The christmas of 1963 (or 64?) was a huge disappoint me for me. I had dropped endless, not so subtle hints about just how badly I wanted one of those new fangled StingRays. I was kind of big for one, but the kid down the street could wheelie for an entire block on his and trying to wheelie on my Steyer 3sp produced pathetic results and a little too much laughter from the kid on the StingRay. Christmas eve finally came & I laid in bed in the dark waiting for that first crack of morning light, which signaled that it was all clear to make waste of anything with a ribbon and your name on it. Peeling down the hall and skidding into the living room, THERE IT WAS!!! UNDER THE TREE IT'S A....a.....a Falcon??? A 15sp Falcon Black Diamond?? Ohhh, what the hell was that?? Derailleurs and some goofly little tires that I later learned were called sew-ups (my friends called them 'throw-ups'). I hated that bike. I couldn't wheelie for squat and those sew-ups weren't worth a damn on dirt roads. It would be another 5 years before I figured it all out and started longing for names like '531' and 'Campagnolo'. The Falcon was then quickly shoved aside for a succession of bikes with names like Raleigh & Peugeot and the endless quest for lighter and more mythical marques. Of course I made peace with 'throw-ups', but not until I could afford something better than the Clement Elvizia's I always seemed to end up with, which I swear never lasted more than 3 miles into any ride before they punctured and when they weren't flat had an inevitable lump in the casing. If only I could scrape together enough for some Clement 50's.....
Fast forward 40 years and now I am wondering what that bike really looked like and how it fit into the Falcon line. Does anyone have a Falcon catalog from that period?? And if so, would you be willing to share the specs of my long forgotten Christmas dud?? Aside from the handlebar mount bottles, multiple chainrings and sew-ups I can't remember much about the bike other than the pleasure my friends got from yanking on the shifter as hard as possible to watch my rear derailleur pop that clockwork spring out.
Operators are standing by.
Bryant Bainbridge
Portland, Orygun