Specialized Rockhopper in 1998. Still use it every day as transport.Also use it for touring. Now got dyno hub lighting and nexus 8 though. I’d never get rid.

Marin Eldridge Grade in 1992, matt black and red/orange. What a great bike that was, lasted for years and many miles, never needed anything replacing

First ATB was a Raleigh Memphis in 1989. High tensile steel, rubbish cantis, some sort of bottom of the range Suntour gears and the typical 1.75″ tyres with the raised centre ridge that were no use on any surface. Loved it.

‘Upgraded’ most of it – Exage cantis, Mountain LX brake levers, Suntour XCD6000 rear mech, Deore II shifters, Tioga Farmer John’s Cousin up front and a Specialized Ground Control out back.

Then some thieving charva twunt TWOC’ed it from outside of Hardisty’s (top of the Fossway, Byker).

Replaced with a 1990 Raleigh Mirage (the purple one) in the smallest size they did – 20″. 300LX throughout. Again, upgraded. XTII and Deore II mostly, M261CD wheels, hand built by Denton Cycles and SPD’s – they were a game changer for me.

That was the last full bike bought.

I started drooling (worryingly enough) after a 1985 Raleigh Maverick in the local Raleigh shop window.

It was light blue, 5 years and sidepull brakes.

I finally was able to buy it in 1986 when they reduced it and allowed part ex of my BMX.

I loved it. Long, low and slack geometry (now where have I heard that?).

Although, as I have said before, the steel rims and sidepull brakes did make wet weather braking feel like an option box i hadn’t ticked. The centre ridgr tyres were awful too.

I bought a Muddyfox Courier in Sept 1987. I wanted a Rockhopper but it was too expensive. The MF had to do. It was probably crap but I loved it. I felt like it had been designed exactly for me to ride where I had always tried to ride on touring or road bikes.

1989 Saracen Tufftrax.
My 74 year old Dad still rides it occasionally.

1989 Raleigh Blueridge

Blue & orange frame.

Bought it from a pal of a pal, £200 bargain.

1993 diamond back Sorrento (I think that’s what it was called)
1995 orange C16r STX-RC groupo
1997 orange X2 (frame only build)
2013 Ghost ASX plus (frame only build)
2016 Transition Suppressor (frame only build)

I bought a Specialized rockhopper in 1986 but frame was too big, 6 speed thumbshifters non index,

OP, I nearly bought the blue one too in 86 but then got a grip on myself and went for red 🙂
As I remember it though it was only 5 speed and those thumb shifters got painful to use after a long day riding. I also recall that the bars themselves weighed as much as a modern frame! 2 years later all the bits went on to a Roberts White Spider frame, back in the day when you could transfer all the bits from one frame to another without thinking about standards 🙂
For some reason I still seem to have the original cantilever brakes and the seat clamp in a box.

A blue Raleigh Marauder for Xmas ’89, iirc. It lasted a long while, seeing as it was too big when I got it, so the next was a Balance AL150 in about ’95. It was certainly rubbish even by standards back then, but it did everything I wanted a bike to do at the time.

88 Ridgeback 601ex, went everywhere on it.

1989 Emmelle cub 6 speed, next bike was a 1996 Gt Backwoods ( that looked enough like a Zaskar for me!)

Straight in near the top 1991 Specialised Stumpjumper Team, then I went to an Orange Prestige and later a Kona Explosif.

Diamondback Sorrento from Halfords. Nasty bright yellow thing with cantis and the ability to produce Relativistic effects. Bought for going to the pub on till it was nicked and replaced with a second hand Klien.

Must have been mid to late 90s.

1991 gt timberline. 20″ – way too big.

not my bike, but this one:

91 Marin Palisades. The darker Zolatone and fluo yellow combo.
A few of us as mates got either Palisades or Muirwoods all at the same time and started ‘proper’ MTBing after we’d spent years destroying BSOs in the local woods together. Unfortunately I’m the only one who still rides.

The Palisades lasted a year before I got a 92 Pine Mountain which was just a brilliant machine. Then I went all fancy and had a Delta-V 😀

A Girvin Proflex sometime around 97 from my then girlfriend’s father

avdave2 I bought the pink and blue White Spider frame from the shop mcmoonter worked at in Stockbridge and did the same swapover although the handlebars with the extra struts were shelved and i also treated it to XT still have the bare frame in the garage. My rockhopper top tube was dropped down 2 ” fillet brazed by Alves guy up near the Arctic circle

One of the original Ridgebacks circa 1984 I think. By modern standards a bit of a BSO but my dad still has it and it still rolls. I’ll have to dig it out of his shed and do a back to back comparison with my Aeris…

1988, Peugeot Ranger

broke and replaced under warranty with a Laser 15:

but really, these aren’t proper. first proper was one I saved up for working in a supermarket.
1989 cannondale SM600:

1987 Marin Bear Valley, got it from Shokwave in Nottingham. Went all over on that bike. First ride was Cutgate, didnt know what i was letting myself in for. Still dont on some of the rides.
There are two his and hers matching Muddy Fox Couriers in the loft at work, not ours, that have been up there for years. Dont think hers has had much use.

Relative newcomer by the standards of this.

I had a halfords thing as a kid but my first proper bike was supposed to be a Merlin Malt 2. They didn’t have the frame so I ended up with a Kinesis maxlight. About 2004. Saved up from my student summer job to buy it.

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