Living Car Free - Do you remember your first "adult" bike?

I bought my first (and last!) expensive bike in France in 1973. I don't remember the make, but I clearly remember that it cost 1,000 francs--a figure that blew my mind, as we said back then. That was about $200 then, and probably much more than $1000 in today's money. That's more money than I had ever spent on anything (including my first car and my first kilo of weed), and probably more money than any teenager I knew had ever spent. The bike was stolen less than a month after I bought it, and I ended up hitchhiking across Europe instead of cycling.

Yep. It was a Huffy POS I bought while I was in law school here in lovely Lansing. I bought it from Dunham's. It was the first bike I ever bought as an adult. Hadn't bought a bike in like a quarter of a century. It got ripped off, literally, within 10 minutes of being left unlocked at the back door of 219 North Butler, a crappy little house I shared with three other people. The back door to the kitchen was open, and the bike was on the tiny little porch right outside the door. Had to take a wiz, so I rushed inside. Noticed it was ripped off when I came back outside. Cost me a hundred forty nine American dollars.

Next bike was a Walmart-style aluminum "Schwinn" that I bought at Dicker and Deal on East Kalamazoo. It got ripped off from my front porch at my little love nest. The guy who ripped it off left the helmet, though, in the driveway. Cost me a hundred clams.

You'd think I would have learned my lessons about spending money on a bike of poor quality. You'd think I would have learned my lessons about leaving bikes unattended. Nope on both counts. I'm obviously a complete idiot.

Now I buy used bikes exclusively -- really cheap used bikes, with an average cost of twenty bucks. I'm not ashamed to pick up a bike that's left out on the curb to fix it up and ride it, or to scavage parts. Haven't had a bike ripped off since I stopped spending money and started actually locking my bikes every time. Seems I only really learned the value of a buck after I got married and had a family.

So, yeah, thanks for that little bitter trip down memory lane.

Not sure what would qualify as my first "adult" bike. First 26" wheeled bike I ever had I got in the 6th grade as a Christmas/Birthday present (sucks having you birthday 4 days after Christmas:innocent:) It was a Red Western Flyer base model. During the 70's I had quite a few bikes that I bought with my own money, ran a paper route, worked in a grocery store and a bike shop. Those were Schwinns(3-4), then a Michard (cheap French bike) Gitane, Teledyne, Bob Jackson, Motobecane and then a Raleigh Sports (http://2whls3spds.blogspot.com/2008/06/bike-that-started-it-all-not-really.html).

Aaron:)

]Yep. It was a Huffy POS I bought while I was in law school here in lovely Lansing. I bought it from Dunham's. It was the first bike I ever bought as an adult. Hadn't bought a bike in like a quarter of a century.[/SIZE]
The first bike I bought when I resumed cycling in 2002 was an abused Magna "mountain bike" (walmart, I believe). A friend found it for me for $30, and I bet he claimed at least 10 bucks as a "finder's fee." I somehow rode that every day for a few months, then traded up to a nice Specialized MTB that I bought at a pawn shop for about $120.

(I've bought a few bikes at that same pawn shop (Capitol Discount in REO Town). They fix the bikes up nice, and even though they're sold "as is" they will help you out if there's a problem. Right now I'm mostly riding a sweet little Haro MTB that I got there for $200.)


You'd think I would have learned my lessons about spending money on a bike of poor quality. You'd think I would have learned my lessons about leaving bikes unattended. Nope on both counts.
In the inner city, I think cheap bikes are just as likely to get ripped off as expensive ones. Last year somebody stole a cheapo Giant MTB from me, and left behind an old Fuji 10-speed in almost-new condition. On Ebay, the Fuji is worth a lot more (probably for fixie conversion) but what does a punk in Lansing know about hip bikes? He just knows he doesn't like those curvy handlebars.

Well, I am just starting biking as of today and just purchased my first road bike, which is a Mongoose Pro Morzine for $350. About to go out for my first ride in a little bit, getting a helmet and a couple other things first.

