Kids started modifying their own basic bicycles, adding cooler paint colors, chrome fenders, bigger handlebars, and longer saddles (that also made it easier to take a friend for a ride) — and businesses took notice.
Here’s a look at some of the biggest cycle brands of the sixties and seventies (and a few from the eighties) so you can remember what boys and girls wanted most in their awesomely retro bikes.
Sales of bicycles increase – catching up with cars
Article by John Cunniff in The Vincennes Sun-Commercial (Vincennes, Indiana) July 11, 1969
NEW YORK (AP) — If present trends continue, the annual sales of bicycles in the United States will match automobile sales in a couple of years, and therein lies a surprising story of social change and marketing innovation.
Almost anyone could guess that bikes were rising in popularity, after seeing once sluggish neighbors pedaling rather than driving to the station, and flocks of youngsters winging along in multicolored “high risers.”
The sales figures are probably a bit higher than your guesses. As recently as 1960, about 3.6 million bikes were sold. By 1967, the figure had leaped to 6 million. It surged to 7.5 million last year, and is expected to rise 12 percent to 8.4 million in 1969.
The swing to bikes has at least two origins: old age and youth. Dr Paul Dudley White and others promoted the idea that pedaling was a wonderful form of exercise even for the elderly, and now thousands of miles of paths are appearing in cities that long had ignored the needs of cyclists.
A larger thrust, however, seems to have come from the youngsters. Seven years ago, the partners in a San Diego bike shop observed teenagers buying odd parts and improvising their own vehicles.
Recognizing that the demand was there, the partners, Gene Randel and Marion Moore, assembled some bikes with high handlebars, elevated and elongated “banana” seats, and low-to-the-ground chassis. They sold swiftly.
Later on, the major bike makers, long accustomed to turning out the same conventional product each year, caught on to the idea: youngsters wanted styling; they wanted innovation; they looked forward to new models each year; they desired options.
How vintage banana seat bikes became popular
Manufacturers began naming their vehicles. Copying from Detroit, they introduced the Stringray, Avenger, Eliminator, Grabber, Hugger, Spoiler. They offered unusual colors, such as “flamboyant deep purple.”
Wild options now are available, including pretzel handle-bars, steering wheels instead of bars, multispeed gear shifts, front and rear shock absorbers, caliper hand brakes, console stick shifts and quilted backrests.
All this opened the eyes of the tire makers, who for years turned out a dull black product. Goodyear, for example, has introduced color combinations, including green-orange and yellow-black, and called them “crazy wheels.”
The most popular bike in America now is the high riser. That’s the one with the high handlebars, elevated seat, back support or “sissy bar.” and small wheels that make for maneuverability. It accounts for 75 percent of sales.
Wild options now are available, including pretzel handle-bars, steering wheels instead of bars, multispeed gear shifts, front and rear shock absorbers, caliper hand brakes, console stick shifts and quilted backrests.
However, for the adult who fears a fall, a tri-wheeler also is selling well. This is a conventional vehicle in most ways except for double wheels in the rear, along with a basket for carrying groceries or a briefcase.
All this has begun to push up prices, of course. A high riser costs a minimum of about $35, and the addition of accessories can push up the price to $80 or so — even more if exotic parts are piled on.
And, as any product becomes more complex, so also does the servicing, As many fathers have learned in recent months, it can be a maddening job to change a tire when the gearbox and torsion spring seat suspension are in the way.
Even the old-fashioned bike dealers aren’t fully equipped to service the vehicles, and some of them haven’t the space or the capital to invest in a variety of spare parts. The net result may be that bikes might not just catch automobiles in sales but might copy the dealership arrangement of the big car makers.
Mattel Stallion bikes from 1965
AMF bikes – Excitement on wheels! (1965)
Vintage Schwinn Sting Ray banana seat bicycles from 1965
Vintage Huffy “The Rail” banana seat bike from 1969
The Rail with T-Bar stick shift in handsome control console
Schwinn Sting Ray bikes (1967)
Vintage banana seat bikes for kids with slick rear tires from around 1969-1970
Deluxe 20-inch 3-speed Sportster bicycle: “Speed shifts” like a motorcycle… just twist the grip. Oversize “cheater” slick rear tire gives exciting, wheel-spinning take-offs.
Girls’ 20″ Sportster with quaint wicker basket and whitewall tires & white banana seat – Tiger stripes seat
Cheater Slick Dragster & Miss America I (1967/1968)
“CHEATER SLICK DRAGSTER” Cheater Slick rear tire. Green with chrome fenders. Glitter top saddle. Coaster brake, front hand brake. Malibu handlebars. Boys model. 40 lbs.
