# why are you into bikes.



## 37fleetwood (Sep 26, 2012)

is it time for another 10 page post yet? does anyone even care?

my question is not how did you start, what were your goals, or where do you hope to be in 10 years. my question is what do you get out of it.
why bicycles? why old bicycles? why not something else?

my answer is not so simple that I can answer it in one easy answer, so I'm expecting the answers to be complicated and not make too much sense. for me it comes from the fact that my parents from as far back as I remember always collected old stuff. old cars, old furniture, player pianos, beer signs, arcade games, anything old and cool.
I originally started collecting toy trains, I still have many of them. next I wanted something more physical, more interactive. I was going through an outdoor phase, I was getting into photography and hiking and wanted something I could do every day. I also had friends and family who were into bikes, and one cousin in specific who showed an interest in old bikes. I picked up an old Schwinn middleweight and we rode around a bunch. eventually he bought the evolution of the bicycles vol. 2 and from there I realized there were endless possibilities and I was hooked. it really took off when I met Frank and the crew from Cyclone Coaster, where I found like minded folks who shared my passion and dedication to "riding vintage" as Frank puts it.
there's my answer, what's yours?


----------



## SirMike1983 (Sep 26, 2012)

I got into old bikes maybe 18 or so years ago when instead of getting a new bike, I instead fixed up my dad's old middleweight and rode that around. Ever since, I've ridden vintage bikes for fun and exercise. Many are quite attractive and telling of their eras, which is nice. It's all about riding for me- going all over the area for fun and exercise.


----------



## SJ_BIKER (Sep 26, 2012)

*Freedom....*

FOR me it all started when my dad bought me a 16 inch western flyer from the local western auto store....i have a picture somewhere.... it had a tank....a number plate and hard as rock tires....mix of bmx and old school ballooner look.....it was my first bike and i was hooked since then....it looks like the one hanging from the ceiling but mine had a number plate and looked way more colorful...blue/yellow color combination....soooo..i blame my dad...i love that guy!!


----------



## ridingtoy (Sep 26, 2012)

I just simply have a *thing* for the style of older wheeled goods whether they be adult sized bicycles or smaller juvenile bikes, trikes, pedal tractors, etc., and get enjoyment out of collecting. Hopefully, I'll get even more enjoyment out of restoring the ones I have when I retire in 4 years. It's just a part of who I am, I guess. I have a very great appreciation for the quality that went into the construction of older bicycles and children's ride on toys made back before the plastic (junk) age, and want to do my part to preserve as much as I can for a future generation to enjoy. That's my answer in a nutshell.

Dave


----------



## Gary Mc (Sep 26, 2012)

*Therapy & Exercise*

Easy one.  Worked in a bike shop when I was 12 YO & it was my first job, loved it.  Fast forward to 50 YO with 25+ years in the corporate world in a high stress job behind a desk staring at a computer for the last 15 years of it and I needed a year round hobby in the evenings to get my mind off work as therapy, something just hands on to actually work on something, and I needed to start getting more exercise thanks to all the desk time.  Those 3 items were fulfilled by accident 3 years ago when my Brother-In-Law was tossing out his rusted up 61' Huffy & I brought it home to tinker with, fix it up, and ride it.  I knew I had the skills from that first job I loved as a kid.  It was pure therapy at once allowing me to forget about stressful work days & the corporate world for a few hours in the evenings.

So tinkering with old bikes is my Therapy to forget the work day and riding old bikes is my Exercise not to mention both make me feel like a kid again.

(P.S., Little did I know I would find the CABE & enjoy spending more time in the evenings behind a computer LOL but it's still getting away from my real job.)


----------



## Buster1 (Sep 26, 2012)

Also easy...they're made in America (the ones i love).


----------



## militarymonark (Sep 26, 2012)

I was always into bikes, it was my main means of transportation since I was 4. So when I found my dad's old shelby in the barn one day and pulled it out. I started messing around with it and put it all back together. My dad was pissed cause my older brothers took parts off it and basically he couldn't ride it since then. When I was riding it around my dad's face lit up. I am right now in the process of restoring it (chrome goes out next week) and then hopefully giving it back to him for either Christmas or father's day. That bike is the bike that led me to thecabe in 2002. But i needed an old bike of my own and i started buying everything I could. At first it was just a hobby. Then it turned into a fun thing to do with my then g/f now wife. Then when I joined up as a volunteer for Young Life these old bikes became a tool for me to reach out to kids and lead them in a positive way of life away from drugs and substance abuse. I still use it as a tool for kids but now this is for my kids, friends, and family.


