Always been into bikes. I rode bmx throughout secondary school, then all my mates quit once they got cars etc – only one of them is still riding! Decided to get a mtb to get more miles in. Kinda gave up for a few years then decided to get back on it as I needed to lose weight. Then I realised it was pretty fun (and lost me loads of weight) and got into it more.

This…

Lipseal – I feel ill

Desperately wanted a BMX in the mid ’80s when it was cool. Not allowed a bike of any sort.

Did loads of hillwalking though, and when I moved to Cambridge as a student, I finally badgered my dad into teaching me to ride, aged 19, as I was wasting so much time on Shank’s Pony.

Once I could ride, it was an obvious progression to ride offroad. Always knew I wanted to.

Been making up for lost time ever since.

Rode a bit as a teenager. Got back into it in my mid-twenties when a climbing trip got rained off – my mate lent me his rigid Univega with canti brakes and we went to Penmachno. It rained all day, and the bike was a death trap but I loved it.

The following weekend I went out and bought a Giant XTC.

Started in 1987 as an alternative to windsurfing when there was no wind

Madison catalogue of the mid-80’s and the Ridgebacks in it.

Got a Tufftrax in 87 with the money I got for my A-levels and never looked back

wanderlust

used to sit in school looking out the window at crompton moors (oldham). as soon as school was finished we used to go spend the evenings ragging it around them there hills and further at the weekends. had a break of about 10 years but i always knew i’d be back and i had a few other bikes (bmx’s, commuters etc) in the lull-period. was travelling in NZ in 2006 and hired a bike with a mate & went up to coronet peak for the day…that’s all it took me to get hooked again. arrived back in the uk about a year later, got a job and bought a bike with my first pay packet!

always had bikes for as long as I can remember. Started with something very similar to this >

then on to something very much like this >

had racers throughout the 80s then bought first mountain bike 1990

Kev

Quit smoking at 45 and started putting on weight. Bought a Carrera Vulcan from Halfords and started doing a bit of mountain biking-could only manage about 7 miles then. By the second ride my 2 sons 11 and 13 at the time thought they would tag along.
That was 3 years ago. Today I’m riding and racing mountain bikes, cyclo cross bikes and road bikes-think nothing of 70 miles plus on the road on a Sunday and my older son now 16 has ridden for GB at both mountain biking and cyclo cross and is competing on the road as well. My younger son has started to compete as well. Never felt better

On road – to get about, to see my friends, and get away before I could drive.

Off road – to avoid the motorists who wanted to get me off the road. However I don’t really recommend a 42-52 14-28 set up with side pull brakes. I pretty soon bought a proper bike with an unbelievable 15 gears and cantilever brakes which I was sure would constantly throw me over the bars.

Always had bikes, but couldn’t afford a BMX in the 80’s so kinda missed that, and a chopper wasn’t too hot off road.
FF to 1993, made redundant,company car returned, no transport. A bloke I knew biked a bit suggested I try an MTB, the rest has been very expensive (but great fun).

We moved to a village when I was 4 and didn’t have a pot to piss in. I made some cool friends pretty quickly and my mum paid the grandad of one of them to build me a bike for my birthday – cost a tenner I think. I still remember the day I got it and riding it around “the green”.

Upgraded a year or so later to a bike from the toy shop (think it was a Raleigh Ranger or Rancher?).

Used to cycle on it everywhere including 10-15 mile rides around the local villages/fields/woods. Even used to cycle along the main road (2-3 miles along the A24 each way) in the evenings to and from the pub with my mate and his grandad. Can remember shitting it when buses and lorries went by. Can even remember writing about it in my school “What did you do over the weekend” Monday morning diary. Was probably about 8-9 at the time.

Carried on from there really … road biking in my teens (anything up to 120 miles around Hants/Sussex/Kent/Surrey) … and then MTBing 😀

Plenty of my best childhood memories revolve around being out on the bike with my mates. Loved it.

Was into cycle speedway back in the day…..

Always did my paper round on my bike.

But at the ‘tender’ age of 40, I had a heart attack while playing 5-a-side.

None smoker / fairly healthy diet / fairly fit

My body produces more bad colesterol than good.

As part of my rehab – I had to walk – so started walking
Went walking in some nice locations, thought if I use my old bike, I could go further.

Then bought a Trek 3600 disc – did some trailquests

And then just kept spending and riding………..

As a student I shared a house with somebody who later went on to edit MBR then become a World famous bike designer.

He was forever bringing bikes home. I remember a silver and yellow PACE with bulls eye cranks, a black Cannondale with green lizards painted on it, a pink Yo Eddy and a Scott with a star spangled banner colour scheme that stayed at our house for ages.

It was the Scott that did it.

EDIT ^^ Just remembered that my (older) brother built me a bike to replace the Raleigh when I was 8-9. Sprayed it bronze IIR and put some off road tyres on it 🙂 Cracking times.

1999/2000. Dragged to Epping Forest by a work Colleague itching to give his new heckler an outing – Hopelessly obsessed since.

Moved house and stopped practicing Karate. Needed another outlet. Picked up a second-hand MTB for a few pounds and that was that. Only wish I’d started sooner.

mountain bikes were a rare and it was a different sport to get into, early races were ace, got horribly mangled in a crash racing in clocaenog and whilst mending discovered that it was more fun waking up with a hangover and dirty girl on a sunday morning than going riding. 15 years later decided that I’d better give up the naughty ladies and got back into riding

i’ve got an old photo of myself, i’m 10months old and i’m on my first ‘bike’.

there’s never been a time when i haven’t been messing around with bikes.

ton – Member
evil knievel

+1 RIP! 😯
He spelled his name “Evel” tho

Can still remember my first few feet riding without stablisers as a kid. Loved it from that moment on. Had a mini chopper and also loved riding my sisters, mini fat tyred kids bike.I winded myself a few times on that. Used to ride down dirt track alley ways all the time and do circuits around the block.Was always interested in the tour de france as a kid too.. Then bmx’s came around…

was into bmx when i was a kid and so were all my friends at the time. Bought BMX action bike monthly and rode loads. Did a few races, but a group of us regularly rode the local bmx track and used to visit the local bikeshop lots…Went to the ‘bike show’ and first watched trials riding too. My friend’s dad built us a massive ramp that he had in his front garden..

Then MTb’s came about.. friend got a Muddy Fox and I went with him eyeing up all the Muddy Fox bikes on sale…I got an ATB and rode that alot…

Then got a car and gave up for ages,, only to return eleven years ago.. 😀

The first bike I can really remember was a Raleigh Strika aged about 7, I lived next door to some woods.Thrashed it to within an inch of its life for 3 years , man I loved that bike!