“MISS AMERICA I” A truly feminine bicycle with Malibu handlebars. Sparkling white frame with blue trim and chrome fenders. flowered basket. Glitter top banana saddle. Rear coaster brake. 20″ wheels with whitewall tires. Girls model only.
Old Schwinn Orange Krate, Apple Krate and Lemon Peeler bikes from 1968
Kids’ bikes from Sears: Introducing The Screamer (1968)
Sears went to the drag races… and came back with a new kind of bike.
At the drag races, you see cars like you see nowhere else. They’re the dream cars of people under 20. That gave Sears an idea. The idea for a bike you can really fall in love with. A bike that makes any other bike just a plain drag.
Now Sears is ready. The new bike is called The Screamer. It sure doesn’t look or rise like any bike Sears, Roebuck and Co. — or your son — ever had before. Tomorrow, let your boy check out The Screamer — one of the great collection of bikes — at the Sears Sports Center near you.
Sears wheels out the first bike with a frame like a drag racer (1969)
The fastest cars in drag racing? Ask your son. He knows what they look like. Long, sloping frames. Huge rear tires. And a look like lightning.
That gave Sears an idea for a bike built the same way. The first one that would look like the real thing. Now Sears has it. The new Screamer.
It’s a wide-tired, low-slung, honest-to-drag-racing bike. And it’s like nothing else you’ll see this side of the drag strip.
Vintage 1969 Foremost Swinger bikes for boys and girls at JC Penney
Sears Screamer bikes from ’69
Sears took a wheel from a racing car and put it on a hot new bike.
You’ve seen racing cars screaming flat out on the straightaways. They’re hot cars — and they look it. And that’s the kind of look a boy wants his bike to have.
Sears had an idea how to do it. They started from the ground up with a Mag Wheel designed like the ones you see on racers. The wide, flaring spokes whirl into a solid blur when you pour on the coal. That frame is a hot new Sears idea, too. It’s designed with the same low-slung, ground-hugging look of a racing car.
Ease back this stunt brake and do your thing. You’ll do it easier, too, because you can put just the right drag on the wheel. — You’ve never seen a bucket banana seat like this. It’s brand new and with rear and side reflectors built right in.
The road may be bumpy but you won’t feel it with these giant “shocks.” / Dig out fast! The cheater slick tire puts more rubber on the road. — That’s a Candy Apple paint job. Really sharp. Sears got the idea from the people who build custom cars.
Have your son test drive the Sears “Mag Wheel” Bike and all the other great bikes at the Sears Sports Center tomorrow. Or look in the Sears, Roebuck and Co. Catalog.
Girls’ 20-inch vintage banana seat bikes: Sharp Spyder styling from their high-rise handlebars to the banana seats (1969-1970)
Single-speed Spyder: Gleaming chrome-plated fenders resist rust. Rear Cheater slick tire holds the road… Move out on this red, white and blue free spirit… Bike may be ordered with white woven vinyl basket with gaily-colored plastic flowers and leather bucket straps (basket from South Korea).
Value model – price cut $1: A girls’ bike you accessorize the way you like… add a basket or radio. Blue metallic finish with white vinyl banana seat. Rear coaster brake. Chrome-plated support bar, handlebar.
Spyder 500 bike for kids (1970)
Sears invents the lightweight “Spyder 500.” It gets you there a whole lot faster.
Choosing a bike used to be a tough decision for kids. Sears knows. They talked to hundreds of them. For hot styling, the Spyder was the favorite. For speed, the lightweight.
But now they don’t have to make that decision. Because Sears had an idea. An idea to take the things they like best about each kind of bike and put them together on a bike like there never was before. So Sears had a famous bicycle designer do just that.
And this is the bike. The “Spyder 500.” Butterfly bars, cheater slick tire, bucket banana seat on a lightweight racing bike that’s geared to get you where you’re going a whole lot faster. For anyone, from 7 to 17, it’s a whole new way to go.
Spyder 500 bikes for boys & girls from 1971
When Sears rolled out this baby, they rolled out a bike like there’s never been before. It’s got the hot Spyder styling. The bucket banana seat. The butterfly bars. And it goes like a lightweight racing bike.
Its 24-in. wheels, lightweight frame, cheater slick tire and 5-speed derailleur make it lightning fast. Dual brakes make it stop fast—and safely. One’s a caliper, the other a big drum brake like the kind on cars.
And to make night riding safer, Sears put safety reflectors all around. Even on the pedals. “Spyder 500.” See it in a Sears Sports Center. Or Sears, Roebuck and Co. Catalog. Bikes serviced at most Sears stores. Set-up available for a small charge.
There’s a special “Spyder 500” for girls. With 1 or 5 speeds. In Raspberry, with daisy-covered seat and basket.
