How did it start for you? [slightly long]
Richard Bates
Hmmm ... how did it start? If I remember correctly back to when I was
less than six, I had a yellow bike. I cannot remember the make or
model, but it was definitely yellow. No gears, and I seem to remember
that it was a fixed wheel rather then a freewheel. I say this because
it only had one brake on the front: An arrangment of rods that pushed
a big plate of metal on to the top of the solid tyre. I suppose
technically, it wasn't a bicycle because it had stabilisers. On this
machine I used to pedal anticlockwise around the cul-de-sac in which I
then lived: around the pavement, past the lamp post, down the drop
kerb, across the road, up the drop kerb, round the pavement etc. Fixed
wheel, anticlockwise ... possibly destined to become a track racer
later in life?
Well my track career was spoiled when I grew too big for that bike,
and I took over my sister's Raliegh Sunbeam. This one was red. At some
point I must have learned to cycle without stabilisers as I am sure
this bike didn't have them. This one had two brakes and was a
freewheel. My track circuit became slightly modified to include an "up
and down the drive into and out of the garage" bit. I think this bike
also had mudguards, and was also equipped with a saddlebag.
My friend around the corner rode a tricycle which I was very jealous
of. I loved the fact that it had a boot to stash junk in (shaped
similar to the front of a VW Beetle).
Then at age 6, I moved to Birmingham and lost the use of the trike.
From now until I was about 10, I don't remember cycling at all. I
think I still had the Raliegh Sunbeam, but I don't remember actually
cycling.
But then something very exciting happened at school. We were given the
chance to undertake the ROSPA cycling proficiency course. Wow! It was
like doing a driving test, and was a stressful thing for some people!
For this I was allowed to use my sister's bike, as she never used it,
and the Sunbeam was given away. I was now the owner of a Moulton Super
IV: my first bike with gears. I was so proud to have a bike with gears
... until I took it to school for the first lesson that is. "Ha Ha
Richard's riding a girls bike" was a common comment. This really upset
me. It was true that my bike looked just like the bikes that the girls
were riding: step through frame and small wheels. All the boys rode 5
speed racers, BMX's or Grifters. The big boys in the secondary school
next door all had Choppers. And there was me with a girls bike.
"It isn't a girls bike: It's a unisex bike" my dad told me. And that
was enough to satisfy me, particularly as the very people who were
laughing at me didn't know what "unisex" meant.
The test was to be taken very seriously. I even went out the night
before to practice under the supervision of my parents. It seemed that
my classmates were doing the same too, and it became an evening of
wishing each other "good luck" even though we would be seeing each
other the following morning ... with 7 whole hours to wait until the
test.
I went on to pass the test and got my triangular badge and certificate
which I kept for years.
I was now allowed by my parents to cycle on the road on my own. I
lived on quite a steep road. It isn't steep now, but it was then! I
couldn't cycle up it even in the first of my three gears, so I became
limited to going around the block in a clockwise direction, doing only
right hand turns. I didn't mind: afterall, turning right was more
dangerous! I couldn't turn left and ride around the "other block"
because I wasn't allowed on the main roads.
I left junior school and moved on to grammar school. The boy who sat
behind me was a keen cyclist, and used to ride with another boy in the
class at weekends. They used to cycle to places that I had never heard
of. They had proper bikes:10 speed racers with thin wheels. They had
lights on their bikes too. Jealousy started creeping up on me but I
stuck with my Moulton for a couple of years.
In junior school I had begun learning to play the trumpet, and my
weekends were occupied by orchestra rehearsals, so there was no time
for cycling, and my interest graually dwindled.
Then in about my 3rd year (when I was 13), Birmingham council built a
BMX track at one of the parks. My friend who lived close to it asked
me to come a play on it with him. BMXing on a Moulton! He had a BMX, a
24" wheeled 5 speed racer, and had just bought a new 27" 10 speed
racer, which was far too big for him or me. I bought the 5 speed from
him for UKP30.
Derailleur gears were a completely new concept to me. I loved them,
being able to see what was happening, instead of the complete mystery
of Sturmey Archer gears.
But again, my cycling passion dulled down.
At 18 years old I went to Leeds University. In my second year there, I
lived sufficiently far from campus to justify using a bike for
transport. I borrowed my house mates blue 10 speed racer. The
following year I bought a second hand 10 speed racer and used that for
travelling the few miles on. It was a Tensor Lazercustom with cheap
dynamo lights that blew out as soon as I bombed down Brudenell Road,
"safety" brake levers, and nasty dirty horrible spongy things on the
handlebars. They soon got cut off, and pride set in. It was second
hand but I still wanted it to look good. The twin brake levers were
replaced with standard non-aero drop levers, some posh handlebar tape
was put on, the useless dynamo was removed, and the tacky vinyl
stickers were pulled off.
One day as I returned to my bike after a day of lectures, somebody had
wedged a leaftlet under my brake lever, advertising the Leeds
University Alternative Cycling Club. This was a group of people who
were not interested in racing, not interested in mountain biking, and
simply rode to pretty places around the Yorkshire Dales and had a
couple of beers en-route. This appealed to me, so I turned up to the
meeting point next weekend and had an excellent time.
The first trip was to Ilkley via Otley, with the return trip climbing
up Otley Chevin: The steepest hill I had ever ridden (and walked) up.
And from then, I was hooked!
Love and memories from Rich xx
--
To reply, put only the word "richard" before the "@" sign
Is there such a thing as a self help group for thieves?
WafflycatHCS
piccie of yours truly, complete with plaits & ribbons in hair on my beloved
little Triang bike :) I even remember coing down the stairs one Christmas
morning, opening the door to the living room and *knowing* Santa loved me that
year, as he'd left me this beautiful red bike :) - it had a white saddle bag.
Loved that bike!
Once I'd graduated to two wheels without stabilisers, I then got a Raleigh.
Dark blue, "proper" bike, no gears, nice leather saddle bag. Lasted me years.
Then I got the pink peril - a highly massive, heavy Eastern European thing,
pearly pink & white, five gears. lasted me years.
Then I got a Raleigh hybrid, (Pioneer Trail) 21 gears, lighter than the pink
peril - my mileages doubled overnight. Lasted me years - still have it. Love
that bike.
Last Christmas, Santa brought me Gino, my nice shiny Bianchi San Remo in
Bianchi celeste :)
Gino is going to be transported to Tuscany and I shall cycle with him about
Tuscan lanes. I could keep Chianti in my bidons :) Santa, in the guise of my
beloved Vernon was very, very good to me! I am blessed amongst women!
Cheers, helen s
~~~~~~~~~~
Flush out that intestinal parasite before sending a reply!
Any speliong mistakes aR the result of my cats sitting on the keyboaRRRDdd
~~~~~~~~~~
Guy Chapman
fixie trike with mudguards and spoked wheels), the RSW-11 tiny bike
and so on, the first decent sized bike had solid tyres and roller-cam
brakes (yes, really, and I am only 38). This was followed by a
Chopper Sprint (a Chopper with drop bars) which was a reward for
passing my Cycling Proficiency aged, I think, 10. There was a small
element of pressure as my dad was a Cycling Proficiency instructor.
