TheX Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mack_turtle Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 https://www.instagram.com/p/CKUEsX9hUFb/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mack_turtle Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 on that note, I just finished reading (skimming, mostly) a book about the Schwinn bicycle company called "No Hands." TL;DR: German immigrant starts manufacturing bicycles in America, the company gains an amazing reputation but fails to keep up with trends. subsequent generations of Schwinns squander the opportunity and drive the company into the ground while Trek, Specialized, Mongoose, etc. leave them in the dust. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheX Posted January 22, 2021 Author Share Posted January 22, 2021 In high school in the '70s, Schwinn was THE bike to have. I had a Varsity, but the Continental was the one I really wanted. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 When I was 11 years old I had a Typhoon to deliver news papers. It had the horn tank and front and rear racks. The bike was a tank itself. Had to be 40#. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barry Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 My second bike was this gloriously heavy nonsense... Either a b'day or xmas gift, I don't recall. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mack_turtle Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, TheX said: In high school in the '70s, Schwinn was THE bike to have. I had a Varsity, but the Continental was the one I really wanted. based on what I read, that's just before the company started tanking. new companies innovated while Schwinn kept making boring, heavy bikes with incredibly inconsistent manufacturing. bikes were coming to shops with missing parts and they could not keep up with demand. they ignored BMX and mountain biking because they thought the "rebellious" image wasn't bougie enough for their customers. around that time, the word "schwinn" started be become synonymous with "cheap, outdated junk." it's interesting how the times changed, as customers before that era would pick up a bike in the shop floor and judge it's quality on how heavy it is because heavy bikes were considered to be better. Edited January 22, 2021 by mack_turtle Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
throet Posted January 23, 2021 Share Posted January 23, 2021 23 hours ago, TheX said: In high school in the '70s, Schwinn was THE bike to have. I had a Varsity, but the Continental was the one I really wanted. When our friends were all getting new Honda 50s or Honda 70s, my step-dad got me and my brother brand-new Continentals. Mine was bright yellow. While I hated not having a mini-bike, the Continental was more practical and I put a ton of miles on it during my middle school years. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheX Posted January 23, 2021 Author Share Posted January 23, 2021 3 hours ago, throet said: When our friends were all getting new Honda 50s or Honda 70s, my step-dad got me and my brother brand-new Continentals. Mine was bright yellow. While I hated not having a mini-bike, the Continental was more practical and I put a ton of miles on it during my middle school years. Yellow was the color I wanted. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntonioGG Posted January 23, 2021 Share Posted January 23, 2021 Speaking of yellow....I don't remember what I had between my Big Wheel and my Moto-X Fox (a Mexican bike brand, had nothing to do with Fox Racing and was pronounced Moto Equis Fox). It was yellowed chrome all over with yellow parts and red letters and I don't remember much else except that I loved it. I did take it off sweet jumps but it was not very durable. I moved up to what I thought was extremely expensive BMX Huffy ($120 in the mid 80's?). I loved that bike, way lighter than the Moto-X. When we moved back to the US (San Antonio) I upgraded to a Kuwahara Freestyle. I didn't ride it much, didn't do any flatland stuff but that's what I really wanted to do. I don't have any memory what happened to it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief Posted January 25, 2021 Share Posted January 25, 2021 My first mountain bike was a Schwinn High Sierra. Schwinn got pretty much gutted when they started having Giant manufacture bikes for them. I will say that a custom Waterford is a beautiful road bike. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.