----------



## jd56 (Sep 27, 2012)

*Another Addiction*

I've had an addictive personality all my life. So, when I found rock bottom 11 years ago, I found that my shortcomings and addictive mindset needed to be replaced with another addiction. Idle free time was not a good thing for me so I needed a release that didn't get me in trouble.
Even though I'm always in some kind of trouble with the wife....lol

I picked up an all orginal early 60's Ross Deluxe 2 years ago, because I wasn't impressed with the mass produced cruisers from Wallymart.  It had the appealing tanklight, go figure. And I was off to the races.
I enjoy the finger pointing by the ones that use to have bikes like this when they were younger. Now I have too many and many are still a work in progress.
Tinkering and rebuilding seemed a major chore so all complete bikes was my only interest but, I have found that buying an incomplete bike and the search for the correct parts to complete a resto was and is a challenge.

But, the main thing I found was that becoming a member of the Cabe, had a big influence. My computers at work and home are always logged onto the Cabe and I honestly can say the comradery here encouraged me. It's the Cabes fault.

Researching and finding all I can about a relic 2 wheeler is a new found passion and let me say I'm a proud to be an antique/vintage bike collector/addict.


----------



## Wcben (Sep 27, 2012)

As a kid, I grew up in a very small town in the middle of no-where.... My nearest friend lived about 4 miles away and the village was about 13 miles away.  It was pretty hilly territory too so to see any of my friends over the summer, I had to ride.  I loved riding...the speed, the freedom the bike.....  I'm naturally pretty mechanically inclined so the design of the bikes always attracted me, checking out different deraillers, brakes, frame sets...  The first one to really get me was my mk1 Raleigh chopper, mine was orange and black and had the high back sissy bar! It was a pretty rare 5 speed, LOVED that bike wish I still had it!  Then, I met my Racycle see post #33 here:  http://thecabe.com/vbulletin/showth...Racycle-model-quot-Suspension-City-quot/page4

All the while, my folks were always into antiques and had thought me to respect the innovations and designs that had come before.  So all along, various interests all combined into an appreciation of these mechanical, beautiful, innovative rides grew and developed.  I built a couple of my own designs ( a recumbent, a mountain) but always loved the specialties. 

After moving to Florida, I got hit (by a hit and run) while riding.  Fortunately the injury wasn't horrible just real good road rash but, a car matching the same description hit another rider a week later who ended up in the hospital and then another rider who didn't survive... I felt like I was practice!  It scared me so badly that I didn't go near my bike for about 5 years.

Now, it's come close to a full circle, I'm loving riding when I can again and the Racycle has come back into a full passion!

Eventually, I'll find another mk1 chopper!


----------



## cyclingday (Sep 27, 2012)

Back in the 70s a guy named Larry McNeely, opened up a shop called, Recycled Cycles in Newport Beach, California.
I was just about maybe 15 or 16 years old, and I went in to check it out, and the rest is history.


----------



## bike (Sep 27, 2012)

*I like bikes*

I used to be into 1930s cars Classics and hot rods. worked on em- could not afford one- wanted one old bike for the beach and found the world of art deco streamlined bikes- I was hooked- lived it full time for 20 years and now part time and actually looking to collect afew keepers after selling most of my stuff.
In a guys museum one car sold could build a magnificent collection of fine orginal bikes, representive of all periods, that could fit in about the same space.

I like transportation museums that cover bicycles. Most don't Greenfield village in MI (now THE FORD or someting) and the curtiss aviation pioneer musem in bath ny are two I have not been to but think owls head in maine has good bikes - I am sure there are a few more


----------



## kngtmat (Sep 27, 2012)

I always like bicycles but I was never into it as much as I am now since over 2 years ago when I decided to fix my 1994 Murray Monterey that someone who owned a car dealer that I walked to gave it to me that all I need now is to paint the bike.


----------



## bricycle (Sep 27, 2012)

I have always gravitated toward anything old. Old cars, stuff in museums, dinosaurs, history.
Guess I am attracted to the simpler life of days gone by.... parasols, horse drawn carriages, straw hats, less hustle and bustle.....no tv's, no internet, no phones. Now I can look at the old bikes anytime I have a lust for vintage.....


