In the late 80s, an avid mountain biker in Apex, NC purchased a 1988 Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo for himself. Less than a year later, he purchased another bike for his wife, a 1988 Nishiki Ariel. The Ariel was purchased as a leftover. Both bikes saw quite a bit of time on the local trails. After they moved on to newer bikes, the pair of old MTBs were loaned out to the local Boy Scout troop during camping trips where they received less than loving care. Fast forward.
In 2005, my youngest son turned 13. Unlike his older brother, he did not take care of his things. Envisioning that a brand new $300 Trek MTB would be left outside and stolen I decided to look for cheaper alternative so that I wouldn't be upset when the bike was stolen or wrecked. After a brief stint with a used Wally World bike that was junk, I went to a yard sale where the two bikes mentioned above were for sale. I paid $40 for the two. I gave my son his choice and he took the Hoo Koo E Koo. The poor Nishiki was now relegated to a parts bike or back up when the Hoo Koo E Koo was wrecked or lost. That is until I took it for a demo ride after lubing the chain. One ride and I was hooked. After many years with only a few bike rides, I now started riding the Nishiki at least twice a week, sometimes every day. Eventually we took our bikes on trails and I upgraded the Nishiki from a rigid fork to a suspension fork, no small acheivement given that it has a 1" threaded steer tube. The seatpost, saddle and tires were replaced and the bike hit the single track again. Within a few months I realized that the old Nishiki was just outdated as a technical trail bike and replaced it with a new Rockhopper. However, the Nishiki is still one of my main riders as it is the bike I use when I ride the American Tobacco Trail, a packed gravel/sand rails to trails. Here is the latest rendition of the bike that's responsible for returning me to cycling. It's still one of my favorites due to it's smooth ride, I don't know if I'll ever sell it.