My first bike was when I was a kid, it was a Huffy Spirit of '76. I was 7 years old and is was 1976! It was white with red and blue stripes with a picture of a Minute Man on the front piece and a big '76. It lasted me two years before it completely rusted/rotted.

Fast forward to 1982. I got my sister's hand me down Swchinn Varisety 10 speed. Thankfully it was a boys style bike. I abused that bike til I finally totaled it hitted a car.

Six months ago I bought my first real adult bike. Its a GT Nomad. I loved it for about four months, now I just dtand it. I know more about bikes and their mechanicals and the things that I really need in/on a bike. I'm goign to build me one up from a beater.

Jerry

My first full-sized bike was a Raleigh 3-speed. Later it was replaced by a Nishiki 10-speed. I miss the Raleigh.

The first bike I bought as an adult was a Torelli racing bike. It was really fast and light. Stupidly I sold it and bought a Nishiki mountain bike when they first came out. Turns out I don't like mountain biking and they aren't as fast as the Torelli.

Well, I am just starting biking as of today and just purchased my first road bike, which is a Mongoose Pro Morzine for $350. About to go out for my first ride in a little bit, getting a helmet and a couple other things first.

That's pretty exciting! Have fun on that first ride--you'll still remember it after your thousandth ride. Let us know how it went, and let us know if any problems or questions come up.

:welcome

1987 Nishiki Modulus in fuchsia, white and aqua pearl fade.

My first "adult" bike was a 3 Speed that my Mom bought for me. I really enjoyed that bike. Unfortunately I was a teen and I destroyed it trying to use it as a BMX bike and jumping over a large hole in the ground. Note, this was before the invention of BMX bike. The bike slammed into the far side of the hole destroying the fork and the head tube. I wasn't feeling too well either. I walked for the rest of the year.

First adult bike: 1991 Huffy from Wal-Mart, it really wasn't a bad bike (commuted on and off from 1991 to 2005)
Second adult bike: 2004 Trek 4300 (my commuter and MTB)
Third adult bike: 2008 Jamis Aurora (bought this year, my transition to road riding...loving it!)

Kids bikes: 1970's banana seat orange bike from K-Mart eventually converted it to a BMX by purchasing yellow mags, handlebars, yellow pads, yellow handlebar numbers and a small seat from K-Mart and painted it black. Also had a late 1970's 10-speed from Sears.

First was the Jamis Coda my parents bought me a month ago. Still going strong. Put about 40 miles a week on it.

first "adult" bike:
1990 Raleigh Technium 12-speed. Still in great condition. It's now my "backup" road bike.

My first adult bike is the bike I bought in July 2005 and happily ride today. It's a 2005 KHS Town & Country 100. It was about $450 with upgrade wheels.

I have to admit to a very strong bikelust. I wonder what it would be like to have 700c wheels, steel frame and curved handlebars (basically everything my bike doesn't have).

I am almost 55, but I bought my first adult bike a little over 3 years ago -- a 1974 Huffy lady's bike for $5 at a second-hand shop. I used it for about 3 months while I figured out that I really liked biking and also what kind of bike I would like. I still have most of it in my garage actually.

My first full size frame bike was a Schwinn Varsity I bought new in 1969, and gave away in 1979. I spent many years yearning to have it back, so I recently bought a 1975 version of the same color, and with some labor of love and a few hard earned dollars, I now can ride a shiny copy of my old 1969 Varsity.

My first full size frame bike was a Schwinn Varsity I bought new in 1969, and gave away in 1979. I spent many years yearning to have it back, so I recently bought a 1975 version of the same color, and with some labor of love and a few hard earned dollars, I now can ride a shiny copy of my old 1969 Varsity.

That's great!
I wish I had my sister's back. I would set it up for my oldest Princess or me.

Jerry

Back around 1970 I bought a new Schwinn Suburban 5 speed, with upright handle bars, new for maybe around $100. I began using it for a commuter bike and touring up to 50 miles. Within about a year I put on dropped handlebars, but eventially moved on to a Mercier about 1972.

