i once owned the best bike in the world

[JoeyB]

I had a Grifter. It got stolen. Then I got a policeman knock on the door one day and they told me they had recovered the bike and it was at the station ready for me to collect. I couldn't understand as we never even bothered reporting it as we lived on a pretty rough council estate and bikes went walkies all the time. It turns out that one of the lodgers next door had nicked it out of the garden and his brother had told him he was out of order and got it recovered...not sure why he didnt just put it back in the garden but thats the story I remember lol.

Funnily enough these two brothers were literally the estate kingpins, no one ever messed with them! I think because they used to frequent our neighbours house (local den lol) and would quite often play football with me, they ended up feeling guilty for pooping on their own doorstep as it were. It then turns out that a half sister that I hardly ever saw was also in with estate mafia family and once they realised I was 'family' I NEVER had any problems on the estate again....lol

Those were the days!

 

[raleighnut]

Long Haired Hooligans, bring back national service.

 

[up hill struggle]

Your memory is spot on
Budgie
View attachment 51990
Tomahawk
View attachment 51991
I never owned either of these bikes although a friend had the Tomahawk so I had plenty of goes on it. I had the Grifter, which was missing the front section of the saddle, as all good Grifters did.
View attachment 51992

those were the boys i remember rusty red budgie & a blue tomahawk.

my brother had one of the grifters after the tomahawk, i then rode tomahawk after the budgie, eventually my brother refused to give up the grifter & i ended up with a bmx.

grifter was a great bike & built like a tank which is he refused to give it to me, i don't think any other bike would have taken the punishment that grifter took. I did however prefer the bmx as had trouble changing gears on the grifter. Last time i saw it it was sinking in our local duck pond (which apparently was deeper than expected )after leaving a jump my brother and friends had built.

Killed in action by a reckless kid, its how every grifter would have wanted to go. May it rust in peace.

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

I used to have a Tomahawk. I vividly remember riding it at 80mph* down a very long, steep hill in my town when the handlebars started wobbling. And wobbling. And wobbling, until they whipped right around and I was thrown off the bike, skidding for half a mile* on my side with the road laying open my leg to the bone.*

The best bike I ever owned? My current Tricross. Me and my Spesh are buddies.




* Well, it felt like that.

 

[raleighnut]

I used to have a Tomahawk. I vividly remember riding it at 80mph* down a very long, steep hill in my town when the handlebars started wobbling. And wobbling. And wobbling, until they whipped right around and I was thrown off the bike, skidding for half a mile* on my side with the road laying open my leg to the bone.*

The best bike I ever owned? My current Tricross. Me and my Spesh are buddies.




* Well, it felt like that.

Good scabs though ?

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

Oh aye, great scabs. Big juicy tasty wans.

 

[up hill struggle]

Oh aye, great scabs. Big juicy tasty wans.

wasn't a good days riding unless you arrived home for dinner without another scab for the collection.

Amazing how quickly you heal when you a kid takes scratches ages to heal now

 

[MattE72]

Just found this Chopper video, filmed in my home town too

Watching that makes me regret ever stopping riding a bike. And also why would you ever spend so much money on a MTB!?

 

[MattE72]

those were the boys i remember rusty red budgie & a blue tomahawk.

my brother had one of the grifters after the tomahawk, i then rode tomahawk after the budgie, eventually my brother refused to give up the grifter & i ended up with a bmx.

grifter was a great bike & built like a tank which is he refused to give it to me, i don't think any other bike would have taken the punishment that grifter took. I did however prefer the bmx as had trouble changing gears on the grifter. Last time i saw it it was sinking in our local duck pond (which apparently was deeper than expected )after leaving a jump my brother and friends had built.

Killed in action by a reckless kid, its how every grifter would have wanted to go. May it rust in peace.

Grifter: The Rambo of the Cycling World.

 

[Mandragora]

I once owned the worst bike in the world that became the best bike.... One Christmas morning my (very hard up!) parents presented me with one of these:

]
which wasn't something I'd wanted, and what made it even worse was that Lesley Rubberbottom up the road, my Worst Ever Enemy, had exactly the same bike. It lived at the bottom of our stairs for about three months, and I can vividly remember kicking it every time I went past it, ungrateful little mare that I was. Somewhere along the line, I must have forgiven it and got over my stupid pride, because the real memories I have of this bike are of many, many years of setting out from home on a Sunday morning, roaming miles on it, with a jam sandwich and a bottle of water as my main sustenance, returning in time for dinner at late o'clock. I never loved it as a piece of cool that brought joy to my life just to look at it, but it was the best bike in the world simply because it did everything it needed to. It's still in the shed at my mum's house, and she rides it still - at the grand age of 77. (The first chance I got to buy my own bike came 12 years later. A drop handle bar blokes racer. I've never been on a 'ladies step through' since!)

 

[palinurus]

I had a red Raleigh Roller with a cantilever frame, front and rear rack, single speed. Most kids took the piss out of it but it was a good bike.

I once rode 30 miles on it. At the time I was convinced that it was some sort of distance record. I probably also took a jam sandwich along.

 

[fossyant]

I'm lucky to still have my dream bike. Had it since about 1989.

 

[smokeysmoo]

My first two 'proper' bikes were a 5 speed Sun racer which was replaced by a 10 speed Sun racer when I'd outgrown it, this would have been late 70's.

I've never seen the bikes since TBH, but I did used to lust after the Raleigh Record Sprint back in the day, and just last week I managed to buy this one that's been receiving much love and attention ever since

BEFORE:


AFTER: (still ongoing)


More details on the Show Us Your Steel thread HERE

 

[fossyant]

My first two 'proper' bikes were a 5 speed Sun racer which was replaced by a 10 speed Sun racer when I'd outgrown it, this would have been late 70's.

I've never seen the bikes since TBH, but I did used to lust after the Raleigh Record Sprint back in the day, and just last week I managed to buy this one that's been receiving much love and attention ever since

BEFORE:
View attachment 52022

AFTER: (still ongoing)
View attachment 52023

More details on the Show Us Your Steel thread HERE

It's looking great. Blimey, you are a tall fella. I couldn't stand over that top tube !!

 

[Garry A]

Had a few bikes when I was young, all of them second hand, cast offs and held together by bolts and tape. I had a yellow trike, Budgie, Tomahawk and a Chopper all of which were sold by my Dad. My favourite was some green bike with large wheels and thin tyres that went like s**t of a shovel......came home from school and it too had been sold. Once had a Striker for a week, turns out it was another cast off as the steering was kaput. I remember another wee bike splitting in half as i rode it one day. I still remember learning to ride a two wheel bike and then soon after showing a younger kid in the next close the trick to not falling over. Never had a new bike till I was 21 and was in full time employment, the Apollo I've now had for near 20 years and is pretty much done. I remember all of them. Got a Roam 2 now.