Top three childhood Christmas presents?
Discussion
daqinggregg said:
Lotobear said:
1) a satsuma
2) some dates
3) a spinning top
Deserves more recognition. 2) some dates
3) a spinning top
One year,I think 1984,I got a new coat for school as my main present.
That was s
t when you went to boarding school and everyone else had way better stuff.1. Stingray American chopper style bike, sold a few weeks ago 
2. three wheel pedal go karts (green machine I think) my brother and I got one each, started riding around the house which probably wasn't the most sensible thing but was great
3. drum kit, from my dads mate, and still play the drums now!
I'm young enough to have also got xbox and things, which I was also made up with, but the bikes and drums are more exciting to open
2. three wheel pedal go karts (green machine I think) my brother and I got one each, started riding around the house which probably wasn't the most sensible thing but was great
3. drum kit, from my dads mate, and still play the drums now!
I'm young enough to have also got xbox and things, which I was also made up with, but the bikes and drums are more exciting to open
smifffymoto said:
daqinggregg said:
Lotobear said:
1) a satsuma
2) some dates
3) a spinning top
Deserves more recognition. 2) some dates
3) a spinning top
One year,I think 1984,I got a new coat for school as my main present.
That was s
t when you went to boarding school and everyone else had way better stuff.
Original Game Boy, no idea how I could even see the screen when compared to modern devices, but that's all we knew
Original Playstation, which unknown to them I'd already snuck out the box and played several times whilst they were out
Scalextric Le Mans set, although my dad was unhappy the Porsche had rothmans-like livery so sent it back and they supplied a replacement. Although not sure how they didn't notice that on the box before purchase.
Original Playstation, which unknown to them I'd already snuck out the box and played several times whilst they were out
Scalextric Le Mans set, although my dad was unhappy the Porsche had rothmans-like livery so sent it back and they supplied a replacement. Although not sure how they didn't notice that on the box before purchase.
We were pretty poor when i was very young, yet somehow they managed to get us at least something for xmas. My best present one year was a bashed up old racing bike dad bought from a friend for a couple of quid. We had good fun respraying it and stickering it up though! 
Mum got me a lock for it and I still remember to combination for it to this day. One of the numbers was 32, her age at the time (she's now 78!)
When his business started taking off we started to get some great presents . The excitement of waiting to go downstairs to open the presents was palpable!
1) Commodore 64. Hundreds of hours played on that with mates for many years.
2) Electric Guitar. Badgered them for ages to get one. Couldn't play it then, still can't play it properly now as I have no dedication skills!
3) Hornby train set. Was one of the first 'good' presents i ever got and got loads of track extensions for it, providing hours of fun!
Great times!
Mum got me a lock for it and I still remember to combination for it to this day. One of the numbers was 32, her age at the time (she's now 78!)
When his business started taking off we started to get some great presents . The excitement of waiting to go downstairs to open the presents was palpable!
1) Commodore 64. Hundreds of hours played on that with mates for many years.
2) Electric Guitar. Badgered them for ages to get one. Couldn't play it then, still can't play it properly now as I have no dedication skills!
3) Hornby train set. Was one of the first 'good' presents i ever got and got loads of track extensions for it, providing hours of fun!
Great times!
This will make me sound like our family were rich (we definitely weren’t, dad a council worker, mum a nurse), especially the coincidence with No.1.
1) Scalextrix - one of the cars was a shadow F1 car, the actual real one of which my (rich) uncle later owned and raced
2) Spectrum 16k - later saved for ages for a 48k upgrade
3) Raleigh arena ‘racing’ bike EDIT - garelli 50cc scrambler/field bike bought for 20 quid by my dad and he secretly rebuilt it
Pic of the shadow below…
1) Scalextrix - one of the cars was a shadow F1 car, the actual real one of which my (rich) uncle later owned and raced
2) Spectrum 16k - later saved for ages for a 48k upgrade
3) Raleigh arena ‘racing’ bike EDIT - garelli 50cc scrambler/field bike bought for 20 quid by my dad and he secretly rebuilt it
Pic of the shadow below…
Edited by ChevronB19 on Tuesday 8th October 12:54
1. Sega Megadrive - with Sonic 2
2. Tomy Daredevil Rally - Like a Scalextric/slot car track with a Pug 205 and VW Golf rally cars but it had a loop and a wall climb. Came down Xmas morning and it was already built in the living room. Blown away.