By the time I was 14 or so I had outgrown this, so was given (thanks
to my Nana, who I miss dearly) my Grandad's nearly-new 3-speed Raleigh
roadster. I did my paper rounds on this and rode it round Derbyshire
one year (amazing - rubber coated rims and no brake blocks following a
descent of Winnat's Pass). It soldiered on for years, with almost
daily punctures on the clapped-out tyres. I used to ride over to
Salisbury Hall to work in the aircraft museum on a Sunday, about 14
miles round trip, or to see friends the other side of St Albans. It
was a typical gas-pipe Raleigh: unexciting, but pretty dependable. I
remember carrying flowers across the handlebars to see a
girlfriend..... Ah, those were the days!
For a while aged 17 or 18 I also borrowed my sister's Raleigh Shopper
because it had dynamo lights. It was on this bike that I was nearly
killed one day, riding round Park Street Roundabout. I had lights on,
was wearing light coloured clothing and a reflective belt, but a woman
in a car pulled away from stationary on the M10 access without
looking, straight into the side of me. I was unconscious long enough
that I came round as they loaded me into the ambulance. The bike was
paid for (my sister bought a mixte-framed Peugeot five-speed which was
actually quite nice), and some time later I received the compensation
which paid for my first decent bike: a 23 1/2" Dawes Super Galaxy in
midnight blue.
Now that was a bike to be proud of! I joined the CTC and used to
cycle the eighteen mile round trip to the clubhouse at Hatfield on
Wednesdays. I did my first century on the Dawes aged about twenty,
and regularly used to cycle to Watford to the bike shop I used (Nigel
Dean in St Albans was for racers - even then trundly tourists weren't
well served). A man ran into the back of me and bent the frame - he
was horrified at the cost of the repair!
I rode that bike until I was about 21 or 22 when I outgrew itand
bought a 24 1/2" Claud Butler Super Dalesman - what would now probably
be considered an audax bike, very light frame for a tourer - which did
one summer's CTC runs then was put away when I went to University (too
good for a campus bike rack). The Dawes came with me to Uni, as did
my Mini van. At Uni I hardly rode the bike at all, driving everywhere
with my new girlfriend -> fiancée -> wife, and eventually sold the
Dawes to a friend (who dropped it off the roof of his car on the A1,
an ignominious end to a very fine machine). And the Claud stayed in
the shed until 2000 (with only a few brief outings) - 2000 was the
year I hit 15 stone and 40" waist, and decided to stop being a fat
bastard. It took three weeks in the gym to lose the first stone, a
further six to lose the second, and then I stabilised at 12st 7lb. At
which point I got the bike out and started riding again.
Weight training has increased my weight to 13st, a weight the bike
seems happy to carry, and riding to and from work saves me hours in
the gym. I've upgraded the wheels, gears, shifters, rack, lights,
mudguards - but it's still the same bike, and it gets me 7.5 miles
each way to work at an average of 19.5mph (was 17.5mph last summer).
Last year I bought a second-hand Claud Butler Ravana MTB to tow Peter
(5) on his Adams Trail-A-Bike, and now the whole family has started
cycling - my wife Felicity, who only learned to ride a bike just prior
to going to uni and had never really ridden properly at all, now has a
Dawes Saratoga and loves it. Michael (8) has a Dawes Kokomo 24" and
is getting very proficient - even if I do have to raise the saddle
every two weeks because he's growing so fast. He now has strapless
toeclips - very proud of himself!
I still have a lot of time for Dawes bikes, I would have bought a 24
1/2" Galaxy if there had been such a beast but the nex size up was 25
1/2". The Galaxy was stiffer than the Dalesman (though heavier).
Guy
===
Riding every day on a road near you (provided you live near Reading, England).
** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony.
http://www.chapmancentral.com (BT ADSL and dynamic DNS permitting)
Above email is a spam-sink. Remove maker of Spam from bikeHO...@chapmanFOODScentral.com to reply by mail
M Series
life time experiences in cycling with a view to writing a book - culminating
with my Trans USA, NZ and E2E (E2E was postponed for a year due to my
redundancy in May). This is the sort of thing. Anyway I was sure I
remembered one lad Steven Cousins who had a Chopper with drop bars, but I
recall no others so was starting to wonder if I had imagined it ! I believe
the cross section on the mudguards was semi-circular rather than the more
usual box section.
"Guy Chapman" <spam...@chapmancentral.com> wrote in message
news:a731jug1njpso2f8e...@4ax.com...
Guy Chapman
wrote:
>I believe
>the cross section on the mudguards was semi-circular rather than the more
>usual box section.
It was indeed, and the tyres were less knobbly, and the seat back
somewhat lower.
Tony W
"Richard Bates" <mail.sent.her...@cuddle.clara.co.uk> wrote in
message news:3d304b80...@news.btinternet.com...
> How I Came to Enjoy Cycling
snipped interesting detail.
I have always enjoyed cycling -- since I had a 20 inch wheel, single speed
Hercules as a kid and used it to explore the area around home (in NE London)
including parts of Epping Forest. Somehow everything was more relaxed in
the early 60's. While I am sure the % of nutters, rapists and paedophiles
was not significantly different from today parents seemed not to suffer from
total angst and need to cotton wool their genetic legacy.
A Moulton was bought for me as I started senior school (about 3/4 mile
commute through the forest -- very boggy in the winter) but I came off of it
on my first test ride and fractured an arm and broke two front teeth --
coming down a hill too fast and hitting a stone in the road (I think). Mum
had had a premonition that something nasty was going to happen that day and
went with Dad to chauffeur him on a business trip that was likely to be
boozy (in days when no-one worried about driving pissed).
At university I traded the Moulton for a standard diamond road job --
ancient, heavy but better suited to everyday use. This took me everywhere
in and around Southampton -- with frequent trips to the New Forest and one
expedition to Stonehenge for the Summer Solstice (in days when there was a
bit of a festival there!!).
On graduating I had some cash so bought a car and bought into the Margaret
Thatcher principle of travel (drive, only paupers and oiks travel by bike or
public transport). But the trusty (or is that rusty) steed came out from
time to time for commuting when the car was broken and for longish rides in
the country at weekends.
After about 10 years of gainful employ the rusty steed was getting past
repair (probably wasn't but I knew less then than I do now). I had a dream
of cycle touring -- so a lovely new Galaxy was purchased for an obscene
amount of dosh -- to be used a few times a year but basically to live in the
shed.
Then I went to live in Germany. After a couple of years I was made
redundant and lost the company car. While 'considering my options' -- i.e.
one sunny afternoon when I was so bored of looking at the four walls of my
flat, so disgusted by my extending gut and so depressed at the most recent
lack of response to my job finding activities -- I got the Galaxy out of the
garage and went for a ride -- probably only 10 miles but it was the start of
my real love affair with cycling. From that day I cycled more and more
regularly and found that it provided a protected time to think. Soon I go
myself onto a post grad course -- with funding from the German unemployment
benefit people -- which ran from about 8:00 to 14:30 each day -- allowing a
quick train home and then a couple of hours on the bike. At last some
intellectual stimulation (made more interesting by my relatively poor German
at the time) and physical activity. Hey -- I even began to re-gain self
respect and feel good. Plus I planned my escape route -- setting up my own
little company back in England.