----------



## dfa242 (Sep 27, 2012)

_why are you into bikes?_

My wife keeps asking me the same question.  As with just about all things made or associated with the years roughly spanning from about 1890 to the 1930s, I just have a fascination with them.  Sometimes I think I may have been present in another life 50 or 60 years before my birthdate.


----------



## Rear Facing Drop Out (Sep 27, 2012)

*Great topic*

I am the youngest of 5 kids and had hand me down bikes but I looked up to my older brother and sisters so I thought highly of there "stuff". That along with a fasination for garbage picking I found myself with more then a few bikes and parts. I would mess with bikes to make up "frankensteins" but it wasnt til I was 15 and broke my leg that I didnt take the time to "restore" any of them. My dream was to get a phantom! My dad was into Model A's and we found many old bikes but nothing "great". I stuck with it for all these years and own or have owned some of the rarest bikes out there. Family is number one though and I have sold off far more bikes and parts that I care to remember to help with maternty time off and odds and ends. Still have never found a complete whizzer or a high wheeler, missed by just days on both though. I currently have about 30 bikes in my collection, about 30 more on the "bubble" for resto or sell. and about 4 garage stalls full of parts, dealer goodies, and paper goods. I have been very fortunate to find large amounts of good stuff! My 9 year old loves joining me at swap meets and is learning that a good hand shake and honest dealing is a great way to interact. My daughter likes cleaning up bikes with me and my 20 month old can spot a bike from a mile away and gets super excited when he points one out! No kids near my house or company have been without a bike or with a flat tire. I stop and put a chain on for a stranded rider every chance I can. I feel bikes have been good to me and I will return the favor. 

The pic is a bike I took with to a Preschool Fathers Day thing, the kids liked ringing all the bells and stuff! This pic is after we took a few things off.


----------



## Phsyco~nut (Sep 27, 2012)

I have been into old classic cars since the mid 70's, have had many cars and in the recent years have seen the passion in the old bikes and seen something else I could get into. Not much cheaper though!

It also represents for me a time and an era when America was strong and lots of pride in the workmanship of these old daily vehicles in them days. I was not born here in the U.S but remember when being made in the U.S.A meant something, sadly that has diminished, but we can still keep it alive in restoring these great machines!! 

I remember when my older brothers had paper routes and we use to ride our JC Penney bikes early in the morning to deliver paper, seeing other kids with Schwinn Krates and they were the poop back then......


----------



## ridingtoy (Sep 27, 2012)

Rear Facing Drop Out said:


> The pic is a bike I took with to a Preschool Fathers Day thing, the kids liked ringing all the bells and stuff! This pic is after we took a few things off.




What a neat pair of little Schwinns! 

Dave


----------



## bricycle (Sep 27, 2012)

He & She bikes are cool!!!!!


----------



## OldRider (Sep 27, 2012)

I  have always been fascinated by antiques, cars, bottles, cans, furniture, bikes, i have no idea who I inherited this 'gene' from, neither of my parents nor my 9 brothers and sisters have this disease! I love bikes best because I can't do old cars anymore, its my replacement!


----------



## Adamtinkerer (Sep 27, 2012)

It probably started when my family moved to the suburbs in 1977. They let me pick out a replacement, for the bike I had for a couple days, promptly stolen off our front porch in the city, never to be seen again. I picked out a Columbia "All American", a 20" banana seater, white with red and blue accents. I don't remember clearly, but I think neighborhood kids said something about the fenders, that cool bikes didn't have them. So, soon I removed them, inspiring a life of tinkering! In the summer of 1980, I stopped by a garage sale, and instantly fell in love with a very rusty 1956 Schwinn Corvette! Bought it for $2.50, and would've rode it as is. But, I guess my parents thought they'd look bad, with me riding that old rustbucket around. So, they talked me into letting my dad repaint it, since he was starting to do auto body in our garage. Soon I started dragging home bikes set on the curb for bulk item trash pickup. I still have the 56, it doesn't have an original part left, but I found enough clean used/repop parts through ebay to resurrect it. Since my son was born in 2008, I've had essentially no time to work on bikes. But, I do have time to relax with my family, and spend some time cruising the forums here and at RRB.


