| Author | Message | ||
     Hughlysses |
A thread on advrider (What were you riding 40 years ago?) got me thinking about my first powered two-wheeled ride (and yes, it was about 40 years ago). A quick Google search and here it is:  Purchased for $99.95 earned at the rate of $5/day on a neighbor's farm that summer. Man, I had a LOT of fun with that thing riding local dirt roads and trails. That was one big plus about growing up in rural SC- I could ride 5 or 6 miles from my house without doing more than crossing a paved road. Anybody else start out on something like this? | ||
| Tramp |
 Christmas, 1968 (I'm the one on the left in the cool hipster pants) | ||
| Dalton_gang |
I had one too! (no picture) I also had the Evil Knievel stars and stripes helmet. | ||
| Rex |
man, I wore out a brochure on those, just sitting there looking at it all of the time. a while back I picked up a bonanza bike fixer upper....at a garage sale..we will see | ||
| Jramsey |
In 1967 using the earnings from my first job a paper route I bought a 3 HP "Lil" Indian and thought I was hot sh!t till my neighbor got a RUPP Roadster with 5 HP. Tramp, you used to be cute........what happened?  | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
I had a RUPP minibike frame with a 2hp briggs and no brakes. It was geared to WASTE mopeds on the street. I still have it and it will start on the third pull! (still no brakes!) | ||
| Cityxslicker |
1970 Honda 50cc minibike. it was 35 years ago, some where I have a pic of me on it, I know the damn thing had a headlight cuz I got in trouble for riding at night. | ||
| Brumbear |
I see our parents were mutualy fond of Austin Powers as I had several YEAH BABY outfits as well | ||
| Tramp |
Oh, be-HAAAAVE! | ||
| Badlionsfan |
Let's see.... forty years ago I was kickin' it in my mom's ovaries. My first ride was a 1978 Pugh moped. Got it when I was 12, 1991 IIRC. | ||
| Etennuly |
You lucky bastards!  I didn't have one. My mother worked for JCPenney in town. When we would go to the Mall store they had a mini bike in their auto center. I was about twelve or so, I would just stand there for hours staring at it while my parents shopped in the mall. They never had trouble finding me. The parents objected whole heartedly to me having a mini bike, dad however kinda caved by letting me have a go-cart after six months of me pouting about the mini bike. I was a terror on that go-cart. Five hp, live axle, slicks, lots of back streets that were still gravel roads. It is where I learned that I would rather drive sideways on dirt than straight or turning on pavement. That carried over into so many things I have done in my life thus far.  | ||
| Tramp |
Both of my parents (Ski pros) rode, and Sundays were our family day in the trails around the hills, here....So I didn't have much choice, either way- trail-bikes in Summer, Skiing in Winter. | ||
| Slaughter |
5 HP Briggs and Stratton Taco. Even had a rear suspension (kinda) - the swingarms were NOT connected, the wheel really could tilt. It'd kick a MiniTrail's butt! (Message edited by slaughter on July 30, 2008) | ||
| Miamiuly |
I had one of those things, though I'm just almost 40 now. I traded a pair of BMX forks to an older kid for the bike and when I came to collect he tried to rip me off. I might have been 10 years old. Without thinking I rode down the street to the police station and told them what was up. They actually took me back to the guy's house and made him go get the thing and give it to me after he admitted to making the trade. His dad was pissed.... at me for not coming to him first. No charges or anything but needless to say, the bike didn't start when I got it. One day I got pulled out of class at school so my mom could "ask" me if it was okay to sell it to some repair guy. Later on I got to ride for real thanks to a family that rode together and provided supervision and left little argument against me riding. Mom even tried to get my doctor to say it was unsafe but he surprised her with, "as long as he wears his gear...." Had my own money 'cause I was saving for a 13ft boston whaler and had a paper boy type job before school. Actually groomed the local clay tennis courts, unlocked the gates and put out the water coolers before school. Only 6 courts lined in a row. (Message edited by miamiuly on July 30, 2008) (Message edited by miamiuly on July 30, 2008) | ||
| Ustorque |
got my first bike at the age of 5. a metal flake purple 19?? 5hp rupp. that bike was the shit. no recoil on the pull cord, you had to pull and hope for the best. it sucked having to rewrap the cord every time it didn't start. diligently maintained for years at "Russ's small engine and lawnmower repair" in Londonderry NH. now that guy knew how to work on bikes. | ||
