The Classic Bicycle Shop

These are some really, really beautiful bikes. You’ve probably seen a bunch of them tethered to poles in Adelaide — colourful, sweet Amsterdam style bikes. Little leather seats with big silver studs on big springs, soft metallic reds and lilacs, weaved baskets and a butt-​load of ye-​olde-​charm.
BUT. I’ve been in the store a few times to check the bikes out, and even had a little ride on a friend’s. I’m not that impressed! These are heavy, clunky loads, and unless you only ride your bike once a fortnight dressed in tweed, this isn’t that great a deal. As a commuter cyclist who rides their bike nearly every day, this bike struck me as wildly impractical and unwieldy.
While $ 700 isn’t bad for a brand new bike, if you really want something practical and beautiful, I’d recommend buying second hand or opting for something a little more lightweight. I bought a cute 60s Super Elliot from the Migrant Resource Centre (excellent organisation that sell on some donated bikes on Ebay that aren’t needed), and while it isn’t top-​notch commuter material, it is a damn sight lighter and nimbler than the Classics. Another $ 100 bucks spent getting it serviced and I was on my way.
Cycling has become pretty trendy in the last few years — and it makes sense. High petrol costs, climate change, functional exercise and the ability to skip past traffic are all good motivators. Although these bikes are very very beautiful, I would recommend buying a new bike that is more practical or hunting down the real thing second-​hand.

So you are one of those folk who adore the good old days and you want everything to be the way it was, with the added convenience of iphones and ipods and decimal currency… okay, so what are you doing about it? Ah, boycotting the fossil fuel industry and wearing wide brimmed hats, you brave soul!
Like to think of yourself as a ‘lady’ or a ‘gent’? Here’s one magnificent shop for you. Classic Bicycles are shaped differently, they are European, they have room for a basket and they are so dangerous it’s almost manslaughter just putting a child on one, unless of course it has been completely checked and renovated to suit modern standards (or in other words has a fresh coat of non-​lead paint and a good ringing bell) and they come in three speed or single speed.
Maybe you want to resemble something out of ‘The Great Gatsby’ in order to attract a Robert Redford or Leonardo DiCaprio of your very own — probably better off searching in a Gay bar, but I jest — get yourself all decked out in chiffon and plonk yourself atop one of these classic tredlys. Gorgeous!
Seriously though, this is a great little shop for specialists who want their new bike to be old again, as in «Everything old is new again» (Thanks Peter Allen, rest in peace) and are willing to pay for the authentic stuff. Actually I’ve compared prices and a lot of the time by going ‘classic’ you will save money — you will also avoid all the advancements made in lightweight materials, technological breakthroughs and safety features, but this isn’t about any of that any way — this is about style, fashion, aesthetics — I’m kidding (!) these things are as safe as houses (apologies to the Wicked Wiitch of the West).
Beautiful stuff really and even if it is more likely to see you run under a truck or a four wheel drive (still joking), you will be a gloriously genteel corpse who rode a wonderful bike — er — hang on, that doesn’t sound right does it — maybe you would be best to stick to the bike tracks unless you are a guerrilla bicyclist when it comes to getting around on one of these classic bikes, maybe not. Just be safety smart wear your helmet and keep alert but not alarmed. Don’t ride under the influence of drugs, alcohol or heavy metal!
I love this shop so it doesn’t really matter what the dangers are, once you go classic you will never go back to the future (shut up Marty McFly!).