----------



## Freqman1 (Sep 27, 2012)

About ten years ago my dad found his boyhood bike when my grandmother passed. Having been a paint and body man for 50 years he decided to restore his bike. When I saw it I was blown away at how nice it was. Like a lot of you I'm a collector of a lot of stuff--cars, motorcycles, beer cans, stamps, license plates, Harley stuff, model cars, Coca Cola trays, clocks, watches...well you get the idea so when I saw his bike I started doing a lot of research and bought my first classic bike, a 1956 green Phantom. Since then things have really taken off. My dad's bike is a '46 Schwinn straight bar with the fat bar. It is the green bike. Since then he found a girls bike and restored it to match his so my mom can ride and he now has two more straight bars (I only have a pic of the black one-he also has a truss rod red bike as well). Mom told him no more bikes but she can't really say anything to me anymore 'cause I'm a big boy now! V/r Shawn


----------



## tailhole (Sep 27, 2012)

My friend just taught his 5 year old daughter how to ride a bike, the first few seconds of riding under her own steam, she shouted, "It's like magic!  It's like magic!".  I think that sums up nicely.


----------



## spandy (Sep 27, 2012)

*One green bike*

Wow love the post, read them all.  Like many it started with dad.  For as long as I can remember my dad always had this old green bike in our unfinished basements.  This bike followed me everywhere we moved, (6 states from coast to coast) but always stayed in the unfinished basement.  I went to college, got busy and life moved on.  Three years ago my dad retired and moved yet again, and the bike went to an unfinished basement. Finally life slowed down and I sat and talked to him about the bike.  He told me it was his mothers bike and the first and only bike he ever road until he graduated high school and went to Vietnam.  He said he had always wanted to fix it up but work got in the way.  So I snuck it out of the basement and moved it 2500 miles to my house.  Just like all the other stories it was a family affair.  My kids, my sisters kids and The Cabe fixed it up and we gave it to him last fathers day.  But before I did I rode it with my little ones every day to the community pool and fell in love.  So when the bike made its final move back to my dads I knew I had to have one for myself.  The bike is now the center piece of his bar in the FIXED UP basement.  This one bike started it all.  The bike was a 1941 Schwinn DX.


----------



## jwm (Sep 27, 2012)

tailhole said:


> My friend just taught his 5 year old daughter how to ride a bike, the first few seconds of riding under her own steam, she shouted, "It's like magic!  It's like magic!".  I think that sums up nicely.




This says it all. Some time ago I was introduced to the concept of "saturation", where certain terms are so loaded (saturated) with familiar connotations that we no longer understand their original, true meaning. For example,  you can't see or hear the word "mother" without your own mom coming to mind. "God" is another saturated concept. When the idea of God gets desaturated, it is called a religious (another saturated term) awakening.

It's almost the same thing with riding a bike. The little girl's concept of "ride a bike" was completely unsaturated with experience. As soon as she experienced the almost miraculous improbability of remaining upright on two wheels her delight meter absolutely redlined. Somehow I've managed to keep the sensation of riding pretty close to being unsaturated with experience. I always think of it this way:
Imagine a device that would allow you to expend slightly less effort than a brisk walk, and carry you along ten or so inches above the ground at a faster pace than you can run. It is very akin to flight- the closest  you can get without resorting to parachutes, or motorized winged machines.

Add to that the inherent cool factor of the classics we know so well, and it comes about as close to magic as we get.

JWM


----------



## gifarmer (Sep 27, 2012)

I'm still on training wheels here in the CABE, but I started collecting old bikes 22 years ago. I've been collecting old radios since high school and in 1990 found a 1939 Motorola bike radio at a flea market for $6.  It was bright red and in nice condition, but didn't display very well on the shelf with my other old radios. I decided to look for an old bike from about 1939 that the radio would look good on - maybe two-tone red and ???, or maybe one with red pinstriping.  Well, it took me a few years to find that bike but in the meantime I found others that were pretty cool and I bought them. Now I've got a couple dozen ranging from some 1890's wood wheel bikes up to some Krates and a low-rider we built from a Drag-Duster. They've been lots of fun and my 3 sons all like them too - I suppose their story would be one of the ones where their dad got them started.
I just made the avatar tonight - it's the 1939 Motorola bike radio that got me started.


