Mid 70’s Everyone else in the scheme got a chopper, I got a chipper and a chip on my shoulder to boot.
Years later, the 80’s everyone gets a road bike, I get a chopper, Ma says, “you always wanted a chopper why the tears?”
I was the 70’s kid in the flared jeans and a chopper while everyone else cuts about on Puch, Peugeot, Falcon and Raleigh racers, wearing sta press.
Drove me to save my pocket money, school dinner money (sneaked home for lunch when parents working) and paper round money for 8 months to buy a puch from the lBS and exorcise the ghosts of the 70’s.
Then I joined the ctc……

There were an awful lot of really cheap, nasty BMXs in the 80s. Stuff that fell apart and caused injuries.

I think some of the ‘Chopper’ type designs were horrible; Chopper, Tommahawk, Commando, etc. Handled really badly.

But, surely the most Godawful bike of that era has to be…

…Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you…

…The Raleigh Vektar!

A cheap BMX type thing, with loads of tacky plastic crap on it, and a really shitty ‘sound generator’ thing that never worked propply. What a load of kack.

Of course, we all wanted one…

I don’t remember what it was, but it was my least favourite childhood bike.

And regarding the Vektar. Doesn’t it loook as stupid as a modern DH bike?

I wanted a Vektar 😉 My dad bought me a Dawes Kingpin. Laydeez shopping bike. Still went riding round the woods and MX tracks on it mind…

Chinese ladies’ shopping bike that my dad got for my mum but she didn’t ride. Main tube was telescopic.

I had the pleasure of riding it in the six months or so between outgrowing my Tomahawk and my next birthday/xmas – when I got a Grifter too. Six months seems a long time at that age!

Oi Fred, lay off the Commando. Absolutely loved mine (which was a very cool metallic yellow – not black) – it stood up to all sorts, including me jumping over people lying down in the middle of the street. Happy days…

Never had a bike I didn’t like – although never really fell in love with my Raleigh Marauder when I was 13 or so. Five non index gears, flexy little side pull brakes and steel rims. Weighed a freaking tonne.

I saved up and bought on of those 79.95 Quid 10 speeds advertised on the back page of the news papers. It was utter gash, all bolts vibrates loose, cranks were never tight and it was made of ultra rust cheese alloy ! Total waste of money and the last bike I bought for 5 years until i discovered MTBs.

with the exception of the ridiculously crap Kinesis Maxlight XC, I’ve loved every bike I’ve ever ridden, back to the age of 3. No matter what they were, or what other people had, I had a bike. And that **** rocked.

Erm my dads old bike that I got given when I was 12 or 13 cos we had no money. Had a 3speed sturmey Archer which kept slipping. I guess it was better than no bike at all but it was too big and everytime the drivechain slipped going uphill I smacked my nadgers on the top tube. Front wheel had a tendancy to come undone too, lost it once pulling a wheely (ouch) and another time I noticed at the bottom of a big hill I’d given my mate a backy down that it was loose enough to drop out!

Raleigh Striker for me, the bike wasn’t too bad especially with the novelty “if you pedal backwards you stop” braking system.

What made it the least favorite is that the stem broke, this was repaired down the local garage with a weld around the base, three times it got welded after snapping. Causing numerous gravel rash incidents.