It was 1984 and I was 13 years old. My dad was recovering from a serious back operation, and used my Raleigh 10 speed to help him regain some fittness. (he used to play tennis, but the back operation put an end to that)
He liked it so much that he bought himself an Allan 12 speed, I kept the heavy Raleigh for another year, and we started cycling together, - first just for fun, but within a year we were both cycling competitively in our respective age groups. Although we now live on separate continents, we still try and cycle together when we see each other. I seriously hope to have this same wonderfull experience with my own son one day. Who knows, maybe all three of us could enjoy this.