| Ustorque |
 very close to the one i had, looking at it now makes me wish i still had it. thanks for bringing back some old memories! | ||
| Wile_ecoyote |
I had a Suzuki TrailHopper 50. The thing tried to kill me every time I got on it. (least thats what I told 'em) Learned alot on that bike, man love to have one now. Fond memories abound of me, my brother and my dad on the trails riding together. I have started to teach my daughter to ride now and am on the lookout for a proper ride for her. Gotta pass it along, you know? | ||
| Road_thing |
This was "only" 37 years ago:  rt (lone biker of the apocalypse) | ||
| Tramp |
RT/LBOTA I didn't fergit! That photo looks like an album cover for The Band | ||
| Brumbear |
I actually bought a manco dirt mini bike last year | ||
| Tramp |
manco- COOL! I was blown away by the mention, as well, of Bonanza...I'd nearly forgotten about both makes. I miss the Ruttman "Uglies"... I moved up from the pictured "Cheeftah" to a "Speedway", to a few Yammmie Mini-enduros, to my XR75 | ||
| Reepicheep |
Road Thing... I spent 20 minutes talking with Bill Baird last week, just chatting about motorcycles. He said those old triumphs were a lot lighter when he was a lot younger   http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/classics/bike.asp? id=131 | ||
| Just_ziptab |
About 45 years ago  | ||
| Toona |
My father was a dealer for Lil Indian before I could ride  I remember him assembling them in the garage at night after work I remember having one of these Chibi's around 7-8 years old  I spent most of my riding youth on a '74 XR75  The night we brought it home, we unloaded it out of my father's Dodge van. I promptly fired it up and took off down the side street next to the house only to see the local police sitting back in an alley. I did a quick u turn and flew back to the house and pulled the XR75 into the fully lit 2 car garage, just in time to see the police go flying up the road with their lights on looking for the "offender". I think I was 10.  I still remember hollaring at the top of my lungs as I pulled in to the garage "THE COPS ARE COMING, THE COPS ARE COMING"  In my best Edith and Archie Bunker voice "Those were the days!!!!!!" | ||
| Road_thing |
Reep: Everything was a lot lighter when I was a lot younger! rt | ||
| Etennuly |
Anybody ride a Chapparral mini bike? One of my Uncles sold them and their snowmobiles. (I still wasn't allowed to have one!  ) | ||
| Typeone |
sweet thread! as most, i started on a rigid mini as well, no clue what brand it was but man did that thing rock. plenty of power, scrub brake, throttle that would stick... goodTimes! shortly after i moved to 'real' bikes like the JR50, etc. then finally got my own which was a '80 CR80R Elsinore. sick bike. just last season i got addicted to the rigid old skool bikes all over again, my neighbor got me into ice racing and summer drags. here's my two latest... Lil Indian w/6HP Tec, no governor, throttle straight to upgraded carb, UNI filter, breather re-routed, custom Robertsons header, TAV2 belt clutch, RLV race chain and 60T rear sprocket. thing has great torque and does around 45~50MPH. shown here while i was studding the tires for last seasons races.   and this is my new project this season, i call it the DB65R this one is in progress but has a 6.5HP Honda clone kart racing motor, no governor, billet rod, aluminum flywheel, stiffer valve springs, higher compression head, dual stage header, Mikuni fuel pump, Mikuni carb, some fat jets, billet intake with pulse fitting, UNI filter, RLV chain and MaxTorque race clutch w/all chain jackshaft    insanely FUN and insanely DANGEROUS. no kiddie toy.. . hahaaa! (Message edited by typeone on July 31, 2008) | ||
| Tramp |
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| Court |
Anyone else spend half their childhood lusting over the "kit" ads in Popular Science? i still have this Cushman sitting here next to my desk. | ||
| Miamiuly |
The bmx store that I went to and at one time raced for was also/primarily a honda dealer. It was about 2 miles from home, you could say I went there often. Z50's, Odysseys....my friend ended up getting a z50 so I did get to sneak some rides on that before I got to ride with parental consent. (funny to me that honda uses the pilot and odyssey names on suvs now- recycling what they own I guess.) Oh, and my cousins had a yamaha mx100 and a suzuki 80 sitting in their shed. They were pretty much over them and I would have killed to ride one but NOOOooo. Uncle had a kawi 175 dual sport, usually first thing I'd see when we pulled up the drive. |
