Trackers

[ibbz]

Just watched the video - it’s bloody brilliant!
Don’t feel guilty about health and safety - haha - though watching some of the falls and the speed I know what you mean!! boys will be boys and grow into men! And thanks again!
Was that your boy? ‘It was juicy!’ ??
Just brilliant - and love the music too!
Going to read the comment etc to find out when and where

 

[Tootyred]

In my bit of the world we called them trackies, we tended to go for old 700c bottom end racers ( Raleigh equipe, phillips premier, etc) all being strong contenders at the tip.

Rip off the bars and crush the drop levers in a vice to make straight ones.

Bars were normally sourced from the tip too. Everything was shimmed with bits of coke can as the bars were too small and the levers too big. The wider and more crazy the better for bars.

When the steel wheels finallly folded up, we just got more from the tip ( ahh the days before health and safety made the world more dangerous).

My dad was a legend, being an ex professional speedway rider, he was always up for helping us lads with a grinder here and a spanner there. Other dads did not seem so impressed!

Ive always carried on on that vein, i want to ride it, fix it, ride it some more. If it breaks, yes i might be a bit upset ( especially if its a thing ive had a few decades), but i would rather that than wish i had been out riding it, when im old and grey (er) and all i can do is look at it still bolted to the wall above the fireplace!

 

[bjellys]

Just watched the video - it’s bloody brilliant!
Don’t feel guilty about health and safety - haha - though watching some of the falls and the speed I know what you mean!! boys will be boys and grow into men! And thanks again!
Was that your boy? ‘It was juicy!’ ??
Just brilliant - and love the music too!
Going to read the comment etc to find out when and where

Thanks for the comments and my boy was the one in the clip where the commentator says only the fastest karts go through to the final it the very low kart in red and white.
I was working as a sheet metalwork at the time and made it at work my boss only found out when it won .
It was a really fun day it just doesn't happen these days

 

[Tony_King7]

@Tootyred - can’t seem to reply to your PM see below.
Seat tube 18.5” top tube 22” head tube 6”

 

[Tony_King7]

In my bit of the world we called them trackies, we tended to go for old 700c bottom end racers ( Raleigh equipe, phillips premier, etc) all being strong contenders at the tip.

Rip off the bars and crush the drop levers in a vice to make straight ones.

Bars were normally sourced from the tip too. Everything was shimmed with bits of coke can as the bars were too small and the levers too big. The wider and more crazy the better for bars.

When the steel wheels finallly folded up, we just got more from the tip ( ahh the days before health and safety made the world more dangerous).

My dad was a legend, being an ex professional speedway rider, he was always up for helping us lads with a grinder here and a spanner there. Other dads did not seem so impressed!

Ive always carried on on that vein, i want to ride it, fix it, ride it some more. If it breaks, yes i might be a bit upset ( especially if its a thing ive had a few decades), but i would rather that than wish i had been out riding it, when im old and grey (er) and all i can do is look at it still bolted to the wall above the fireplace!

@Tootyred - can’t seem to reply to your PM see below.
Seat tube 18.5” top tube 22” head tube 6”

 

[GrahamJohnWallace]

Re:

A few years back a film production company approached me because they wanted to make a film about British mountain-biking. I told them about the early British off-road riding traditions; the mainly adult roughstuff-riders, the teenage cycle-speedway and dirt-track or 'Tracker' riders.

Unfortunately they could not find contemporary film footage showing 'Tracker' bikes, I guess that few teenagers had cameras back then. They did however briefly mention 'Tracker bikes' and showed still photos and old tv interviews with young dirt-track riders.

Then they went on to explain that UK MTB pioneer Geoff Apps started out as a teenage 'Tracker-bike' rider. But as an adult he went on to design and build high-quality off-road bikes that were similar to what we now call mountain-bikes. Some of his early designs show their 'Tracker-bike' origins.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6zbENQcwkk
The section mentioning 'Tracker' bikes is from about 3 minutes to 12 minutes.

 

[MartyP]

Here's old old 'Tracker' I've just acquired from an old chap in my village - built in the early 70s with the 'must-have' cowhorn handlebars, brooks and cycle speedway rear 26" knobbly... I'm going to leave it exactly as it is...

 

[KermitGKona88]

Here's old old 'Tracker' I've just acquired from an old chap in my village - built in the early 70s with the 'must-have' cowhorn handlebars, brooks and cycle speedway rear 26" knobbly... I'm going to leave it exactly as it is...

Superb, even a useless dyno-hub on the front for equal weight distribution...

 

[MartyP]

Superb, even a useless dyno-hub on the front for equal weight distribution...

Indeed - back then it was 'whatever worked' and had an inflated tyre on it!

 

[ferrus]

Fab to see that. I can feel the blisters from those grips!