Blast from the past: The Raleigh Chopper bike

Growing up in the 1970s every child lusted after a Raleigh Chopper.

It looked like a chariot and came in cool, outta-sight colours, like Infra-Red, Ultra-Violet and Fizzy Lemon. It was the bike to be seen on.

The Chopper was inspired by the style of motorcycles made popular by films such as Easy Rider, but it was utterly impractical with a big fat wheel at the back and a small one at the front. It had a long, angular seat upholstered like a sofa, great for giving your friends backies, a back rest, wide, ape-hanger handlebars, a cool kick stand, car-like three-gear shifter (called the Sturmey Archer, with a groin-threatening position on the frame) and chrome mudguards, that rusted at the mere mention of the word ‘puddle’.

I pestered the life out of my parents until they bought me one. It was purple and lethal.

Cruising up and down the road, attempting Evil Knievel-style wheelies on my Chopper made me feel free, cool, like those tanned American kids on TV. Except the love affair didn’t last long.

The Chopper was a clumsy, heavy, downright dangerous mode of transport. Getting from A to B was always a challenge on the contraption. It was impossible to ride uphill, or down. On descents, it was a death trap, its brakes woefully inadequate for the job.

And this is where I came a cropper. Flying down a hill, the brakes failed to work, the handlebars began to wobbly, the bike went faster and faster. I saw fields and trees and my young life whizzing past....until eventually...I was flung over the handlebars into a sheugh.

At school we would compare our Chopper cuts and bruises. They were almost a badge of honour, an up-yours to the kids still riding boring Triumphs, or whatever,

The Chopper is one of those kitsch 1970s items that, like racist comedians and home perms, hasn’t travelled well into the 21st century – despite a celebrity-owners club that includes David Beckham and Lady Gaga. Indeed, fuelled by nostalgia, thousands of collectors and enthusiasts continue to invest great sums in the original 1970s models, buying spares and memorabilia on the internet. But in terms of riding the darn thing, maybe it’s best to park the experience.