----------



## bikecrazy (Sep 28, 2012)

When I was young I always had junk bikes. I dug an old Schwinn 3 speed "World" out of the trash when I was 13 and used Testors car model paint to restore it. My Dad took me to the local Schwinn Dealer and I soon learned the I could get all the cool parts I wanted to make it look like new. I was very proud of my finished bike and everyone thought I had a new one, That is when the thought hit me that if you could not afford something new, you could fix it up to look like new and most people would never know the difference.

I moved on to fixing up cars when I started to drive and for the next 30 years I was heavy into auto restoration. You name it, I had it. I would buy project cars and build them the way I wanted them to be. I was at a Car swap meet 6 years ago when I noticed a Schwinn Corvette for $60. I called a work assc. who was my friend, that was heavy into Schwinn collecting, and he said it was a great buy.I bought the bike, and as I walked it to the car I heard the familiar clicking sound of the SA hub. It instantly brought back all my childhood memories of my first restoration project. I was hooked from that point on and now own over 100 bicycles. I bought projects and basket cases and restored them into bicycles that I wanted for my collection. I am still going strong with no intention of slowing down


----------



## rebirthbikes (Sep 28, 2012)

Well, it started for me when I was about 16.  My uncle had a Black Phantom out in his pig barn. It was next to and under a big pile of straw. I inquired if I might have it and he said "NO!"
I had no idea of its value, I just thought it looked cool. It was smooth like butter. So I devised a plan, one night when he was gone, I snuck into the barn and took it. I brought it home and had my dad show me how to clean up the chrome. I spent a few days overhauling it. I polished the chrome, the paint and greased up every part I could. It was a definite trial and error thing as these days were pre-google. After it was done and all shiny again. I had my dad take me out to uncle's house and we delivered it to him. It brought a little tear to his eye, as he had not seen it in that condition since he was a boy. It was his bike and it was christmas present to him. It still sits in his living room to this day. After that I was hooked, but I was young, and forgot about bicycles... jump forward ten years and I was driving my car home one day when BAM! The pump went out. My car died. After I pushed a quarter mile, I decided the hell with it and left it on the side of the road by some guy's house. Walking home from that, a troop of people on road bikes sped by me and then I had an epiphany... donate the car to the city of St. Louis and find a bike. I called the cops on myself and had them tow the car. (it was the cheapest tow I could get, only cost me $25 for the parking ticket!!!) I rode my friends univega mountain bike down to the impound yard and signed away my car. I was on a bike since that time. I got heavy into mountain biking and tinkering with my bike. A year ago, due to financial problems I moved back home to Ohio and lived with my parents for about 6 months, until I got back on my feet. It's a small boring little town and I felt myself going crazy. I missed my lady and I needed something to do. On a trip to the scrap yard with some recyclables I decided to head out back and just look at stuff. I found an old tire sticking up out of a mud puddle and pulled out a bike. I thought, man, this thing is trashed, but, with a little love I could probably bring it back to life. So I bought it for 4 bucks!!! Took it home and got to work. The tank and rack were shot and luckily I found the same tank and rack off of the same bike in an antique mall. It was like the bicycle gods were smiling on me. I bought them and got back to work. About two months later and many many blisters for them emory cloth, it was down to bare metal and ready for the paint. I swapped some old parts for about $150 credit at memory lane and Gary helped me pick out the coolest stuff I could find. My lady had never owned a bicycle, let alone ever learned how to ride one and so I dedicated myself to making her the coolest bicycle I possibly could. She unwrapped it at Christmas and the sparkle in her eyes... set me off. I had found a new appreciation for old classic bicycles and I had to have them. I had to give them new life. It was now my mission. Here's the before and after of her bicycle... she name it "The Dreamsicle"

thanks for letting me share,
judd


----------



## dilantha (Sep 28, 2012)

i am an athlete more of a cycling type., there is nothing than the feeling when i get when i ride my cycle in the evening


----------



## Bent Rim (Sep 28, 2012)

*For the nostalgia*

and they are much cheaper than Classic or Muscle cars by far. Plus, I enjoy riding a balloon tire bike.

