Long time watcher – first time poster.
So I decided my HK-II deserved a birthday tickle. After all we’ve been through a lot and neither of us was prepared to let a good thing die.
A couple of decades ago in our galaxy was a boy who dreamed of having a bike that made him smile. Fortunately the LBS (local bike shop) had an array to choose from that could leave you confused and wanting for more. Generally more money than I could afford to part with…
At nearly 14 years old my mate Nick and I started spending a couple of hours every Saturday hanging in Chain Gang getting our heads around what was on offer. The candy was here but reality would eventually always bite. After a couple of months searching and sitting on bikes in store for anywhere from 5 mins to an hour thinking about that particular possibility eventually I would find the bike that I was looking for. From Marin to Scott to KHS to Specialized and back we would go – Nick settled on his 1990 Scott Wind River as his weapon of choice while I was leaning towards the 1990 Marin Bear Valley when one Saturday we arrived at Chain Gang for our weekly window shopping with compulsory sit in to discover the bike I knew was for me.
A 1989 Fisher HK-II with 6 months on the clock down from the original $1800 to $1000. The old owner upgraded to a super-caliber and this beauty just snuck into my $1000 budget. My only problem was that I had around $400 and a Milk run that paid $43 a week after tax for over 13 hours work three nights after school. I could save around $30 week so I started pulling as many nights as possible all the time praying that no-one else would buy my bike before I could scrap my cash together. A few months later and somehow I had amassed the required $1000 and the boys at the bike shop had tolerated me spending up to four hours on a Saturday sifting in their store and as always would be the case, my HK would be waiting for me. Thanks Keith!
Eventually united we travelled across the city on daily adventures and covered every nook and cranny of the city and explored the trails up in the hills. Once even riding to Teddington for a race before riding home via Governors Bay and the Sign of the Kiwi each way.
Before we begin the build our history should be shared of why we simply could not go past the point of no return. Despite being my first serious purchase that I had worked for, focused on and paid for with my own sweat and tears along the way we formed a bond.
The first time she was taken: Returning from the local pool to find my bike missing from the bike stand with my lock withering on the ground was devastating to say the least. Being a school trip to the pool Andrew came to my rescue and we scoured the streets for well over an hour in his RX7 looking for my stead. After giving up hope I made my way to the Milk run and just over an hour into the round as dusk was falling we were driving down the road in the Milk truck when suddenly I recognized my rear wheel – that’s all it took. Jumping out of the truck I grabbed the handlebars and claimed that’s my bike. After a brief argument about ownership the rider promptly gave her up when I suggested that the Police may be able to assist. Incredibly this was just one street from my house and miles from the pool.
The second time was from school: Again gutted and empty I was moping around at home when my mate Glen called me from town from a payphone
Glen - “Hey Mate – has your bike been stolen?”
Me – “How the hell do you know?”
Glen – “Some guy just walked past me with it. Do you want it back?”
Me – “YES”
Glen – “Ok – you owe me some KFC….”
…Glen – “Give me that bike now or I’ll thump you…..”
The third time: was from my best mates house. A couple of weeks went by and my luck was not what it had been. Forced to claim insurance I again was in the market it was now 1993 and the choice was a Cannondale or a strange bike with M900 XTR groupo. The Extreme Attitude won out on sale for $2800 with the rationale that I could upgrade the frame and keep the sweet XTR. The new frame never happened but that’s another story….
Several months passed then one day the phone rang in 1994. The Police had recovered the bike and the insurance company invited us to make an offer for its safe return. For a cheeky $50 the bike was returned albeit in a sad state and now I had my fat Aluminum tubed ride with flash XTR kit. Then the following year I left town for 8 years.
Having now survived three thefts and two earthquakes we are about to celebrate her birthday like never before.
So I decided my HK-II deserved a birthday tickle. After all we’ve been through a lot and neither of us was prepared to let a good thing die.
A couple of decades ago in our galaxy was a boy who dreamed of having a bike that made him smile. Fortunately the LBS (local bike shop) had an array to choose from that could leave you confused and wanting for more. Generally more money than I could afford to part with…
At nearly 14 years old my mate Nick and I started spending a couple of hours every Saturday hanging in Chain Gang getting our heads around what was on offer. The candy was here but reality would eventually always bite. After a couple of months searching and sitting on bikes in store for anywhere from 5 mins to an hour thinking about that particular possibility eventually I would find the bike that I was looking for. From Marin to Scott to KHS to Specialized and back we would go – Nick settled on his 1990 Scott Wind River as his weapon of choice while I was leaning towards the 1990 Marin Bear Valley when one Saturday we arrived at Chain Gang for our weekly window shopping with compulsory sit in to discover the bike I knew was for me.
A 1989 Fisher HK-II with 6 months on the clock down from the original $1800 to $1000. The old owner upgraded to a super-caliber and this beauty just snuck into my $1000 budget. My only problem was that I had around $400 and a Milk run that paid $43 a week after tax for over 13 hours work three nights after school. I could save around $30 week so I started pulling as many nights as possible all the time praying that no-one else would buy my bike before I could scrap my cash together. A few months later and somehow I had amassed the required $1000 and the boys at the bike shop had tolerated me spending up to four hours on a Saturday sifting in their store and as always would be the case, my HK would be waiting for me. Thanks Keith!
Eventually united we travelled across the city on daily adventures and covered every nook and cranny of the city and explored the trails up in the hills. Once even riding to Teddington for a race before riding home via Governors Bay and the Sign of the Kiwi each way.
Before we begin the build our history should be shared of why we simply could not go past the point of no return. Despite being my first serious purchase that I had worked for, focused on and paid for with my own sweat and tears along the way we formed a bond.
The first time she was taken: Returning from the local pool to find my bike missing from the bike stand with my lock withering on the ground was devastating to say the least. Being a school trip to the pool Andrew came to my rescue and we scoured the streets for well over an hour in his RX7 looking for my stead. After giving up hope I made my way to the Milk run and just over an hour into the round as dusk was falling we were driving down the road in the Milk truck when suddenly I recognized my rear wheel – that’s all it took. Jumping out of the truck I grabbed the handlebars and claimed that’s my bike. After a brief argument about ownership the rider promptly gave her up when I suggested that the Police may be able to assist. Incredibly this was just one street from my house and miles from the pool.
The second time was from school: Again gutted and empty I was moping around at home when my mate Glen called me from town from a payphone
Glen - “Hey Mate – has your bike been stolen?”
Me – “How the hell do you know?”
Glen – “Some guy just walked past me with it. Do you want it back?”
Me – “YES”
Glen – “Ok – you owe me some KFC….”
…Glen – “Give me that bike now or I’ll thump you…..”
The third time: was from my best mates house. A couple of weeks went by and my luck was not what it had been. Forced to claim insurance I again was in the market it was now 1993 and the choice was a Cannondale or a strange bike with M900 XTR groupo. The Extreme Attitude won out on sale for $2800 with the rationale that I could upgrade the frame and keep the sweet XTR. The new frame never happened but that’s another story….
Several months passed then one day the phone rang in 1994. The Police had recovered the bike and the insurance company invited us to make an offer for its safe return. For a cheeky $50 the bike was returned albeit in a sad state and now I had my fat Aluminum tubed ride with flash XTR kit. Then the following year I left town for 8 years.
Having now survived three thefts and two earthquakes we are about to celebrate her birthday like never before.
