Sentimental attachment to bikes?

I find myself wanting to find my old 10 speed again - complete with stem shifters, 27 inch tyres, and chrome steel rims, with a pink and grey colour scheme. It was the bike that I first learned to ride on the roads with and the first time I broke 30km was on that bike.

I sold it a year or so back, and now I'm wishing I hadn't.

Anyone else have a "special bike"?

 

When I graduated from high school, my dad got me a Trek 1000 as a graduation present. It was my first road bike and I rode it alot, but it ended up in the garage for several years. One day I decided that I wanted to start riding agan. I spent alot of time training and eventually I fell in love with a full carbon frame. My old Trek had no carbon, tiagra shifters, and was too big for me. It was eventually traded for my new bike, felt f5c. I do wonder what has happened to that bike.

 

I still own my first 10 speed bike I received on my 13th birthday: a Ross Adventurer from the early 1980's. Everything is original except tires and handlebar tape, as it sat untouched in my parents' shed for about 20 years. I stripped it down, repacked the BB and wheels, cleaned and adjusted everything, hand polished the chrome wheels and put on new tires. It now gets an occasional leisurely spin around my neighborhood.

It weighs a ton and is not worth much money, but provides me with plenty of fond memories. I mainly remember using the bike for transportation to and from my junior high school girlfriend's house - an invaluable resource at the time. It was like a time trial every ride to her house: fast as I could to get there, and fast as I could to get home and beat curfew.

 

I was just feeling that way about my first bike which I bought in 1992 with my hard earned cash.

I bought a Performance Focus all Ultegra, at the time it was the U.S. Cyling team bike and over the years I upgraded it to Dura Ace crank, derraileurs and some nice hand-built rims, bought it for $900 and sold it in 2004 for $500.
Wish I had never sold it now.

Got a Listepeed Tuscany all Dura Ace after that but sold it, didn't really like the ride and then got a Motobecane Le Champion all Dura Ace but sold it because I never thought I was going to go back to cycling but? Just bought a GIANT TCR 0 all 9spd Dura Ace which is not here yet but will be soon.

And this time, I'm not selling it back.

 

I would love to get a blue Schwinn LeTour IV like my first new bike. I gbought it in early 1980 in Oceanside CA. I think it was a 1979 model.

I am also in the midst of building a bike similar to what I rode during my high school years. It is a cantilever framed 26 inch wheeled three speed that I am equipping with a banana seat and rams horn bars. I rode that bike in my high school years from Tacoma to Kelso Washington and then to Oysterville a few days later. Even at the age of 16 or 17 I was sore for a couple of days once we got to Kelso.

The frame I am using is a 1955 Schwinn Corvette which is slightly different, it has a single top tube with twin tubes below it, the frame in HS was very similar except it had twin top tubes and a single tube underneath it.

 

bump

 

I still have my first road bike and ride it periodically. It's a 1991 Diamondback Master TG. It's the bike that got me into road riding and I will never get rid of it for that reason. I'm very attached to it even if it is pink with black splashes.

 

Back in about 1990, my granddaddy bought me a 26" Schwinn World 12 speed. I thought I was on top of the world on that bike. I wrecked it within the first month of ownership, but the dealer fixed all that gratis when I took it in for the free 30-day checkup. It took me back and forth from my first summer job at a nearby hardware store. It sat in my parent's garage until about a year ago, and I decided to bring it home and fix it up. A new set of tires and better fitting tubes wouldn't hurt it, but it seems to be in good working order. I'm glad it's still around, as I was tempted to unload it more than a few times.

About the time I turned 20, I bought a Huffy Jackal out of the Penney's catalog since I worked there and got a discount. After I got it home and fully tuned, I took it out onto a muddy trail and got it good and filthy. It might be primative, but it's still a good rider.

 

Yeah I do have memorie with bike and anything relate to sport, I would'nt sell my skis or anything relate to them. It would probably be the same for the bike.

 

I have an early 80's Woodrup Touring (pre-owned), Reynold's 531, Campy NR. I traded in my Raleigh Super Grand Prix and paid $500. I had a stronger sentimental attachment to the Raleigh but can't seem to part with the Woodrup. I recently decided to get back into cycling after a looong absence and chose to buy a new ride instead of upgrading the Woodrup. After readng this thread tho', I may need to take the old bike out for a spin!

 

I have an Eddy Merckx from the 1970s, Weinmann 999 brakes, brookes saddle. Just put some new bar tape on it

Tires are an utter pain to find now, as they are an old size, and I'm stuck using those for a wheel chair that only go to 60psi.
Funny thing is, when I line all my bikes up and spin the wheels, the Eddy Merckx is the one whose wheels are spinning last. Most probably due to greater inertia, but I like to think because the bearings are so much better; it is still on it's original set.

 

I recall my old Fuji Ace (1989-90ish)... that was the first bike I spent a LOT of time on back in HS. First time topping 25mph, first time riding 40+ miles... it's a shame I had a small 'accident' and snapped the derailleur off the back. Bike was junk after that

I also miss my 94(5?) Specialized Rockhopper; A1 Alu, Hardtail, no front shock That would have been super top-o-the-line back then! ... though I rarely rode MTB trails, I loved that bike. It was the FIRST bike I ever bought (I was about 19 at the time; the Fuji was a gift from my father when I was 15) Unfortunately I sold it about 3 years ago just prior to rekindling my romance with cycling

 

I put a lot of miles on the Woodrup and it followed me from Florida to WY-WV-PA-NJ-FL then back to Wyoming! I rode in all of those places, but pretty much stopped once I moved back to WY in 1992. I got the Raleigh to do a 2 week tour of the Blue Ridge parkway. Prior to that, riding the 2 miles to my boyfriend's house was a long ride for me. In a very short time (<1 month) I ramped up from 2 miles to 40+ and then went on the trip. What an eye-opener! It was 1979, I was 19 and living in Florida (read: FLAT, sea-level) and had no idea about riding in the mountains! If you've ever read "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson you will know EXACTLY what I went thourgh ;-). It was a great time and the first of many such trips. Ahhhh the Good 'Ol Days!

Oh, and one of my best memories of all time was riding with my dad and little brother to my grandparent's house when I was a little kid - may 7ish? It was such a big adventure (and only about 2 miles as well), but it was my first taste of "road-tripping" and a rare time spent with my dad. I have no idea what bike I had then - I'm guessing a Schwinn, but I know it had a tall "sissy bar" and blue glitter banana seat!