Bent Rim


----------



## 1959firearrow (Sep 28, 2012)

For me its kinda like a time machine that takes me back to a time when I definetly wasn't around. I love the idea of americans making stuff for americans. I can't stand new cars or bikes they have no soul. Old bikes are just way better in every way. Just when you when you hop on that seat and start to pedal away there is that feeling that nothing else seems to be able to do. That feeling of freedom, to many of us I think our first memories of freedom or mischief with friends were on or around bikes. Bikes were my first love, I was on them from sun up to sundown or tearing them apart. Hell I even ejoy the scars from all the wild spills I took and remebering those and the good times with friends. These bikes were built by people with pride, thats why I ride them with that same pride. They may not be pretty and painted but man do I ever enjoy that ride. Lastly the nice thing about old bikes is that with little more than one phillips and one flathead screwdriver, a set of standard wrenches, and a cresent wrench can completely tear one down to service it. Its a hobby everyone can do. My screen name is the bike that started my vintage bike addiction about 2 years ago. I've got some nice ones in the collection I think I've found all I want for now so its time to start the restorations and get rid of the parts bikes and the bikes I don't have feelings for.


----------



## silvertonguedevil (Sep 29, 2012)

There have been some really good stories and points made in this thread. I've really enjoyed going through it.

My dad saved up all summer long and at the end of the summer, my grandpa took him down to the Schwinn dealership and dad picked out his bike. He bought a brand-new 1962 Schwinn Traveler in black, white and chrome. He loved this bike. He still owns it to this day. In fact, he even still has the tag that hung from the handlebars. He has always been proud of the speedometer on it as it shows 2,600 miles. He said that he took it everywhere and that no one could peel him off of that bike. He also loves telling about the time he and his friends took their bikes and coasted down Division Hill. He said the speedometer was bouncing at 50 mph. He said his clothes were flapping in the wind and tears were running back towards his ears. Oh yeah, and no helmets or pads! 
I remember it sitting in the garage when I was a kid and I was drawn to it. I pumped up the tires and cleaned it up and I rode it around for a summer until the original tires finally gave out and then it sat again but that was enough to spark my interest. I was about 14 when I started dragging home old bikes. I had a pretty nice little pile. I "restored" one for mom, rattlecanning it on the front porch pink and white for her. I must say it looked pretty cool. All of my friends were into BMX and Freestyle at the time and finally, I turned my back on the old bikes and joined up with them. We lived in a small town and we tore that town up. There were 5 of us and we were ALWAYS on our bikes. Then came high school, girls, cars, job, wife, kids, etc and the bikes went away. Until......
One day dad called me and asked for my help. He said he was restoring his old bike and he wanted me to look on the internet for decals, parts, etc. He's not much of a computer guy. So I started poking around and all of a sudden, this whole world opened up to me. I realized there were a whole bunch of people out there that loved classic and antique bikes! Well, the rest history! I've got a real sickness now! 

I'm into bikes for many reasons. I was able to relate to the story about having an addictive personality. I always go overboard with collecting. I also know what it's like to be into old cars and the money that it takes to be in that hobby and this is a great alternative. I really enjoyed the description of the magic involved in riding a bicycle and the joy that comes over you. It's very true. It IS almost close to flight. I also really enjoyed the Made In USA bit. It was a really proud time for our country and SO much went into making these bikes. I can set my X-53 at the end of the driveway, set up a lawn chair at the head of the driveway, sit down, crack open a beer and sit there and just stare at the bike. The engineering and design and pride that went into these old bikes is amazing! 

Thanks for listening.

RIDE VINTAGE!!!


----------



## Coaster Brake (Sep 29, 2012)

Everything I use is vintage, as I sit here typing this, I am listening to my big console radio from 1948.
There is just something about those days gone by, and the stuff left over from then that absolutely fascinates me.
It's a shame I wasn't there for any of it, as I am only 19. Bicycles are neat because of the history behind each and every one of them, and on top of that, they are something I can use. The quality of the old American made stuff is unsurpassed.
I'll take an 80 year old single speed made right here in the good 'ol USA over 21 speeds made in china any day.
The same goes for everything I own, actually.


