Raleigh 14

[remember]

This was a girls' bike and was red with small wheels. Mine had a white saddle bag on the back, but I think this may have been a later addition! Raleigh also did a '20' version and a chopper, but these were more geared towards teenagers. There were many a happy day of friends pooling pocket money together in order to buy picnic food (mainly Dairylea triangles, Jacobs Crackers and the cheapest popsicle we could find). It was all part of going off on a far-flung adventure (to the field at the back of the housing estate!) and only returning home when it rained. We were sore from sunburn or it was dark and we'd scared ourselves silly from one too many a ghost story!

More...

[airfix]

Re: Raleigh 14

The Raleigh 14, 16 and 20 were not just girl's but unisex small-wheeled bicycles in their R.S.W. (Raleigh Small Wheeled) range. I make the point as I had a Raleigh RSW 14 when I was about ten years old (my sister had the RSW 16). I desperately wanted a Chopper - they were just the most desirable thing in the world for a boy my age - but they were just too expensive for us at the time. By the time I could have afforded one I was 6ft 2" and 18 stone...plus they had long since stopped making them!

[airfix]

Re: Raleigh 14

I meant to add that they also came in other colours and mine was a very masculine dark metallic blue. ;-)

[Trickyvee]

Re: Raleigh 14

I had a Raleigh 14! Mine was red. My gran got it second hand from somewhere when I was about three and my dad would lift me up onto the seat every few months as a game to see if I was big enough to ride it. It seemed HUGE back then and for a while I was convinced that I had to be 14 before I could ride it! Eventually the magical day arrived when I was BIG ENOUGH!!! Then it seemed tiny when I eventually got rid of it. It had one of those old fashioned bulb horns on it too.