Prior to soccer moms in minivans that bus their kids down the street to their friends' homes, roving gangs of bikers could be found on any suburban neighborhood street. They would descend upon the local parks, or to someone's home. Their prescence was marked by the rows of shiny painted and chromed stacked in rows. When on the move, the sounds of clattering chains and rachet pawls could be heard along with the hoots and hollars from their riders.
Their machine of choice? Schwinn! The Schwinn Varsity model being the ultimate ride that every kid envied and desired. They were equipped with 10 gears; 2 up front, 5 in the back, racing handlebars, skinny high pressure tires, and a (for then) lightweight frame! It was pictures of this bike we cut out of the Sears "wish book", and if one of the other kids in the neighborhood, we all wanted to ride this "dream machine"
I found one of these bikes at a Goodwill in Culpeper today for $20, and my childhood memories of these bikes came flooding back. I never had one in the 80's, but had the next best thing, the Collegiate 3-speed. I got the Collegiate for Christmas when i was 12 years old. It's positioned upside down in the background undergoing a rebuild of all it's bearings and getting a good restoration. That old bike carried me many thousands of miles around Norfolk VA when I went to ODU, and around my hometown neighborhood with my friends during grade school.
Still, that childhood desire to own a Varsity still held onto me, so I had to walk out of there with this bike! It's tires, although deflated, were practically new, and still had the mold-marks on them. The chain and all the sprockets, all nice and clean and well lubed. Some in the past has switched out the low-riding, leather wrapped handlebars for some cruising handlebars. A quick ride around the block after I pumped up the tires indicated it needed a few tweaks to the derailer, which only took a few minutes, and it was performing like new!
Although the kids today have moved on to other styles and makes of bikes...that is if you see the rare one still riding. Many today probably had never even heard of a Schwinn. Still, despite it being 40 degrees outside, I hopped on the bike and rolled down the street exceeding the neighborhood automobile 25 mph speed limit, breese through my hair, and just totally being a kid again on the bike every kid of the seventies and eighties envied!
Their machine of choice? Schwinn! The Schwinn Varsity model being the ultimate ride that every kid envied and desired. They were equipped with 10 gears; 2 up front, 5 in the back, racing handlebars, skinny high pressure tires, and a (for then) lightweight frame! It was pictures of this bike we cut out of the Sears "wish book", and if one of the other kids in the neighborhood, we all wanted to ride this "dream machine"
I found one of these bikes at a Goodwill in Culpeper today for $20, and my childhood memories of these bikes came flooding back. I never had one in the 80's, but had the next best thing, the Collegiate 3-speed. I got the Collegiate for Christmas when i was 12 years old. It's positioned upside down in the background undergoing a rebuild of all it's bearings and getting a good restoration. That old bike carried me many thousands of miles around Norfolk VA when I went to ODU, and around my hometown neighborhood with my friends during grade school.
Still, that childhood desire to own a Varsity still held onto me, so I had to walk out of there with this bike! It's tires, although deflated, were practically new, and still had the mold-marks on them. The chain and all the sprockets, all nice and clean and well lubed. Some in the past has switched out the low-riding, leather wrapped handlebars for some cruising handlebars. A quick ride around the block after I pumped up the tires indicated it needed a few tweaks to the derailer, which only took a few minutes, and it was performing like new!
Although the kids today have moved on to other styles and makes of bikes...that is if you see the rare one still riding. Many today probably had never even heard of a Schwinn. Still, despite it being 40 degrees outside, I hopped on the bike and rolled down the street exceeding the neighborhood automobile 25 mph speed limit, breese through my hair, and just totally being a kid again on the bike every kid of the seventies and eighties envied!