3. Cargantua - It was a big red Robot from Matchbox that housed various cars and had tracks that attached to it's hands.
2. Tomy Daredevil Rally - Like a Scalextric/slot car track with a Pug 205 and VW Golf rally cars but it had a loop and a wall climb. Came down Xmas morning and it was already built in the living room. Blown away.
3. Cargantua - It was a big red Robot from Matchbox that housed various cars and had tracks that attached to it's hands.
1) A Team van with some, not all, of the characters. The roof lifted off and you could put the figures in.
2) Raleigh Mini Burner - my younger brother got a full-size Burner. But it was secondhand off one of my mates. So I've always felt very privileged to get a brand-new BMX. On the Kays catalogue never-never I expect.
3) Gameboy - still going strong in 2006 when my wife used it to distract herself from the pain when delivering our eldest!
Special mention to the Sharp Megabass Ghetto Blaster as that served me well for a long time - there was an AUX IN so I was able to connect a CD player from Richer Sounds in my teens. Which might well have been a Christmas present as well, tbf.
Also the Falcon Mountaineer I got when I was 11 in 1989. Almost got a racer, but decided last-minute to get one of those new-fangled mountain bikes. I still remember it was £165 in the Kays catalogue. Best decision ever. Though I went through Tourney groupsets like they were going out of fashion!
2) Raleigh Mini Burner - my younger brother got a full-size Burner. But it was secondhand off one of my mates. So I've always felt very privileged to get a brand-new BMX. On the Kays catalogue never-never I expect.
3) Gameboy - still going strong in 2006 when my wife used it to distract herself from the pain when delivering our eldest!
Special mention to the Sharp Megabass Ghetto Blaster as that served me well for a long time - there was an AUX IN so I was able to connect a CD player from Richer Sounds in my teens. Which might well have been a Christmas present as well, tbf.
Also the Falcon Mountaineer I got when I was 11 in 1989. Almost got a racer, but decided last-minute to get one of those new-fangled mountain bikes. I still remember it was £165 in the Kays catalogue. Best decision ever. Though I went through Tourney groupsets like they were going out of fashion!
That shadow is a stunning thing. I had a toy version of it as a child (majorette from memory) and it was one of my favourites even if it wasn't that good at running on the kitchen floor "racetrack".
Seeing as we have changed to a taste of the worst presents, while I had some really lucky Christmases and birthdays I certainly wasn't spoilt as a child, I used to be green with envy at friends going to school with mask or manta force toys only to be told at home it was plastic junk, consequently my presents tended to be well reasoned and rational, if not "cool". The mardave meteor was a great example, I wanted tamiya like my friends but my dad had done his research and the mardave was streets ahead, being a super robust and race ready model, it literally got used beyond the point of destruction and was rebuilt over and over, it's like triggers broom now.
But he didn't always get it right. The BMX was amazing. But at age 13 I'd outgrown it and needed some more mature wheels, I'd asked for a new bike, and to be like my peers wanted a mountain bike. I have told this story before but it always deserves to be told, as it really shows the thought process of my old dad and is one of the many reasons I love him to bits.
So he had hunted around and amazingly didn't buy me a used bike, I suspect my mum had a part to play in this decision and age 13 me gets up, charges downstairs to find a huge box by the tree. I can still remember the frustration waiting for everyone to get up and be able to open presents. Now bear in mind we weren't rich, so there would have been some small stocking fillers but the bike was basically it. I knew what it was, they knew what it was but this was seriously exciting. What Raleigh have they got me I wondered? Could it be a Mustang? With Shimano sis shifters!?!