To keep costs low I moved in with my Mum. My cycling provided a break for
both of us. After Mum died last year I finally achieved my dream of cycle
touring properly with an six week tour in India over last Xmas. Not my
first real tour (I have had short tours in Germany, France, Italy, the USA
and, of course, England) but my first extended, time is no object tour.
This summer has been poor from a cycling view point. Injury and illness
have curtailed my cycling (I have only done about 80 miles since the
beginning of May) but I will be back on the bike shortly (maybe this pm for
a very few miles).
For me cycling is pure relaxation. A time to watch nature change and to
think. It has nothing to do with 'exercise' (I don't do 'exercise'), little
to do with transport (though I am moving back into a town from the boondocks
soon so transport will become a more important part of cycling) and
everything to do with enjoyment.
T
chris French
<mail.sent.her...@cuddle.clara.co.uk> writes
>How I Came to Enjoy Cycling
>
>Hmmm ... how did it start?
My first 'bike' was a trike built for me by my Grandad when I was a
nipper. He also built a trailer to go behind it. I used to insist on
taking it down the road when I went shopping with my mum.
Many years down the road I still have a trailer or two to hang behind my
bike.
--
Chris French, Leeds
Albert
raleigh budgie, red, (?) stabilisers and all, aged 3 or 4 ish.
raleigh tomahawk, no stabilisers, all growed up, see ?
then a bright red chopper. I went everywhere on it and thought nothing
of setting off to far off places, 10 20 even 25 miles away, with nothing more
than a couple of sarnies a jam tart and a can of pop ! great fun for 5 years
or so until the 'bars sheared off mid wheelie causing a helluva crash. oof !
I had a go of a friends grifter which was very heavy (scaffold poles?)
and was raleighs first stab at the BMX. (any wonder they went down the pan
with 'interpretations' like that ??) I rejected the style and decided to
stay with my chopper. ( more later)
as I wanted a chopper sprint ( were'nt they purple with 5 speed ? )
but couldn't afford one I managed to get some drop 'bars and fit them.
the novelty wore off after a while and then I was off to boarding school
which had a bike shed and, every 2 years, a fresh crop of cheapish
cycles to replace the last crop ridden mercilessly into the ground/walls/
pond by us kids.
this provided for a large selection of frames, wheels and gears with
which to build a selection of 'boneshakers' with cowhorn 'bars and big, heavy
rims, to go hammering around the school grounds and on mad expeditions
through mud, rivers etc, this is in 1981/2 which kind of predates mountain bikes
one nutter (julian scott) attempted a tightrope style crossing of the school
pond (a good 50' wide) on a bike with the tyres & tubes removed, but with
insulation tape reverse wound on the rim 'for extra grip' (no, really)
he went about 6 feet out along a saggy rope attatched about 15' up a tree
and landed in a heap at the waters edge with a broken arm. if he did it today
the school would be sued 9 ways till tuesday. no doubt about it. instead
we all laughed, staff included !
then there was barry mcalearny (sp) the road race king, always going on
about the latest 'trainset' (as we used to tease) but could *always* be
relied upon to dig out a spare part that would actually fit the 'bitsa special'
someone was always trying to put together. an expert by now, no doubt.
after leaving school I bought a succession of cars and custom motorbikes
(choppers for big boys ;-) ) only taking up cycling again this year. since then
I have been out on it almost every day, and it is now my main form of transport.
I have lost 1/2 a stone, improved my recovery rate by about 100% and seen
more widlife out in the stick than I can remember seeing in all the previous years.
My partner is into it too and we regularly go out for 30 mile pootles and
I've even convinced her to go on 3 or 4 day 'safaris' as long as "we spend
at least one night in a good clean b&b"
bless :-)
albert
James Hodson
mail.sent.her...@cuddle.clara.co.uk (Richard Bates) wrote:
>How I Came to Enjoy Cycling
>
[SNIP]
Today is 14 July & it's 9 years to the day since I started cycling
again. Recycling?
James
--
I can't believe it's not Butty
Eddie Dubourg
"Richard Bates" <mail.sent.her...@cuddle.clara.co.uk> wrote in
message news:3d304b80...@news.btinternet.com...
>
RSW14 (eventually converted to static, but that's another story), but my
youthful cycling was cut short when I borrowed my older brother's "touring
bike" - single speed, diamond frame big (20something") wheels, and went
round the block on it - coming back down (the pavement) on a hill I lost
control and went into the side of a Triumph parked at the lights on the main
Mansfield-Nottingham road. I lost my front teeth in that accident, and
worse, I lost my parents trust in allowing me a bike at all.
8 years later I persuaded them that at 15 I was responsible, and I was
bought my first "racer" a 531 tubed Puch, with /12/ gears - and a beautiful
matt-black finish. I used that for everything - and it was amazing how the
wheels stayed true, even with bumping over kerbs and the like (far better
than my current MTB does). That bike got stolen, and I used the insurance
to buy my electric guitar (guitars were /way/ cooler than bikes in the late
70s).
There then followed a hiatus, up until 1985 when I bought myself a new
Edinburgh Country bike from the EBC (I moved to Edinburgh to go to Uni in
82). Great bike, but it, and my interest, wore out at roughly the same
speed, and I stopped using it in about 93, although I have recently started
to restore it. However, this was strictly a low usage runabout. I also was
given a car that my mum didn't want in 91, so I sold my soul, and became a
driver.
Then, in 99, I was helping a friend move house, and he had a couple of MTBs
lying around, and I asked if he used them - I had a half hour walk to work,
and I thought a bike would save me time (and money, but that idea didn't
last). One, a sweet little Giant Chicago, he had bought for his now
ex-wife, and he said I could have it, free, gratis, and so I took the little
beast home, repaired the tyres, pumped them up, oiled the chain and started
to commute. It was wonderful - home-work in under 10 minutes, I could go
home for lunch, I had so much more free time. Then I had my first
accident - a young child slipped its mum's grasp and stepped into the road -
I swerved, hit the curb and the bike catapulted me off. I landed heavily on
my knee, which was always a tad delicate since I had broken it about 10
years earlier, and I was incapacitated, and off my bike. A week or so later
my doctor advised me to start a small amount of walking to get some movement
back into my leg, so I wandered up and down the local canal. This was such
fun I decided to drive out to the Pentlands and walk there. I then had my
'road to Damascus' moment when it was pointed out that the canal, and water
of leith walkway led more-or-less from my house to the hills, and I gave it
a go. The rest is history. The exhilaration of riding, coupled with the
ease with which I left the city behind and got into the open country was
addictive, and I just went back for more and more. I started noticing
(after about a year of this) that the little Giant, whilst a very nice wee
bike, responsive, agile, was just that - wee. I kept knocking my knees on
the handlebars when going round corners, I had the saddle raised about 2-3
inches beyond the minimum insertion point, otherwise I was too cramped to
pedal efficiently, so I bought myself a new MTB, and gave the sweet little
bike to an impecunious student who was more the size for it. Since then
I've just become more and more addicted to cycling. My car averages about
2000 miles a year - that's mainly going to my parent's house in
Nottinghamshire. My bike has so far covered over 7500 miles in the 18months
I've owned it, and I keep on doing more, and more. Now I'm starting to look
for another bike to complement the one I have - I'm currently swithering
over a Cannondale Bad Boy (looks cool, takes knocks [and fat tyres, if
necessary]) or some form of road bike - oooh decisions, decisions....... -
but oddly, this nice cheap hobby now takes most of my spare time, and all my
spare money - but it's worth it.
