T
here is a greying (or perhaps
fully grey) segment of today's
motorcyclists who did not
begin their riding careers with a
push of a button or even the kick
of a lever. For those riders who
grew up watching television shows
featuring a highly intelligent collie
or a modern stone-age family or a
puzzlingly-diverse group of boaters
stranded on a remote island, the
pathway to motorcycling began
with the pull of a cord; one or
two (or 12) hearty yanks and the
graduation from pedal-power to
an authentic internal combustion
engine was complete. Ranging
from a mere two ponies to a king-
of-the-city-block five horsepower
motor, these two-wheelers had
more than enough power to carry
the scrawny, t-shirt and shorts
adorned bodies that were strad
-
dling them.
They were called "minibikes."
And they were fun!
Just as every square is a rectan
-
gle (but not vice-versa), a minibike
was certainly a motorcycle, in that
it had two wheels and a motor,
which was usually a reliable Briggs
& Stratton or Tecumseh brand. A
twist grip throttle kept the machine
in motion and the most primitive of
brakes (other than Fred Flintstone
digging in his heels to stop the
family sedan) brought everything
to a halt—eventually. The sizable
metal pad that forced its will on
the spinning rear tire meant that
CNIIARCHIVES
P128
BY KENT TAYLOR
THE
MINIBIKE
MANIAC
Drezwiecki
relives his
childhood while
enjoying his
adulthood on one
of his original
"minibikes."