So as I opened the box, well firstly I have one of those faces that tends to be somewhat.... Expressive. My wife describes it as if I don't like someone not only do they know, but everyone within a mile does. And I assume the same goes for bikes. Because here I am 13 years old, at that "awkward age" looking at the bicycle in front of me. And my dad says and I'll always remember it.
I didn't want to get you a mountain bike, because there aren't any mountains round here, so a racing bike made more sense.
Now your thinking. Ungrateful sod, bought a ten speed jnstead of a mountain bike, big deal. Except that's not what I'm currently looking at.
I am looking at a racing bike, mens frame, made by freetown I think, with cheap rear only derailleur........ Yep your still thinking the same......... The model was called the opus dash. And it was bright pink. I'm not talking fluorescent colours includjng pink. I'm talking pink pink over the whole thing. Except the seat and handlebar tape which were white. So here I am looking at this thing desperately trying not to show my real feelings, and they must have been pretty obvious because either my mum or dad said if you don't like it we could probably take it back, but not wanting to hurt them I fluffed around and made out I was happy with it.
2 years I rode that pink bas***d. Thankfully my dad eventually took pity on me as I seemed to be taking cycling a bit more seriously and bought me a second hand well used Raleigh pro race in black/green (thank god) and I proceeded to put thousands of miles on. But by god that bike made me part of what I am today.
Seeing as we have changed to a taste of the worst presents, while I had some really lucky Christmases and birthdays I certainly wasn't spoilt as a child, I used to be green with envy at friends going to school with mask or manta force toys only to be told at home it was plastic junk, consequently my presents tended to be well reasoned and rational, if not "cool". The mardave meteor was a great example, I wanted tamiya like my friends but my dad had done his research and the mardave was streets ahead, being a super robust and race ready model, it literally got used beyond the point of destruction and was rebuilt over and over, it's like triggers broom now.
But he didn't always get it right. The BMX was amazing. But at age 13 I'd outgrown it and needed some more mature wheels, I'd asked for a new bike, and to be like my peers wanted a mountain bike. I have told this story before but it always deserves to be told, as it really shows the thought process of my old dad and is one of the many reasons I love him to bits.
So he had hunted around and amazingly didn't buy me a used bike, I suspect my mum had a part to play in this decision and age 13 me gets up, charges downstairs to find a huge box by the tree. I can still remember the frustration waiting for everyone to get up and be able to open presents. Now bear in mind we weren't rich, so there would have been some small stocking fillers but the bike was basically it. I knew what it was, they knew what it was but this was seriously exciting. What Raleigh have they got me I wondered? Could it be a Mustang? With Shimano sis shifters!?!
So as I opened the box, well firstly I have one of those faces that tends to be somewhat.... Expressive. My wife describes it as if I don't like someone not only do they know, but everyone within a mile does. And I assume the same goes for bikes. Because here I am 13 years old, at that "awkward age" looking at the bicycle in front of me. And my dad says and I'll always remember it.
I didn't want to get you a mountain bike, because there aren't any mountains round here, so a racing bike made more sense.
Now your thinking. Ungrateful sod, bought a ten speed jnstead of a mountain bike, big deal. Except that's not what I'm currently looking at.
I am looking at a racing bike, mens frame, made by freetown I think, with cheap rear only derailleur........ Yep your still thinking the same......... The model was called the opus dash. And it was bright pink. I'm not talking fluorescent colours includjng pink. I'm talking pink pink over the whole thing. Except the seat and handlebar tape which were white. So here I am looking at this thing desperately trying not to show my real feelings, and they must have been pretty obvious because either my mum or dad said if you don't like it we could probably take it back, but not wanting to hurt them I fluffed around and made out I was happy with it.
2 years I rode that pink bas***d. Thankfully my dad eventually took pity on me as I seemed to be taking cycling a bit more seriously and bought me a second hand well used Raleigh pro race in black/green (thank god) and I proceeded to put thousands of miles on. But by god that bike made me part of what I am today.
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