E
Colin Blackburn
mail.sent.her...@cuddle.clara.co.uk says...
> How I Came to Enjoy Cycling
>
> Hmmm ... how did it start?
I never had a bike as a kid---too poor! After that I was never in a
position where I needed either a car or a cycle, I could always get
wherever I needed to by foot, bus or train. Then one day a few years ago
I moved to a village which was 20 minutes walk from the nearest bus
stop, up to 20 minutes wait for a bus and then a 20 minute journey. I
realised that by bike the journey would be 20 minutes tops and so I
decided to learn to cycle (on an old 3-speed roadster, though I quickly
bought a decent hybrid). Never looked back. I've now moved on from
needing a bike for commuting to just wanting to use one, I can't imagine
not commuting by bike now. Since then I've got myself a tourer and taken
a few cycling holidays and started looking at what bike to buy next.
Colin
David Damerell
>How I Came to Enjoy Cycling
Singlespeed child's bike; slightly undersized Lazer Custom, second hand, 5
speed (at about age 10 or so); full-sized British Eagle Crusader (and I
was delighted to see one on a club run a few months ago), 12 speed, at
about age 13; Orbit road bike, 531, 14 speed at about age 16. I still ride
the last of those; it's a nice machine.
My parents always cycled; they didn't have a car at all for many years; so
(while I do enjoy it) enjoyment wasn't the issue - cycling was just how
you got to places.
--
David Damerell <dame...@chiark.greenend.org.uk> flcl?
Arthur Clune
:>How I Came to Enjoy Cycling
What a wonderful thread!
I started when really young (3?) on a kids three wheeled little trike. I
still have a memory of going for a *huge* adventure all on my own on it
(I cycled round the block - about 100m!)
Then when I was 5-6 I was given a bike rescued from a skip (a theme that
will re-appear, since we were skint). I thought I was the bees-kness cos
I could ride faster than all my mates. Of course, I was cheating - I didn't
have stabilisers, they did.
That bike sadly died. It was a 'ladies' type frame and as I was happly cycling
along one day I saw (in very slow motion) the front wheel and handlebars fall away
to the left whilst I continue forwards on the back end. The bike had just snapped
in half!
Then followed a succesion of bikes rescued from tips, finishing in an old
racer that I used to get to middle school (up to age 13). This had been
ridden into a wall at some stage, so the front end was a little shorter
than it should be. Resulted in my going over the handlebars once while
trying a turn a speed.
Then I moved, and stopped cycling. I walked to my new school, the bike died,
and then later on my mates all got cars.
When I went to university, I hadn't cycled for 5 years or so. I borrowed
a frieds 'racer' to go into town (you know the sort - 10 speed, race-style
gears). I had to get off on the way home and walk up Heslington Lane.
For those who don't know York, this is a Big Hill in York terms. It's at
least 100m long and rises, oh, maybe 10m! Now I go up in the big ring, or
on fixed.
But the bug was back, and the rest is history...
Arthur
--
Arthur Clune http://www.clune.org
Power is delightful. Absolute power is absolutely delightful - Lord Lester
Tony W
"Arthur Clune" <aj...@biber.york.ac.uk> wrote in message
news:ah3ckc$nc2$1...@pump1.york.ac.uk...
>
> What a wonderful thread!
Agreed -- come on lads & lassies -- don't be shy. Tell us!!
marc
> >
> > What a wonderful thread!
>
> Agreed -- come on lads & lassies -- don't be shy. Tell us!!
At the age of 5 had a little red trike complete with a "boot" that had a
lid without a lock, I was about 18 before I realised that the trike was
secondhand.The boot would rattle as I sped along making a tremendous
din, and with two people standing in the boot ( leaning well forward) it
would fly down the hills ( I knew nothing about mass and gravity at that
time)
At about 10 I had a Moulton Super 4, red with a white saddle and rear
bag,( Wonder if I can buy one 2nd hand now?)when it arrived home it had
been supplied with two left hand pedals so I spent all weekend scooting
up and down the garden path , eventually the pedal arrived and I learnt
about Sturmey Archer gears, whilst being teased for having a "girls
bike", a few years later I was knocked off my bike by my next door
neightbour pulling away from the kerb , he knocked me off then ran over
my foot. The bike was put away and not used again.
In 1989 I had a substantial bonus and decided to buy a bike, we were
spending a lot of time camping, with lightweight campers and the only
name I knew was Dawes Galaxy so I bought one , the only other piece of
advice I had was from a friend in OgmoreValley Wheelers who just kept
reiterating "make sure you buy one with mudguards"
I use the bike for a few years , for not far 10 miles would be a long
ride, then stored it.It was dragged out each year for our holiday in
Euronat ( A 2 km sq Natursit site in France where almsot everyone
cycles)
My wife got interested in mountain biking and after paying off her
debts from a failed business venture ( 3 long years) treated herself to
a Kona Lava Dome,and nagged me to buy a mountain bike, as our son grew
older we started riding more him on his mountian bike me on the Dawes
her on the Kona.
Last year went on holiday to the Netherlands , and although I had driven
there often on business using the bike for day to day transport came as
a relevation. Came home to redundancy, set up my own business , this
time only 8 miles from home rather than the 35 miles I used to drive,
started cycling to work as often as I can ( It takes me the same time
to cylce now as it did to drive the 35 miles) found myself gettign
fitter, faster, and lusting after new bikes, unicycle and recumbents.
Going to France this year on holiday, near Mount Venoux, but 2 days late
for the stage! :-(
--
Marc
T Shirts, Sweatshirts, polo shirts, banners,
signs,decals, stickers etc for clubs and associations of all types
http://www.jaceeprint.demon.co.uk/
stephen pridgeon
which went to my brother, then to the scrapyard. Then a blue bike
with straight bars and SA 3speed - BSA? British Eagle? This got me to
school and back until I was about 15ish.
Then I was bought my best bike ever - an early eighties Raleigh
Clubman, 531, 10 speed. Pearl white. I had that for about 3 days till
it got stolen. If anyone has one for sale.....
Then another Raleigh, but a much lower spec. This was always getting
stripped and "improved". After reading "Richards Bicycle book" I took
the "safety levers" off my brakes, I discovered how to use parafin,
and how to fix a flat in 5 mins. Mildly amusing anecdote - I used to
keep all the puncture repair stuff on a high shelf just inside the
garage door, for quick access. I went home twenty years later, and
they were still there, unused and untouched. A couple of the guys at
school rode with Seamons, but I wasn't really into bikes then - all my
money went into climbing.
