Schwinn | The Selvedge Yard

1970s Homemade chopper bike-- love the pack of smokes tucked just within reach on the forks.

Back in the day, you most likely graduated from your Schwinn Stingray straight to a 10-speed– the big leagues, baby. Maybe there was something in-between, a hand-me-down 3-speed or 5-speed– but more than likely you just made the big jump. I remember some pretty crafty adaptions– like wood blocks taped to the pedals to get you over the hump until you grew into the bigger bike.

And there were always guys like our friend above– that guy whose old man or older brother was a welder, or maybe he was a metal shop junkie himself. Anyway, he’d build some crazy bike, and it’d become his signature– he’d be that guy with the wild ride. The two would become inseparable in your mind– even years later when the bike was long gone. The guy had to have a mustache too– that was like an unwritten rule. You just couldn’t have a wild bike guy without the ‘stache– it wouldn’t work.

Man, those were the days– not like today. It wasn’t like most teenagers had cars, the way it seems now. If you were lucky, you got to drive an old family car that maybe you even shared with your siblings. Spoiled kids got cars, the rest of us dealt with getting rides, pedaling our bikes– or we busted our humps at a job to buy a used car. You didn’t get everything handed to you then– we called it character building. Today it’s all about immediate gratification and convenience, for the kids– and the parents who don’t have the time or interest to mold their kids. Maybe that’s one reason personal character is becoming scarce. Nobody wants to bother with learning or earning. Just give it to me.

Love this shot-- California chill beach style at its best. Schwinn ten-speeds ruled back in the day.

Love this shot-- 1970s California chill beach style at its best. Makes me want to throw-on a pair of OP shorts and head for the beach on my Schwinn.

Criusing on an old Schwinn ten spped bike. I remember everyone turning their handlebars back like that-- or flipping them around completely.

1970s California criusin' on an old Schwinn ten speed bike. I remember everyone turning their handlebars back like that-- or flipping them around completely. He kinda looks like a young Tom Cruise.

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The Schwinn Stingray- sparking a boy's love affair with wheels.

If you were lucky enough to grow up without all the crap of today that sucks our kid’s time and energy– video games, the internet, satellite t.v., then you might remember what it was like to ride your bike all day long with your buddies– crafting makeshift ramps, making up crazy stunts and tricks, and just having a honest-to-goodness blast cruising the streets until Mom called you in. For a lot of us, it was the beginning of a lifelong love affair with wheels. The Schwinn Sting-Ray was a two-wheeled blacktop beast back then– especially with the on-the-frame gear shift and a fat rear slick. It was the only bike that mattered– before the BMX madness struck, that is.

I feel sorry for these fat, lazy, spoiled kids of today– wasting away in front of their t.v. screens and computer monitors. Man– get outside you chubby little brats! Seriously– do you think kids are better off today? No friggin’ way. They wouldn’t last two seconds back in the day. It’s time to throw all that crap out and lock ’em outside. A little road rash would definitely do the buggers good.