up in a village and spent half my life playing football, the other half zooming around on a bike. History:
Chipper
Small Road bike (they were called racers back then...)
BMX (had to fund this myself as I'd only just asked for the racer)
Big Road bike
Mountain bike - hardtail (after a gap of quite a few years!).
Mountain bike - full suspension (after another bog gap)
Road Bike (can we call them racers again???)
I was always fast when I was young, whenever friends and I were going anywhere we'd always be racing and I always won. The first time I realised I wasn't fast was during my first ever BMX race... Left standing... :oops:

donkykong

ive still got a tin of ford saluki bronze paint somewhere if you want to finish the frame off, along with some chrome coloured paint for them fancy lugs,

it was also cool to drill out campag record levers. they looked great till they snapped off.....

beverick wrote:

Pilot Pete wrote:

............we would strip the frame with wire brushes and wet' n' dry and spray them with car paint.

My first road bike was painted Ford Saluki Bronze with Humbrol lining (Egyption gold I seem to remember - the pot's probably still in my mother's garage).

Pilot Pete wrote:

Then I left home and the bike stayed in the garage for years and years........

Mike's still in there, just in bits!

Bob

richk

I cycled "everywhere" as a teenager (up to leaving University) as it was the only way to get around for free (none of this "Dad's Taxi" business back then).

Unfortunately, I then stopped (for 20 years)...