I also had my first big flyer, my first cut-up, and my first
embarassing accident with toe-clips in front of girls.
Left home, left bike for brother, bike got stolen. That was that.
Cheap s/h steel mtb about 6 yrs ago, left to rust when I moved flat.
Then the latest re-incarnation when I had to do something to build up
my quads and the gym was just too boring. And here we are. Strange
that I have so few memories of something which was so large a part of
my life as a teenager.
SteveP
Sarah Miller
HP sauce bottle at Grannys. First allowed pedals at the age of 4, a blue
bike, then for a later birthday a red bike. Both these got passed down
first to my kid brother, then the girl next door. The Duck had a simliar
passing around ,but is now home to roost, waiting for another generation.
At 10 my birthday pressie was REAL road bike, just like mums. A folding
shopper bike, blue again. This eventully fell apart when I was 14, the
handle bars fell off ... it just hadn't been quite right since I'd riden
it into tree a month or so before, ho hum, could have been worse, I could
have been going fast when they fell off. So I bought myself a secondhand
Red, shopper bike. And continued riding to school, youth club, the shops,
London-brighton, huge rides out of London into the COUNRTYSIDE!
Aged 16, I was riding this trusty stead home from school one day, when I
got run over by a 40 tone articulated lorry. Broken Pelvis, dead nerves,
ripped shirt, 3 weeeks in hospital and a totaly trashed bike. They had to
reverse the lorry off me and doing so ran the bike over again. Before I
was off crutches I'd dragged my long suffering parents to the LBS and
persuaded them that as the bike had been insured for far more than it was
worth, I should have a PROPER bike this time. So we brought a Dawes
Horizon, my first big wheeled bike,drop bars , duel brake levers the
lot. Only
thing I didn't win on, they brought me a ladies frame, I wanted a diamond,
but I was still on crutches and no one was certain what shape my pelvis
was now! Some you lose.
I'm still running that bike, its a trooper. The chain lasted 12 years.
I have a few unicycles as well, but thats my only two wheeler.
Sarah
--
Unicon 11 ~ Washington USA.~ July 25 - Aug 2 2002
The world unicycle convention and championships.
http://www.nwcue.org
Stevie D
> I had to get off on the way home and walk up Heslington Lane.
>
> For those who don't know York, this is a Big Hill in York terms. It's at
> least 100m long and rises, oh, maybe 10m! Now I go up in the big ring, or
> on fixed.
Assuming you mean Heslington *Road*, it's nowhere near as steep as
that. Yes, it climbs almost exactly 10m, but over half a mile. In
Sheffield it would be considered a big speed bump :-)
--
Stevie D
///// \\\\\ Bringing divorce settlements to
.__/////// \\\\\\\__. the common hedgehog since 2002
____\'///////___\\\\\\\'/_____________________________________
Tim Hall
Right. Pull up a sandbag...
First off was a trike, but one with bigger wheels than yer average
kiddy trike of today. I'd guess at 18 inch, solid tyres.
Then a proper bike which Dad taught me to ride down the cul-de-sac,
holding on behind and stuff. I think I did my cycling proficiency test
on it, then got Dad to take me round the block on the road the day I
passed. Then round a bigger block and biggerr still, doing hand
signals like I'd been taught. I'd just got used to doing broadside
skids on it when.....
The next bike (secondhand, as all the others were) 24 inch wheel, flat
bars. This got an upgrade of a three speed back wheel a Christmas or
so later. I guess I was 10 or 11. I had a watch with a speedo dial on
it. This let you calculate your speed by comparing time taken for a
measured mile. As I has a click click click tripometer I measured a
tenth and got upto 20 mph. On the flat.
Next was a s/h Vindec Speedster, 15 quid from the next door neighbour.
Did my Advanced Scout Standard journey on it (2 day camping trip).
This had to have new forks after my bag got caught in the front wheel
and I stood it on end. The old forks just crumpled. I think we had to
straighten the head tube as well, by judicious heaving. Oh yes, the
braze between the top tube and seat tube sprang ap[art, so I held it
together with a nail. That lasted me until I was at university, where
some one stole it, except for the front wheel. Insurance (parental
home) coughed up a lot (a family friend was high up in the insurance
company, hem hem) so I got a Falcon, 10 speed. That too was stolen and
they coughed up again.
That got me a Claud Butler 10 speed, in 1981, used for all sorts of
stuff . The frame finally gave way while carrying my son on a child
seat when he was about 3 or 4. My household insurance coughed up
_again_ for a new frame and I bought some MA2 wheels on 105 hubs from
a bloke at work.
It was about then I started reading uk.rec.cycling.......things took a
dive from then on.
Two tandems, one tandem trike, one audax bike, one recumbent, one
fixer.............................
Tim
ross
"Richard Bates" <mail.sent.her...@cuddle.clara.co.uk> wrote in
message news:3d304b80...@news.btinternet.com...
>
Had a small bike as a young kid which I road round my road all the time
(very quiet cull-de-sac). Got a bigger bike for xmas when I was about 10 I
think (still single speed, but it had real tyres!), used that bike till I
was 13 (mainlt paper round and riding to friends house) and then got a
Raleigh Scorpio 5 speed racer (wow!) on which I rode for miles and miles. I
also made a bike out of an old 531 frame, post bike wheels, and moped handle
bars (most fun bike I ever owned). I did a lot of riding untill 18 when I
got a car and the riding stopped overnight. Got a flat at 21 and had to sell
the car, so got another bike (10 speed falcon racer) to get to work on, that
lasted for about one year when I got another car. Became a father at 26 and
also became a lot poorer as a result, so out comes the bike for the 11 mile
trip to work. Apart from two years off due to cancer I've been cycling ever
since (and still loving it). Strange thing is that until I wrote this I
hadn't realised quite how little time I've been off the bike for. Both my
folks and my sister have always cycled, maybe it's in the blood.
Arthur Clune
: Assuming you mean Heslington *Road*, it's nowhere near as steep as
: that. Yes, it climbs almost exactly 10m, but over half a mile. In
: Sheffield it would be considered a big speed bump :-)
Yeah, that's the one. When I moved back here from Edinburgh I couldn't
get over how flat the place seemed now.
stephen pridgeon
> Aged 16, I was riding this trusty stead home from school one day, when I
> got run over by a 40 tone articulated lorry. Broken Pelvis, dead nerves,
> ripped shirt, 3 weeeks in hospital and a totaly trashed bike. They had to
> reverse the lorry off me and doing so ran the bike over again.
!!!!!!! Bl**dy H*ll!!!!!!!! I wasn't expecting that in this
rose-tinted nostalgia fest!
Before I
> was off crutches I'd dragged my long suffering parents to the LBS and
> persuaded them that as the bike had been insured for far more than it was
> worth, I should have a PROPER bike this time.
What a girl!!!
So we brought a Dawes
> Horizon, my first big wheeled bike,drop bars , duel brake levers the
> lot. Only
> thing I didn't win on, they brought me a ladies frame, I wanted a diamond,
> but I was still on crutches and no one was certain what shape my pelvis
> was now! Some you lose.