Boys’ 20-inch Spyder Bikes, with high-rise styling for high-spirited fun (1972)
Girls’ 20-inch Spyder Bikes, with frames in high-flying colors (1972)
Your little girl will always have somewhere to go with this red, white and blue winner! Chrome-plated fenders, rims and sprockets add a gleaming touch. But this bike’s got a lot more going for it than good looks… check out the road-gripping rear cheater slick tire and the rear side-pull caliper handbrake.
And for even greater braking safety, there’s also a rear coaster brake for sure, smooth stops. Power chain guard looks sporty and protects her slacks, too. Support bar adjusts to six positions. Optional white vinyl basket with flowers. Basket from S. Korea. • Acrylic-finished frame • Deluxe 6-position support bar • Coaster and rear side-pull brake • Rear slick tire
Dazzling raspberry acrylic-finished frame with chrome-plated fenders and rims. Rear drum brake and front caliper brake assure smooth stopping. Standard size sprockets and chain guard. Support bar. Optional white vinyl basket with flowers (from S. Korea). • Acrylic-finished frame • Quilted banana seat • Rear drum brake • Front caliper brake
Here’s a bright blue bike any little girl would love to own… chrome plated fenders and rims complement the lustrous enamel finish of the frame. Rear coaster brake for dependable stopping. Standard chain guard and sprockets. Blackwall tires. Support bar. Enamel-finished frame • Banana seat • Chrome-plated fenders • Rear coaster brake
Vintage Huffy Dragster vintage banana seat bikes from the ’70s
Dragster III & Miss America III with glitter top banana saddles
DRAGSTER III: T-Barstick shift controls 3 Speed rear hub. Malibu handlebars. Front and rear caliper handbrakes. Sunray Bronze color with chrome fenders. 20″ wheels with Red Band tires. Glitter top banana saddle. Boys model only.
MISS AMERICA III: 3 Speed rear hub. Twist grip control on Malibu handlebars. Midnight Magenta frame with chrome fenders. Front and rear caliper handbrakes. 20″ wheels with whitewall tires. Glitter top banana saddle. Flowered basket. Girls model only.
Hiawatha – Best bike built! Drag Duster & Sports Bike (1970)
Sensational mod colors! What a look! Hi-rise back and racy low front, banana seat. Lemon-Lime and Flame Red finish. Drag action details — slick rear tire for squealing starts, sweeping chain cover, safe stop Bendix brakes. The newest, the raciest around!
The High-Low Vista Banana bike (early 1970s)
The newest, the wackiest, the most fun! A real gasser featuring s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d out front fork in gleaming chrome. Get the fun-feel of this bike which steers differently from any other! VISTA 20″ x 2.125″ Fastrack white sidewall balloon tire, rear; 16″ Chain Tread tire, front. Strong tubular rims.
Classic boys’ Pacer bike and girls’ Filly bike from 1970
Western Auto bike for kids with a banana seat saddle (1970)
Schwinn Hurricane 5 bike (1977)
K-Mart Hardtail bike from 1980
Strawberry Shortcake bike from the ’80s (1981-1984)
19 Responses
i had a purple banana seat bike with flowers on the seat and a fake muffler on the back and flowers on the basket. i got it for christmas in the 1970s and now i am 58 and can not find it anywheres. i would really like to see it again on go flying down our street one last time. it would be my dream of dreams
Sounds like a Huffy if the muffler was the chainguard. If it was part of the frame, possibly an Iverson.
I may have photos but no way to post them here.
Rob
Same here! I think the metalic blue banana seat bike I had would bring back more memories than any other toy. I still remember that moment dad was helping me learn to ride, and he let go of the back of the seat and I pedaled down the driveway and up our street all by myself. I was the last kid on the block to learn to ride a bike, but now I’m 62 and still ride!
In ’69 or ’70 Dad bought a bike for me that I see referred to here as a dragster, small pneumatic front tire, ape hanger’s or whatever all of our bicycles had in that time, a banana seat, a tall sissy-bar with matching slip-on headrest or pad, the back tire was a slick w/ those two water channels grooved into it. Now, this bike had NO gears, not even a 2-speed pedal box. This one was red, w/ a red glitter seat and I left it in the front yard one-night forgetting to put it away and of course, it was taken and guess what Dad was pissed! Lol. (If, anyone knows the bike I am describing I would love to know the maker/model. It seems like most of those types of bicycles all had more equipment on or crazy looking forks, or shocks, or geared in some way, not this one.
Is there a bike photo here that looks similar? Do you recall what stores your dad wouldve used to buy a bike like that ? Sears, Western Auto, True Value, Gambles all those stores carried a good selection of bikes. Most of these bikes came in single speed versions. Tell me which photo looks most like yours and I will most likely find the info for you.