My first "good" bike was a 91 Miele mountain bike. It was awesome. It still is awesome. I'm about to ride it to work.

An early 90s Mongoose Threshold mountain bike. Had some good times on it, but I outgrew it.

I remember when I was 10 that my dad bought me a bike at Sears and said, "This is the kind of bike you'll have for the rest of your life!" Apparently it was lost on him that I wouldn't fit this bike forever... either that or he had very low expectations for my growth spurt.

Then when I was 16 he and I were at a bike store and we found this dual suspension Mongoose bike (mid 1990s) that was 1,000 bucks. Again he said "this is the kind of bike you can ride forever!" He decided to buy it for me as a birthday gift (albeit a little early since it was fall and my birthday's in the winter). But after putting 100 down on it, he later decided he couldn't afford it.

So I guess my first "adult" bike was that MTB. I worked a part time job to pay off the balance. And it was easily the most expensive thing I had bought with my own money.

It was an early 80's Trek 510 (red with I think 105 components) , followed by a Dave Scott Ironman (the purple and yellow paint scheme, and Ultegrea which I think at the time was called 600).

I saved paper route money and bought an 86(?) Raleigh USA Supercourse while a sophomore in high school. It was a two-tone purple number with red tape. I put a San Marco Rolls and Look pedals on it. Still have the Rolls.

My first "adult" bike was a men's Huffy Ultima 10 speed back in the early 1980s. Got it at Shopko. Hated the drop bars and the frame was so big there was no way I could stand over the bar without some seriously odd poses on tiptoes. Still, I loved it. It was mine and I had paid for it.

A decade later I was riding it on campus in grad school and had to stop quickly to avoid an idiot pedestrian who stepped out into the street without even looking. Hit that top bar hard. Even without male anatomy, it hurt to the point of tears. The next day I went to a bike store and looked at smaller bikes. Got one that fits me just perfectly.

I kept the Huffy as a backup bike, although I haven't ridden it in about 15 years. The hubby thought he might ride it a year or so ago, so it got new tubes and tires and all kinds of adjustments. This week my bike was in the shop, so I rode the old Huffy into work for a couple of days.

Wow. When the hubby had it worked on, he added a reflector and a fender to the seat post, moving the seat up three inches above where I had it. In the 25 years since I bought it, I've probably doubled in size (although not height, doggoneit!) I had twins last year and they stretched my belly muscles out so far it isn't funny. Riding bent over double just wasn't as pleasant as it used to be. A middle-aged, overweight woman riding that bike into work must've been a sight to see.

So, if any of you guys in Lansing are interested in a used 1980s Huffy, just let me know. I'll leave it outside with a note on it. I'd like it to have a good home, since I'm attached to it for sentimental reasons, but there's no way I'm likely to ever ride it again. And we need more room in the garage. (Note: You'll want to be taller than 5'2" to ride it)

My parents bought me my first adult-size bike (26" MTB from Consumer's Distributing) when I was around 13 or 14. I actually rode it a bit during co-op work terms when I was in university (steel wheels, rain, and cheap side-pull brakes aren't a good combination :( ).

As far as I know it's still sitting in a shed on their farm somewhere, waiting for either some TLC or the scrap yard.

A pseudo-"English Three Speed" from Montgomery Ward. Rode it all through HS, college, and grad school and my first couple of jobs. When I moved from Oklahoma to Ohio, I couldn't take it with me.

For various reasons I didn't bike again for a very long time.

http://keithmo.com/Prague/DSCN1396.JPG

I bought this Trek Navigator and another for my girlfriend (now wife) in 2003 while I was living with her in Poland. We rode them quiet a bit for a couple of years. In 2005 we moved to the USA, and left our bikes in her grandparent's basement.

We're currently in Poland visiting her family, and we managed to ride our bikes a couple of times before weather went sour. I had forgotten how much fun these bikes are. They're rather slow and heavy, but oh so comfortable (cushy seat, suspension seat post, suspension fork, low pressure tires).