What bikes have you had?

[eclectic]

First bikes - what memories that invokes

after the tricycle era and learning to ride on a neighbours bike, my dad came home with 2 beautiful turquoise blue CCM fixed gears for my sister and I. I rode that until I physically out grew it. By then it wasn't cool to ride a bike so we wasted time and walked.

After high school graduation I took my summer earnings and bought a CCM 10 speed I think it was a targa model or some such

I never did learn how to ride and shift correctly but rode merrily along anyway

I won a ten speed in a raffle but I don't even remember what kind it was - I ended up trading it in for my son's first bike

after a 25 year non bike riding era I bought a Schwinn Sierra (leisure bike) Great comfort bike but SLOW.

I also bought a used Schwinn High Plains mountain style bike for my daughter

As my riding level increased I was ready for a new bike.

I sold the Sierra and my mount of choice now for speed and distance is a Specialized Seqouia.
I kept the old schwinn High Plains for a grocerie store and tool around town back up, I put my rack and basket on the back Wicked witch of the West style and off I go happily to the farmers market

Thanks for asking

[dingster1]

Traditional trike
then Purple banana seat bike (my favorite)
3 speed Huffy
10 Speed (one as a kid and then one in the military)
Couple of Wally World specials

anticipating a Trek.... something.....really soon....

[Rai Sue]

When i was about 5? a small beautiful sparkly royal blue thing with a royal blue banana seat. passed onto my brother.

age 8-11: a slightly bigger girls raleigh.
around 11, my first ten speed: a Fuji, w/24 inch wheels. Still in my parents' garage, keep meaning to donate it to the bike kitchen

then, at 13, i took up with a mid-'70's Motobecane Mixte Grand Jubile 12 speed. Still riding that--i love it. It's got a pretty good gear range, and suntour bar end shifters and suntour cyclone deraileurs. Still going! I have taken it touring, and used it as a city commuter (with hills!) for about 7 years.

In college i rode a pink huffy ten speed, and i had a cruiser for a while that i think got stolen one summer. or maybe that's how i acquired the huffy. Bikes were a bit less loved in college. people traded them, and i just used them to get around campus, rather than taking them on rides.

also currently in the stable are 2 bikes i built up from frame and fork:
an older Bianchi Eros reparte corso frame, probably from the early 1990s, with mainly ultegra and 105 components.

and an old orange Le Jeune Tour de France 10 speed, built up for more relaxed road riding (upright bars, bar end shifters, and the rest all crappy old french components--but they still work!) which is just so cute.

Of the three i have now (motobecane, bianchi, LeJeune) i'm not sure i could part with any of them. And, i'm too cheep to get something fancier. Though i wish the surly long haul trucker came in my size with 700cc wheels, rather than the smaller ones...

[Selkie]

First bike: burnt orange, heavy Sears kids bike. I was in first grade and we had just moved back to Pittsburgh from New York. I put a lot of miles on that baby. The neighborhood where we lives was very hilly, so I learned to master climbs quickly. Had an awful downhill wipe out on that bike---cost me my thumbnail and I still have a scar on my left thumb from it.
Second bike: my sister's purple banana bike. It had a sissy bar, white basket with daisies, etc. Spent a lot of summer days cruising on it.
When I was 13 or so, my dad bought me and my little brother "English Racing Bikes." They were 70s rust/orange in color, steel frames, relatively expensive 10 speeds. We rode them for hours, exploring.
Lost interest in cycling when I started working at age 16 and didn't start riding again until a few years ago when me and my hubby bought Trek 7300s. Since then:
Terry Classic (am going to sell this one)
Terry Limited edition Fast Woman which is permanently on my trainer (reach is a bit too far for me--I need to replace the stem)
Specialized Dolce Elite (beater bike #1)
Specialized Dolce Comp (beater bike #2)
Pink Luna Eclipse
Bianchi Eros Donna
Pink/Purple Luna Orbit (currently being built--should have in 6-8 weeks)

[Bad JuJu]

First "two-wheeler": a kid-sized racing bike (24" wheels) that my dad brought back from Greece, where he went with the navy
Later: a more average, American-made tool-around-the-neighborhood bike, brand unknown, but it was a gorgeous metallic forest green
When I started college: a Schwinn Varsity, robin's egg blue--too big in all but the standover height, but I learned at least basically how to use gears and toeclips by riding that bike; gave it away to a cousin eventually
First bike I got as an adult: a Trek something-or-other, also too big for me (shame on you, LBS guy, for selling me a bike that fit me so badly), but I rode it for a long time, and actually credit that bike with my renewed adult interest in cycling
Next: my Terry Symmetry, which fit me just right--delicious teal green color, triple chainrings, so much fun to ride I couldn't believe it. With this bike, I really learned to use gears and toeclips. Took my first solo long rides and my first multi-day tour on her. Lost to Hurricane Ivan in 2004.
For a brief time, I also tried out a used Bianchi Volpe that was great for riding around campus when I was in grad school. But alas, that bike didn't really fit me well either, so I finally sold it to a friend, who, sadly, doesn't ride it much. *sigh*
And now... after losing the Terry, I got a Waterford 1900 (called the "Adventure Cycle"--a touring bike). Waterford builds custom frames, but I got this one at a slight discount because it had already been essentially built for someone else and somehow the deal went wrong with that person. It fits me beautifully, and surprise--it's that same lovely metallic forest green of my second kid bike! I was able to get them to paint my nickname on the top tube in gold--Bad JuJu--so she's my strong and confident alter ego. LOL

I love my Waterford, but I must confess I've been hungrily eyeing the 2005 Bianchi Veloce at the LBS, and it doesn't help that people on this forum keep buying them and posting photos!