----------



## 2jakes (Sep 29, 2012)

I'm into the bicycles that I remember as a kid. I have a Western Flyer x-53 , a Schwinn Phantom ('55).
When I ride them , in my mind , I go back to those times. I have a 1946 Chevy pickup & I load up the
bike & head out real early in the mornings to small rural towns nearby that still retain the look that I
recall . Post office , barber shop, movie house & ice cream shop all located downtown with no malls at all.
To get there , I take the back country roads , no freeways. It's about a 30 -40 mile drive & If I could,
I would ride the bike ,my mind says yes , but my body says "no way". The bike is a time traveler for me
& I enjoy as much as I can until that day when I won't be able to do it. I'm 1 year older then my truck !


----------



## PhattCatBicycles (Sep 30, 2012)

It's better then Crack!!


----------



## Buster1 (Sep 30, 2012)

PhattCatBicycles said:


> It's better then Crack!!




But just as expensive!


----------



## Dan the bike man (Feb 27, 2013)

I have always collected "old stuff". my parents would take me to flea markets, garage sales, etc. where I bought whatever I was collecting at the time, WW II items, toy cars, post cards, coins. 
 I have a picture of myself riding a 2 wheeler at age 4. It's clear I was going FAST! From that day on I was on a bike as often as I could. My dad collected old bikes and so I bought my first old bike when I was 12, a 1960's Huffy Galaxy for $20. I bought and sold bikes and picked up bikes out of the trash. At age 12 I owned 18 bikes! After my grandfather died (he lived next door) we had to downsize our holdings and I only had a little bit of room in my parents garage. 

 I started collecting coins at age 12 and went head-first into that hobby. I would still ride bikes a LOT, but most of my money went to coins. When I was 22 I had worked at 5 "real" jobs and had enough of bosses already. So I started a coin business. This killed the joy of collecting coins as I did it all day long. So I started selling off my coins and started collecting pop trays, signs, and coolers. Then vintage ice cream items. I have room devoted for these items, but now the space is full. Last year I told myself I needed to get back to old bikes. So I started buying ANY old bike I found at a fair price at flea markets, resale shops, anywhere. I have turned into a haorder of many things, but did not want to do so with bikes. I want "the good stuff" and to have a focus. So I sold all the random old bikes and started buying the bikes I really want SCHWINNS! I have 2 Krates, and 5 balloon tank bikes - all original paint, in nice shape. I'd rather spend a little more up front than to just have a lot of junk that I'm not happy with. Once spring comes to MI I will go riding on these classics with my dad like the old days.

 When I go for a bike ride I clear my mind and just enjoy myself.


----------



## babyjesus (Feb 28, 2013)

*Cities*

Grew up in London England and moved to central Toronto later in life - both places are pointles to have cars in so I never even bothered to get a driving license and always rode a bike to get around but in an entirely 'urban' non sporty way and it was always a pleasure. Both my parents raced cars for a living and collected and dealt cars (nothing modern ever) - so it also runs in the familly. I work in the whole car collecting/racing environment - cars bore me though, I usually go round the paddock looking for interesting old folding bikes and such that teams bring to get around during a race meeting. Bikes are great for many reasons. There is nothing wrong with them for a start. You can't say that about so many things. New bikes are revolting because they are built almost entirely for practical reasons and not stylish  - except the new 'beach cruiser phenomena.  It's pretty cool that by riding an old bike you are going back in time really- experiencing getting from A to B as did people back when the bike was made and used. It's nice to collect something you can actually use rather than which just sits there never getting looked at by anyone except yourself and whoever comes over. I used to find bikes in the trash and rebuild them and sell them on CL. I got known for having tons of crappy 3 speeds around - which I kind of like - I can usually find something nice in any bike although with some of the new ones that gets pretty hard. So people would always say "oh I saw an old bike at somebody's house do u want me to ask them if they wanna sell it ....bla bla" so I'd end up getting cool old bikes whilst most other people weren't into that sort of thing back then, just amused by my stockpile and hive of activity and some of the cooler bikes I had. Gradually I have built up a collection of all types of bikes (not just prewar balloon   ) - I even have the worlds only ever plastic bike made - even the crank is plastic - big failure that - I'd like to exhibit them in the end. I have had countless offers to and not only can I make money that way but I can inspire people into realising just how cool bikes are/can be. Most people get pretty excited when they see cool bikes. It seems like the right thing to be doing in this life and even if it wasn't I would not have even a tiny chance of stopping myself because I am crazy about all of them.  People just shpould know if they ask me something the answer might be long and detailed - I need to learn when to stop! 