>
> I'm still running that bike, its a trooper. The chain lasted 12 years.
> I have a few unicycles as well, but thats my only two wheeler.
I beg to differ Sarah - You are the trooper, the bike is just very
well put together bits of steel.
SteveP
Peter Clinch
> How I Came to Enjoy Cycling
<snip>
The first cycle I remember was in fact a trike, a blue one I had as a
sprog. Loved it. Moved from that to a succession of hand-me-downs from
my sister (who'd had at least one of them handed down from our brother)
as M&D couldn't afford new ones for us all and were canny enough to know
we'd only grow out of them...
Downside of this was I ended up with a very girly 20" thing with a rear
basket and Sturmey 3 speed gears which was *incredibly* uncool, but it
got the paper round done every morning which mattered more, and marked
the start of bike == Very Useful Thing as well as potential fun.
When I was (just) big enough for a full size bike M&D got me a Raleigh
Olympus, a 5 speed "racer" (i.e., it had drop bars, big wheels and a
bloody uncomfortable seat!), which took me on all local trips and went
to Uni with me for more of the same. It had acquired a double
chainwheel by then (thanks Dad!). Was eventually knicked in '89 from
outside my flat in Edinburgh, so armed with the insurance settlement I
wandered round the corner to EBC and bought one of their Country tourers
with a Falcon frame and [big drumroll] indexed Shimano gears (6 x 2).
That was my only transport for several years and is still in the shed
as a spare and loan bike, though the only original parts left are the
bars, shifters, brake mechs and rear rack.
It was joined by an EBC Contour 400 MTB in '97 when I wandered in for a
new helmet and had a Visa card accident! I like the odd hack off-road,
but I was pleasantly surprised with my old trusty tourer successfully
drawing me back for road use: indeed, more use than I'd had before the MTB.
I'd wanted a go on a 'bent since I'd read about them on the 'net, but
the opportunity to own one came up quite by accident, chatting with a
member of the sea kayak club I'm in who happened to have one, and knew
of a cheap one up for grabs. Some 'phone calls later and I was in
Blairgowrie looking over an Orbit Crystal. My plan to ride it home (18
miles and some big hills) proved quite ridiculous as I could hardly ride
the thing in a straight line after half an hour, but I knew enough to
see that I Must Have It, so I arranged for it to get delivered to
Dundee, practised on it and got it re-geared at the LBS, and that was me
out of the light. MTB got used even less after that.
The Crystal was, unfortunately, destroyed in an unfortunate prang and I
got the Streetmachine GT as a replacement. Not as fast and furious as
the Crystal, but it finally meant my old tourer could be retired (the
Crystal would only take two panniers so wasn't an ideal shopping
machine) and I had a benchmark tourer that would take me anywhere in
comfort. Just before I got it I saw an ad for a 2nd hand Brompton, and
knowing a friend interested in one for her mum, I got in touch and we
went round to look at it. She wasn't sure, but I was hooked (I'd
borrowed one before then) and promised I'd sell it on for the same price
if she hanged her mind. Foolishly lent it to her, and she did change
her mind, so I bought a new one for myself.
As a fun sideline I'd got a Muni the year before the Brompton, and I'm
now starting to really get to grips with it. Can ride 50m over rough
ground now! Shame about the cornering, but I'm sure that will come...
Next stop, a hot 'bent, though whether 2 or 3 wheels I'm not sure yet.
Pete.
--
Peter Clinch University of Dundee
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Medical Physics, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net p.j.c...@dundee.ac.uk http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/
Alan Collier
wrote:
>: Richard Bates <mail.sent.her...@cuddle.clara.co.uk> wrote:
>:>How I Came to Enjoy Cycling
>
>What a wonderful thread!
Indeedy!
What got me into cycling? I've always done it...
Before I can remember, I had a little 'trundle' - 4 wheels and a
steering wheel, pushed by putting your feet on the floor. Apparently I
could go quite quickly along the front path... Mum & Dad still bring
out the photos to embarass me occasionally!
After that came a small trike. Pedals on front wheel. Graduated to
pavement outside the house.
Then a small bike with stabilisers. I eventually learned to ride
without them after they bent so far upwards that I would fall off
before they touched down!
Then (about 5 yrs old) a 2nd hand bike with big balloon tyres. This
lasted quite a while.
Eventually it got too small, and Dad had a look through the small ads
again. I eventually got :
A GRIFTER!!!
A really excellent bike, apart from its occasional tendency to slip
out of gear (OUCH!!!) . I've still got the scars on my shins! I even
spent some of my pocket money on a dynamo and lights for it . I was
dead impressed when the LBS gave me a twin headlight instead of the
single at no extra cost. One day I was cycling back from the library
when someone stopped me to ask directions, then pushed me off the bike
and rode off on it. I was devestated. The Police came and took
details, and even took me for a drive round the area to see if we
could find the person. I never saw it again.
It was replaced by my first 'racing' bike. 10 gears. This was the
first bike I did more than a couple of miles at a time on. I cycled to
school on it. One day it was stolen from the school bike racks. It had
only been locked with a combination lock that I could open with my
eyes shut. At least the insurance paid out...
For a while, I used my Dad's 30 old Suntour - I resprayed it blue
rather than the previous rust finish, and it did just fine until the
insurance coughed up.
Next came a Raleigh 'Equipe' racer. 12 gears. This was quite a good
bike. It lasted me many years, although it changed colour and spec on
several occasions when the frame broke, followed by the forks a year
later, and another frame after that. That one was stolen twice: I
receovered it the first time, with no help from the Police. the second
time, it went with 15 others from college, never to be seen again. It
was replaced with a similar Raleigh I've still got this on at my
parents'.
My current bike is a Giant Peloton. 14 gears and STI shifters. Much
nicer than the Raleigh, (and more expensive) I bought it with my first
pay cheque after I finished my PhD. 5 years old and still on its first
frame, although much other stuff has been replaced. It's on 'hilly'
gearing now I'm in Sheffield, rather than the almost straight through
block I had in Cambridge. I love it. Thinking of getting a MTB to ride
trails with my wife - 23mm road tyres at 100 psi get a bit skittish on
anything worse thasn the local roads...
Enjoy cycling!!!
Alan
Guy Chapman
WafflycatHCS
>Guy
For what it's worth, I have no problem with it regarding my wee tale.
Tony W
> Anyone mind if I copy these stories to my website?
> Guy
I think that is a great idea. The stuff is in the public domain already so,
assuming reasonable acknowledgement and a right to modify or withdraw a
contribution -- and assuming you tell us all where the stuff is -- go for
it.
T
Richard Bates
(WafflycatHCS) in <20020718150630...@mb-fl.aol.com> wrote:
>>Anyone mind if I copy these stories to my website?
>>Guy
>
>For what it's worth, I have no problem with it regarding my wee tale.
Haven't seen yours yet! Is BT playing up yet again?
--
Doctor Doctor I've got a strawberry stuck up my bum.
