Did you ride in the 70's?

[Bob_Acid]

When i was riding about doing jumps on my 24" racer with cow horns the only kids around me that were on BMX were either on a Murray or a piranha (no Burners yet). These were, i guess, the only entry level bikes that were available at that time in the South east London/ North east Kent suburb that i lived in.

Now that winter I was loaned a second hand Murray by a fellow jumper, mark,  and the same Christmas i was given my first real bmx, a pro-star, by my parents. I still hang out and get drunk with my school friends, we meet a couple of times a year for various reasons and i've asked them about it and from memory and the feedback from them i think in all honesty it must have been the winter of 1982 going into 83. I went to secondary school in 81 and the first year to me was all about booze and birds, regular coming of age stuff, going from a kid to a teenager. Madness, Bad Manners and the Specials. So it wasn't Christmas 81 and must have been 82 but more like 83 when i really took the bait.

Give it a few months of riding and i'd hooked up with the older crowd of bmxers that were on their redlines, gooses, rippers and torkers. We rode that next winter of 83/4 doing street in Bexleyheath hassling the police and the security staff of the new Broadway shopping centre (By then the Burner had popped up). These guys taught me how to ride and showed me the ropes people like the Taylor brothers and Steve Monk who were big names in jnr moto cross at the time so it stands to reason these people got it before the masses did but were they they riding in 79? that would have put them 4 years ahead of me.

I know people were riding bmx here then, Billy being the prime example of those who did it and made it and kev DW and being an example of those who did it but didn't.

i do think though that there is a bit of a legend status about it, It's like Seeing the Pistols at the lesser trade centre or going to Shoom at the fitness centre.

Anyway that's just my view, what's yours?

[stidds]

I rode my 1st BMX in 1979, but I was living in the states at the time, so that is probably why.  We came back to the UK in 1981 and BMX was just starting in the Bristol area.

[stuntmaster]

no but my dad did that how i came out about

[Bob_Acid]

LOL

[OrgasmDonor]

same as you mr zapper but i progressed to a raliegh bomber, man those forks where made of butter

[theRuler]

in the 70's i had a hand-me-down falcon with solid tyres and rod brake. if you stopped pedalling the bike stopped. didn't get a bmx until 1983. got a motorbike for my 7th birthday in 1980 though

[shivadread]

In Jersey I had my first Mongoose in 1978/79, there was a shop called Action Leisure which started selling mainly mongooses and ammaco's then.  I think he was importing them in from USA

[kdw712]

bob
heres my short bmx history circa 80 - 82

I can remb riding a raleigh jeep 24" skinny knobblies and cow horns over local woods
barnhurst bostal and abbey that woud of been pre 1980
bent so many sets of bars on that

then a couple of us moved onto bmx i got a piranha poss dec 80 birthda or xmas
my mate saw a murray for sale in a car show room for £50 and had that.
next two both got pro stars and dumped their grifters
by now must of been late 81

i remb the taylor bros and their gang used to hassle us a lot
mainly in barnhurst woods their local turf but we would also go up the old dave taylor trail park
as a couple of me mates rode Mx bikes too and we would ride in the woods their too

i can remb riding with huge gang inc jason malony up bostal woods
he was mongoose then full factory DB
remb he turned up one day in full factory bling - he was like a god from then on 

used to go to OTs and then the heath most saturdays
saw tim and andy do a mongoose demo at OT's wish i had some pics of that now 

other than the woods we rode street but mainly endos bunny hoping the small kids (feck me that was mad looking back)
kerb jumping and wheelie comps  and circus style stuff, all bit sad looking mirra today

used to go the car park next to the library in bexleyheath on sundays as it was empty and we'd race around that

it was all burners redlines kuwaharas mongoose DB's and of course piranha and murreys

by late 82 i was out of the scene , girls happened and bikes didn't matter

fast fwd to 2003 it started all over again and is even better 

[dan-dare]

Hey Bob!

these pics are of my older brother. The KZ1 in the picture came new f/f only from surrey bmx. I remember the day it arrived and we reckon 1980. Prior to the KZ1 he rode a team murray 330. As for me riding in the 70's, yeah my raleigh striker (green BTW)!!!!

[OrgasmDonor]

jeeeeeezus dan! that looks just like you except he's got his endo's dialed

is that before you lived in beverly hills?

[Rombloke]

had a murray 340 for christmas 1979

there was four of us on my estate with bmx's.

john gavercole( a member on here who's redline from bitd is in vinoahs possesion)
jamie tindale...who could coaster wheelie forever....
myself......

all puch murray owners

and jason balsamo, the spoilt fook got a blue team mongoose with blue tuffs....ffs

lol

Dave

[rarman1]

my first ever two wheel bike given to me by my cousin debbie it was a raleigh chipper

me and my mate ali 78



mongoose 80 (same alley way)



amacco 81 hollow ponds (mongoose got nicked)



had a redline after the amacco about 83, then got a gt world tour 85, rode around with a couple of  older kids called david gooding and mark wayne stratford shoping center east london, rom, chase lane,

gave up bmx in 87

[Jazzchimp]

I started riding as soon as I could walk, but here's me pulling tricks on my 3 wheeler in around '74

Then on to jumps at around '76

Check out the chick by the way - get in there Jazz!! 


Then got my first Murray 360 in around '79/80 - quit riding in 85 

Started again in 2003  and on to MK last year