Rob
I have a 1970 Ross Baricudia what the value of this bike perfect condition?
This article was a true eye opener for me.
The San Diego partners mentioned were the owners of the El Cajon (Schwinn) Bike Shop in City Heights. I first met them in 1968 and bought a Sting Ray that was modified and shown at the Community Concourse car shows in the early 70’s. That neighborhood was a true hot bed for custom bikes!
Those influences still drive my bike designs today.
Thanks Gene and Marion!
And a big shout out to Mr. Lausten, the metal shop teacher at Wilson Jr. High (directly behind that bike shop). He was a crazy man, an awesome teacher and he welded up so many frames for me it wasn’t funny. I was truly fortunate to have landed into that area and to have met those fine gentlemen.
My bike was blue with flowered banana seat and basket. What made mine different was a padded flowered sissy bar that went half way up. Anyone know what style this was? Would love to find one. Mine was stolen off front porch. 😭
I grew up on a farm in central Oregon and my older brothers all had Schwinn bikes. Oldest brother had a lemon peeler , pic is the story, such a cool bike. Other brother Dave got a tricked out green metal flake one with a sissy bar and ape hangers and mine was a blue metallic youth model. Don’t remember much about it but I remember Schwinn. Made some kicking bicycles in the day. So cool to see them again. I had no idea they were that much money tho. The ad in the story said the lemon peeler was $86. In 1970 that was quite a bit of money . But dad always took care of us in the good years and then there were those other years , but that was farming.
Christmas 1973 I got a girl’s 20 inch light blue bike with a white banana seat, white grips with tassels on the handle bars, and white daisies on the chain guard. I think it may have had a flowered white basket too. My parents were not rich so I’m figuring it was a store brand bike ,probably came from 1 of 4 places – kmart, sears, montgomery wards, or otasco. this sound familiar to anyone. I rode that bike for 5 years until I got my 10 speed for my birthday in 1978
I was hoping to find info on my bike that was purchased for me by my parents at Western Auto, around 1972/73. It was a lime green bike with a chain guard that tapered front to back if I remember correctly. I tried had a banana seat, sissy bar and a wide slick rear tire. The lettering on the chain guard was yellow and said Bumble Bee and had a Bumble Bee on the chain guard as well.
Has anyone seen this bike; or have any information regarding such a bicycle? I know it exists in the annals of bicycle history somewhere in the early 70’s… Any information would be greatly appreciated. swhnly65on the gmail if you have info.
Are you sure it was not an Aerobee? That sounds like the bike, I have photos and info on almost every musclebike made and som non production test bikes.
I could send a photo to you but I cannot figure out how to post one here.
Rob
In the early 70’s I had been working in my home town’s Western Auto, I decided I wanted and bought a 20 inch blue metal flake bike. I also added a 6volt twin chrome head light that worked off a DC generator on the front wheel. The only thing that seemed to be missing was I couldn’t wear shorts unless at the beach or the country where I could feel the air on my bare legs without being teased by other boys. Loved it until I left fot he Navy only to find my younger brothers had destroyed it a few years later.
My dad my bought me a western Flyer banana seat bike, it was orange-purple two tone and the seat was like silver. I don’t exactly remember the name but it had some Indian name on it possibly. Can anyone tell me the name I have a picture of me on my bike, it was so cool.
I had a green bike with the floral banana seat and matching basket. I wish I could remember the brand of the bike. When I outgrew that bike, my parents bought me a three speed yellow Schwinn which I also loved but didn’t ride as much.
I was hoping to find info on my bike that was purchased for me by my parents at sears in mid to late 70s it was a boys bike it looked rust colored/ brown it had a brown banana seat with a cowboy on a bull /horse ??? bull/ bronco riding ??? a laso around the pic and written with the laso at the top is the word rodeo thanks for your help
I have a Western auto bike 1971 I got for X-Mas …looking to touch up the red….any idea how to get the right color match ?
Looking for any information on Schwinn ‘Banana Peeler’ bicycle from the mid 70’s. Were there any custom jobs from local bike shops at that time? North Texas/Dallas area. I am still combing through family photographs for confirmation of existence. (which I can not find online!)
My parents got me a banana seat bike for Christmas, likely 1971 or 72.. the frame had a cool sparkle paint job that was green tapering to yellow in the back I think. The distinctive things about it were the color, 3-speed hand shifter (twist the white grip with a thumb catch to keep it in the correct gear, one hand brake for the front, and coaster brake for the back. I think the seat was sparkly, but I don’t recall the color of seat. I loved it.