Well here is some cream to put on it.
To reply change the obvious bit to "richard"
Richard Bates
<aww...@THISOUTbigfoot.com> in <uje5544...@corp.supernews.com>
wrote:
>I think that is a great idea. The stuff is in the public domain already so,
>assuming reasonable acknowledgement and a right to modify or withdraw a
>contribution -- and assuming you tell us all where the stuff is -- go for
and not publishing email addresses in a spammable format, or even at
all.
Rich xx
ps and when everyone becomes famous and makes millions out of their
biographies, you can each send me a banana for starting the fred.
Guy Chapman
>The stuff is in the public domain already
I know, but it seems rude to just nick it without asking :-)
Steph Peters
bought it for my birthday/Christmas present, to cycle 5 miles each way to
university. It's a Raleigh, single chain ring, downtube gears, with a cross
bar and drops. I don't think he realised I'd only ever ridden my sister's
shopper bike twice. I worked out how to mount a bike with a cross bar, got
going OK, went to the end of the road, discovered I didn't know how to stop
so fell off. Learning to ride it wasn't really helped by the frame being
too large - I was then only 4' 11.5" with short legs. (I've grown a whole
inch since then.) When I stand straddling the cross bar, I can only put
both feet flat on the floor when it has a puncture - air in the tyres means
one foot with heel off the floor. There was a really fun week early on in
its career, when I'd got the hang of going up through the gears but couldn't
change down, so DH had to ride it round the block every night to change gear
for me. It did good service for 2 years of daily commuting and the odd
weekend ride, but when I left university it got put away, and then given to
a friend's teenage daughter.
In the early 90's DH was working in Munich a lot, but never had time to see
any of Germany, so we decided to have a holiday in Bavaria and the most
interesting offer was a softies bike tour. The Raleigh was retrieved from
the daughter, who was now a 20 something with a car, given a new chain and I
got back on it. Oh the agony, after half a mile down the railway track and
back my bum hurt like hell. But the holiday was booked, so I kept at it and
got sort of a little bit fit for the first time in more than 10 years. The
holiday was good fun, and not too strenuous even though some of it was in
the Alps. So for Christmas/birthday that year I got a Specialised
Rockhopper MTB.
This was a revelation - a bike that fitted (or so I thought). I started
going to the gym to get stronger to ride more and got fitter and thinner. I
joined the local CTC group and got hooked on road riding, so the knobblies
were permanently ditched for slicks. And I started hankering after a road
bike. Tried a few smallest frame sizes in shops, but a traditional diamond
frame on 700C tyres is just too tall for me to straddle the cross bar, and I
didn't want a mixte frame. So, for Christmas/birthday, I was permitted to
order a frame from Malc Cowle, which is a slightly skewed diamond to lower
the top bar. This was built up by the bike shop with my choice of bits, and
oh the joy of a frame that *really* fits. The best bit is not having to
reach too far forward for the handlebars. As I'm crap at hills but hate
walking up them it has ridiculously low gears; I went up Alderley Edge in
bottom gear riding at 3.5 mph last Sunday. Did 3 CTC centuries on this in
1994.
In 95 for a 6 month tour in New Zealand/Thailand/Malaysia/Indonesia/Ireland
I decided to treat myself to a Kona Lava Dome, retrofitted with some lower
tech choices so that I could fix it myself if things went wrong when I was
in places hundreds of miles from the nearest bike shop. Ironically the this
is the only bike that I ever bought for myself and is the only one that ever
got stolen, after I got back. The Rockhopper had been sold to the friend
whose daughter had the Raleigh for a bit, but she didn't use it so I bought
it back again.
I more or less gave up cycling apart from the 0.7 mile commute to work,
resulting in getting very unfit and putting on all the weight I'd lost when
I took up cycling. But this year we're going cycling in Germany again, so
we're out every weekend again and daily mileage is steadily increasing. 6
weeks ago a Sunday afternoon ride of 8 miles exhausted me; today I nipped
out to a shop in my lunch hour thinking of 8 miles as going for a little
spin. I'm not back to doing centuries again, and may never be, but I'm
improving and it's fun.
So the current stable is Raleigh with 2 flat tyres in cellar, Rockhopper
with slicks used for daily commute, and the Malc Cowle comes out at
weekends.
--
The English think incompetence is the same thing as sincerity. Quentin Crisp
Steph Peters, Manchester, England
email: delete invalid from st...@sandbenders.demon.co.uk.invalid
Tatting, lace & stitching page <http://www.sandbenders.demon.co.uk/index.htm>
WafflycatHCS
>
>Haven't seen yours yet! Is BT playing up yet again?
Here's mine reposted below
Subject: Re: How did it start for you? [slightly long]
From: waffly...@aol.comtapeworm (WafflycatHCS)
Date: 13/07/2002 21:15 GMT Daylight
I had a red Triang bike - with stabilisers. I even have an old black & white
piccie of yours truly, complete with plaits & ribbons in hair on my beloved
little Triang bike :) I even remember coing down the stairs one Christmas
morning, opening the door to the living room and *knowing* Santa loved me that
year, as he'd left me this beautiful red bike :) - it had a white saddle bag.
Loved that bike!
Once I'd graduated to two wheels without stabilisers, I then got a Raleigh.
Dark blue, "proper" bike, no gears, nice leather saddle bag. Lasted me years.
Then I got the pink peril - a highly massive, heavy Eastern European thing,
pearly pink & white, five gears. lasted me years.
Then I got a Raleigh hybrid, (Pioneer Trail) 21 gears, lighter than the pink
peril - my mileages doubled overnight. Lasted me years - still have it. Love
that bike.
Last Christmas, Santa brought me Gino, my nice shiny Bianchi San Remo in
Bianchi celeste :)
Gino is going to be transported to Tuscany and I shall cycle with him about
Tuscan lanes. I could keep Chianti in my bidons :) Santa, in the guise of my
beloved Vernon was very, very good to me! I am blessed amongst women!
David Damerell
>"Guy Chapman" <spam...@chapmancentral.com> wrote in message
This is a very dangerous falsehood being propagated here. Posts to Usenet
are not in the public domain; something is in the public domain if and
only if the author explicitly states that that is so.
Tony W
"David Damerell" <dame...@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote in message
news:QGl*ll...@news.chiark.greenend.org.uk...
> Tony W <aww...@THISOUTbigfoot.com> wrote:
> >"Guy Chapman" <spam...@chapmancentral.com> wrote in message
> >>Anyone mind if I copy these stories to my website?
> >I think that is a great idea. The stuff is in the public domain already
>
> This is a very dangerous falsehood being propagated here. Posts to Usenet
> are not in the public domain; something is in the public domain if and
> only if the author explicitly states that that is so.
Thanks for the correction. Maybe my wording was wrong. The information is
out there -- but I assume it is still my copyright (or whatever) -- assuming
anyone would want 'copyright' on the vague ramblings of this confused and
broken mind -- so anyone who quotes or uses it should seek permission and
acknowledge the source.
If I publish an article the information contained remains mine (or the
publishers) though it is out and open to the public to read.
