Who was your first?

[cookiemonster]

I had a Grifter when I was a kid. None of your ponsy Chopper nonsense.

Then I moved onto a Dawes road bike at 12yo. Was too big for me initially but I soon grew into it once the puberty fairy started doing her job.

 

[anothersam]

Other than the Grifter, Burner, and a mini sized Raleigh racer, (they're all definitely "child" bikes and not what I think AnotherSam is asking), then the first bike I had where I'd say I was a "cyclist” was a Peugeot road bike.

Yes – though I’m happy for people to define it on their own terms. The Marin was actually kind of my second, my first being a Schwinn Voyager @ 15ish. I don't count that one because while I bought it for epic voyages, before I could get around to them I sold it to fund my first car.

Previous to that I went through about three childhood bikes, including the ubiquitous chopper, and the one I used for my paper route, thus a work bike.

The Sausalito was acquired the year after I moved to the UK and became born again. A month later I was already on my first tour from London to Fort William.

 

[Beebo]

It was a Dawes Ascent. Looked exactly like this. It had basic Reynolds steel frame, 15 speed sis shimano gears and a bio pace chainring. I loved the black and pink paint.
They called it a MTB but it’s basically a hybrid.

It’s still in my dad’s garage looking very sad for itself.

It was bought in 1991 at a cost of £225 from Broadway cycles. I had to pay £100 my dad paid the rest for birthday.

 

[johnblack]

Peugeot Leader, first bike I had that wasn't a hand me down, stacked it and broke my arm when I was 10. Got a BMX the next Christmas!

 

[sheddy]

Sisters hand me down.
The embarrassment of riding a girls bike...

 

[Vantage]

A blue Raleigh Budgie. Learnt to ride on 2 wheels on that hot rod.

 

[Specialeyes]

A 2nd-hand Dawes Star Celeste, from the classified ads in the West Somerset Free Press. Lasted me from about 15 until 19, at which point I met a girl at University who had a car (admittedly a Citroen 2CV, so only marginally quicker!) and left it locked in Eliot bike shed for the best part of a term. Of course, it had gone when I went to retrieve it.

Lost the bike, still got the girl.

 

[mudsticks]

First ever bought with mine own money.
Sometime in the 1980's...

We went on all sorts of 3 speed hilly adventures together .

Kept out of nostalgia more than anything else, of course.

Perhaps she'll end up painted up on a cafe wall some day..

If I ever open a cafe, that is...

Although when I lifted her down from her current resting (rusting?) place in the barn,
I remembered how light and springy she actually was - would be fun to go for a spin again..

I really should have been born a bloke..

All these supposed 'restoration projects' that we know in truth will never happen

 

[tyred]

The first bike I bought myself as a teenager in the '90s was a new Townsend BX-40 MTB. I used it a lot at the time although probably never rode that far in reality and then I started driving and gradually stopped cycling and it languished in the back of my parent's shed for years until I decided to start cycling again in my late 20s so I revived it. Then I acquired other "better" bikes and it was left forlorn and forgotten again until about three years ago I revived it once again and gave it a complete overhaul this time with better quality brakes, a change to cassette hub, new chainset, fitted rack and Brooks saddle and re-invented it in touring trim and I've done a lot of touring on it and hope to again once I am allowed to travel more than 5km from home. It's nothing special as a bike I know but it's comfortable, rides okay for what it is and gives the options of riding to places I couldn't on my 700c bikes when touring.

 

[Venod]

A bike built from various old bits was my first proper bike.
The first new one was about 1966, a Raleigh with drops, I can't remember the model but it was red and had Weinman brakes, it was bought with money I had earned working on a farm at harvest time.

 

[Milkfloat]

The first bike I really lusted over and had to 'go-halves' on with my parents was a Peugeot P8 Avoriaz. I don't have any photos of it, but this bike took me far and wide including my first century (unplanned). I got stolen in the end, although I must admit, I had moved on to mountain bikes by then so I was not distraught.

I started early though

 

[Cycleops]

Triumph Rodeo. I couldn’t ride when my father bought it so learned to on the two mile journey home when I went to pick it.
My friend Richard had a snazzy drop bar bike so I had to sell the Rodeo and get one.

 

[Hover Fly]

Falcon Black Diamond, heavy, but I still rode it over Dunmail Raise and round Thirlmere a couple of weeks later.

 

[Chris S]

A Raleigh 3-speed. I don't know what model it was because it didn't have any decals on it. I only know it was a Raleigh because there was a brass badge on the head tube.

 

[slow scot]

Like @Brandane above, my first bike also came from the excellent Dales in Glasgow. They were in Shamrock Street at St George’s Cross in my youth. A Raleigh Lenton, cost £12 and 10 shillings, and I’m too scared to give the date!