Some people just dont get it

[legrandefromage]

Some moons ago, was riding up at Chicksands, poncing about on a very shiny Zaskar (yes, its been firmly established that I own a Zaskar!)

Anyway, some old git on a spanky new £3k Elsworth took the piss simply becuase my bike was old and clean, he just didnt get it.

Didnt understand that it was meant to be like that, you fool. :roll:

Anyone else met with incredulity when out posing on a retro in the real world?

 

[kase1983]

yuor gonna get that thing really,

i work in mikes bikes cambridge, and alot off new school people just dont get it, steel frames, ano purple, spindly hubs and cantilvers. onoly good thing is you get a reputation for knowing about older bike parts.

was good to see the young lads at rutland water drooling over my paul mech, lol

 

[legrandefromage]

Hmmm my GT came from Mikes.

Grafham Water shop nearly shat akidney when they saw my Airborne

 

[jonnyboy666]

all the time, something along the lines of "what the hell is that thing?!" or "jesus! flat bar?!" or "only 21 gears? how do you get up the hills?" :?


i wouldn't mind too much but it's always a knob isn't it? never someone who says it jokingly but actually asks about it your steed.

always seems ok when it's cars or whatever but bikes, people seem to think we're odd!

don't care, i am odd.

 

[Andy B]

Personally I love to see retro rigs (especially when they come into work) although I do have to admit I don't own a retro MTB at the mo (I can't stop riding my Orange 5 at the mo!) I don't really care what anyone rides so long as it brings a smile to their face!

PS I do however have a retro roadie I salvaged from a skip

 

[Augustus]

There's this old guy that regularly rides off road on my loop on an old Raleigh Twenty shopper (genius/ classic). Passed him up a hill once sitting there eating his sandwhiches and he said "ooh nice marin".

It's a Merlin.

But I think that's quite sweet. At least he knew what a Marin was.

But it is a bit sad when the newer folk out there (or worse, when they are our era!) and they say "oh is that from that shop up north? They're quite good value those Merlin's aren't they?"

:roll:

 

[legrandefromage]

just accept that it was from 'oop north

 

[cherrybomb]

Following on from the story in another thread about the muppets in one LBS I'd like to add another about the experience I had in another shop (in Oxford this time) just before Christmas.

I walked into said shop with my E4 and the first thing the guy says is.....

"Cool, an orange Orange; don't see many of them, I've got a P7 out back."

We then enter into a conversation about tyres for said bike and I'm lamenting the fact that no one does amber wall tyres any more and he says.....

"Got some skin wall Wild Grippers out back too if you want them"


I got a yoof collar me on some kind of Kona moon buggy thing the other day, the thing must have had more travel than Ryan Air! It gave me a nose bleed just looking at it. :shock:

just as I was thinking 'Oh god here we go, piss taking about my ancient bike' I hear him saying..." Cool bike mate, I'm doing up a C16 at the moment, just got hold of some old Pace forks for it"

I almost fell over.

So it's not all bad.

 

[Anthony]

But it is a bit sad when the newer folk out there (or worse, when they are our era!) and they say "oh is that from that shop up north? They're quite good value those Merlin's aren't they?" :roll:

I don't know how they get away with that rip-off - at least they pay Paul Sadoff to use the Rock Lobster name, but I've never heard of anything similar about the real Merlin. Or does Merlin Leyland perhaps pre-date 'the real Merlin'? Having said which, I built my son a Rock Lobster 853 and that really is a superb frame - really lively, fun kind of ride.

Another example though is after Onza went bust, nobody bothered to register ownership of the name, so SuperCycles in Nottingham jumped in and registered it as theirs. So as easy as that, they now own the name Onza and market their trials bikes as Onzas.

 

[Andy B]

The modern UK Merlin's are very good bikes for the money, & ride really well compared to a lot of similar priced bikes and it's a UK company which to me personally is a bonus (OK so their frames are made in Taiwan, but 90% of bikes are nowadays).