Interesting idea for a thread


----------



## jkent (Feb 28, 2013)

Well here is my story. It all started for me when I was around 11yrs. old. We didn't have much money and I never had a bicycle before, And one day I was walking down to a friends house and seen a piece of a bicycle in a ditch that a man was throwing away. He was ouside cleaning out his garage, so I walked up to him and asked ifI could have the bicycle that was in the ditch. He said sure grab anything you want. All of my friends already had bikes and I would always hop on the back of one of thier bikes. Anyway, I got the bike out of the ditch and carried it home. No handle bars or seat and two flat tires. all my friends gave me parts to fix it up. As I grew up I started working on cars but about a year and a half ago I nearly broke my back in three places. I now have 9 titanium anchors and three titanium rods supporting my spine and eveything from my left hip to my L3 vertabre is fused together. As part of my physical therapy I rode a bicycle and thought hey maybe this is my calling. So after rehab and therapy I started collecting old bicycles and I hope that my back gets good enough that this summer I can get out to my garage and start to restore some of the bicycles I have collected over the past year and 1/2 . Thats what got me into it and when I found this site about a yaer ago I think I use this site as my therapy now LOL! you guy's are great! and have helped me alot
 Thats my story. Thanks, JKent 
Sorry Vince I'll make it shorter next time!


----------



## Stony (Feb 28, 2013)

I have been collecting militaria for over 45 years and was looking for a WWII military bike. I met some local people and started purusing this forum and a few others looking for that bike. I ended up buying a 41' Colson as I liked their looks. I did get a WWII military bike and I enjoy riding both bikes.


----------



## Obi-Wan Schwinnobi (Feb 28, 2013)

*when the bug bit*

I remember having a bmx and some crap mountain bike when I was a kid. For me it didn't happen tell after high school, my friend came over riding a pre war dx he got from the salvation army. I was like that's pretty sweet. Id never seen anything like it. Around the same time I was hanging out with this girl who liked vintage everything, she too had an old Schwinn... So to kinda impress her I went to this tiny old bike shop that my friend with the dx had told me about. Walked in and paid 200 bucks for a mint 61 black n white Corvette ll with the kick back two speed! I was da pimp after that haha. Its been a down hill battle since the day her ex and I became friends and he showed me all his prewar Schwinns he had collected... Twas no hope after that, stick a fork in me...


----------



## Ranger Dan (Feb 28, 2013)

TLDR:


tailhole said:


> "It's like magic!  It's like magic!".




I'm into bikes because it strikes me as the pinnacle of human engineering achievement (before we ventured into more speculative exploits).  But it seems to be such a well-kept secret that there is no more efficient transportation device ever devised, in terms of energy input versus output.  Sadly, even the Chinese seem to have lost regard for it in favor of the Lexus and the Buick and the brown air.

There's a few things that remain inexpressibly mysterious to me about the nature of a bicycle.  There's almost nothing to it: a frame holding a front wheel on an articulating fork and a stationary rear wheel driven by a geared chain drive (leaving out the user interface elements).  With that brief description, a reasonably good engineer should be able to design one, right? It's so simple.  Yet why did it take ... all this time to be devised?  After all, they were making intricately geared mechanical astronomical computers a few millenia ago(!).  Shouldn't we be finding bicycles in 3000 year old Baghdad brick barns, and not just the inchoate sketch in the notebook of someone so recent as Leonardo?

It so simple, it seems beautiful to me by virtue of this fact alone.  It's simple to use, and this is another thing that intriges me, because if I attempt to really understand the dynamics this simple thing, maybe it would be better to be on a stationary bike:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bicycle_and_motorcycle_dynamics
and in posession of some calculus.  Or maybe not, because I already "understand" how to do this simple thing.  (As when I initiate a right turn by pushing on the right handlebar.  I just didn't know I was doing that until it was pointed out.)

But if for no other reason, I would ride a bike because to me it is as close to the experience of flying like the birds as I've ever experienced in so-called normal life.  It's just sort of collapsed into 2.x dimensions instead of the full 3.0.  So it's no wonder to me that the Wright Bros. had their mode of thought.

I'm here at the CABE because I like the "built to last" ethic of yore.  And y'all.


----------



## mre straightbar (Feb 28, 2013)

*it keeps me sane*

when everthing else goes wrong its something that i have some form of control over
and freedom to get away


----------