T
marc
> Anyone mind if I copy these stories to my website?
If I send it to Usenet I regard it as in the public domain.
James Hodson
Great thread.
Helen wrote: "I had a red Triang bike - with stabilisers."
This jolted my memory a little.
My first mount was a tricycle with a boot. These seem to have been a
popular starter steed among u.r.c readers. My "best friend", Tony
King, had a Noddy-style car with working headlights; I was jealous.
I then progressed to a Triang bike with stabilisers - I think mine was
blue. IIRC, the bike came with a separate crossbar, which could be
fitted at some later date when the rider became more confident. I'd
say this bar was not necessarily a required structual component but
was there to boost a little boy's ego - it did mine.
Next came another fixed-wheel bike, which I think was converted to a
three speed after a while, courtesy of Sturmey Archer. First kid on
the block :-)
My next ride was a Tomahawk, although I really wanted a Chopper. My
mother told me you had to be eight years old to have one of those.
Liar!!!
Well, tempus slowly fugitted and eventually I was presented with a
Chopper, Mark 2 - not the type I wanted - for a birthday or Christmas
present. I'd wanted the older model where one can rake to haldlebars
backwards to make for easier wheelies. Soon after I got the Chopper I
decided that "racing bikes" were the think for me. But no! Apparently
you had to be ten to have one of those. More lies!
Less than two years later I informed my mother that it was imperative
that I had a racing bike. I might have used different phrasing.
(Excuse me whilst I stamp my foot on the floor.)
The following birthday, or Christmas I woke up to find a beautiful 5
speed Raleigh at the foot of my bed. (How DO parents do that sneaking
around stuff?) This machine once again put my to the top of the list,
but not for long. Other kids were getting 10-speed. Damn! So, the red
Raleigh had a second chainwheel attached and I wasa readmitted to the
club.
Sometime between the first Chopper and the Raleigh I got a second
Chopper, a Mark 1 this time. Yahoo. Wheelie and "who can get the
longest jump" time. This second Chopped was responsible for a fair few
injuries, including broken arms and chipped teeth. I'd say Chopped was
an apropriate name.
The final steed I bought before I started driving was a Puch 12 - yes,
12 - gear racing bike. It was one of those with next to useless brake
levers near the "tops". The bike was in a matt black as was the Dog's
Bollocks, then known as the Bee's Knees. I lent this partucular bike
to a girlfriend's brother for a few months. The immaculate contraption
was returned to me in a sorry state and was consigned to the trash.
The above were clildhood and teenage bikes.
I, of course, wanted to drive a car as soon as I was 17. I took my
first test on a Monday morning a few days after my 17th birthday. It
was the examiner's first day at the job. He failed me. Bastard.
Nevertheless, I retook the test two or three weeks later. The
examiner was the same person. He passed me. Marvellous chap from a
long line of ligitimate people - that's what I say!
I owned a Suzuki A100 for a short time in my early twenties.
Considering I paid more for my helmet than I did for the motorcycle -
I use the word "motorcycle" in its loosest sense - I was quite
surprised it lasted as long as it did. The A100 went the same way as
the matt-black Puch.
Not much happened on the cycling front until roughly nine years ago,
when I was in my late twenties, when I bought myself a Trek 970 rigid
MTB, which I adored. This bike was stolen after about one year and the
insurance wouldn't pay out as a two sided pub bench was not considered
to be "an immovable object".
A few days later I replaced the Trek with a new Univega Alpina 500 or
maybe 505; I can't recall. Sod's law: I found out who'd nicked my
Trek, so I asked a local "heavy" to arrange for its return.
Being the proud owner of two rather similar bikes, I offloaded the
Trek to a mate who was emigrating to Spain. He wasn't any relation to
the "heavy", BTW, he just fancied a change of scene. As far as I know,
the Trek is still running well and providing transport in those warmer
climes.
A few years later my Univega was stolen from outside a supermarket.
Unfortunately, the majority of the staff at the shop are not built for
speed so, although they spotted the theft, were unable to stop it.
This brings me nearly up to the present.
My first meeting with u.r.c was at the time my Univega was nicked. I
posted a "have you seen this bike" request. I didn't hold out much
hope of ever seing the bike again so I went out and bough another
Trek: a rigid 4300, which I still have. Following Myra's excellent
advice on her web site regarding "roadifying" an MTB, I removed the
knobblies and replaced them with 1.25" slicks. Thank you, Myra. The
Trek 4300 now looks a bit tatty but it makes for a good trundle around
town machine.
Following my first Trek's theft I swore I'd never buy another MTB. I
said exactly the same after my Univega's loss. So much for the
promises I make to myself. However, six weeks to two months ago, I
finally bought myself a road bike.
My new toy, an Orbea Larrau, is the absolute bottom of their range and
at a little under £400 is about half the sum I had intended to spend
when I seriously considered getting a road bike back at the start of
this year. Having just pooh-poohed the bike, I greatly enjoy riding a
more appropriate machine for the road. I just wish I'd done as I'd
promised myself a few years ago and bought a road bike then.
I began by saying "This jolted my memory a little." Well, my memory
was certainly jolted, and by more than a little!
Cheers & sorry for the length of this post
James
--
I can't believe it's not Butty
WafflycatHCS
>around stuff?)
They don't. It's done by Santa - he's real. Shame on you for not realising
that! ;-)
James Hodson
(WafflycatHCS) wrote:
>They don't. It's done by Santa - he's real. Shame on you for not realising
>that! ;-)
>
Of course he is, Helen, of course he is - Doodly Flip & La La! :-)
I do remember waking up very early one Christmas day then wandering
around the house to find my mother trying her best to assemble a
trampoline with loads of spings - blue legs, yellow bed. Boing!!!
Santa was extremely busy that night and didn't have the time to put
together all the children's toys, or so I was told.
Santa was busy the previous year, as is well known. Lillie Hodson, née
Witter, lied to her one and only offspring.
Tim Hall
<dame...@chiark.greenend.org.uk> wrote:
>Tony W <aww...@THISOUTbigfoot.com> wrote:
>>"Guy Chapman" <spam...@chapmancentral.com> wrote in message
>>>Anyone mind if I copy these stories to my website?
>>I think that is a great idea. The stuff is in the public domain already
>
>This is a very dangerous falsehood being propagated here. Posts to Usenet
>are not in the public domain; something is in the public domain if and
>only if the author explicitly states that that is so.
In that case, Guy, please consider my rambling tale in this thread to
be in the public domain.
Tim
Guy Chapman
(James Hodson) wrote:
>Of course he is, Helen, of course he is - Doodly Flip & La La! :-)
(a) you have no soul and (b) you've not checked out
http://www.noradsanta.org/
James Hodson
<spam...@chapmancentral.com> wrote:
>On Fri, 19 Jul 2002 19:20:07 GMT, jUNDERSCO...@ntlworldDOT.com
>(James Hodson) wrote:
>
>>Of course he is, Helen, of course he is - Doodly Flip & La La! :-)
>
>(a) you have no soul and (b) you've not checked out
>http://www.noradsanta.org/
>
A & B) Oh, yes I have!
James Brown