Building a bike for your kid is a fulfilling experience for a parent and child. Krishna Muirhead just completed a 1995 Barracuda A2E for his son, Nico, and sent it along for a very rad Readers’ Rides!

I think many of this site’s readers can relate to the bike project that blossomed after a random encounter with a single shiny bit of unexpected treasure from a parts bin, the back of a dusty shelf, or under a pile of other shop detritus on a well-used workbench. You know that story: look at that piece, it’s super rad and I need to build a bike around it. This compelling pull to imagine, visualize, and assemble is unique in the world of bikes in that our creation then helps us explore the larger world. It’s not merely a chotchky on a shelf, but a tinkerer, questioner, and seeker who built a machine of further exploration. It’s a positive feedback loop that reinforces my drive to get out and explore. Can’t stop, won’t stop, if you will.

The 1995 Barracuda A2E shown here tells a familiar arc of flying out the door, shiny and new, peaking at exotic heights and falling into oblivion until its later, shining resurrection. From its original production in Taiwan through assembly in Colorado with 3×8 Deore LX, cantilever brakes, and a buyer’s choice 80mm suspension fork to its rediscovery, years later, as a bare frame only, at a swap meet, it was probably headed to the scrap yard since nobody rides 26-inch wheels anymore anyway. Somehow, the seller who brought it to the swap meet recognized its charm and charisma and believed somebody else would see the possibilities and set them free. They probably couldn’t have imagined its reascension and newfound glory; however, I mean, this is off the charts.

The defining factors of this restomod were the bare frame and 1 & 1/8th headset. It was a world of possibilities, but most importantly, a sweet urban ripper with a disc front brake was a real option, not just a dream. Scoring a used disc fork with a functional axle to crown in the junk box at a local bike shop meant this project is a go. That ATC is about 415 – 420 mm, for those of you plotting your own creation. I really got excited after installing the fork and building the wheels from swap meet hubs and brand new Rhyolite rims.

Scouring parts bins for the bulk of this build kept the budget reasonable and made it more of a driver than a show pony. Plus, somebody needs to put all those parts floating around to use. Both hubs, the basket, bars, saddle, pedals, brakes, grips, shifter, and derailleur were all swap meet scores, some of them even free box, double scores. Cranks, ring, dynamo light, Ti bottle cage, and the greatest brake levers ever came from my own parts bin. Rims, tires, seat post, cassette, and chain are the only new parts on this entire bike.

I’ve long compared my bicycle project restomods to owner-built hot rod cars, complete with vintage metal outside and modern underpinnings, for that top-shelf patina and vintage feel with modern functionality. They are big on style and ride so nicely, which is especially true when the original shortcomings are sorted and solved. The ’90s era, long and low stance was great for the developing gnar bro vibe, but moved away from the upright and relaxed feel of earlier all-terrain bicycles.

Riser bars, tall stack, and a short stem bring this into the comfortable and fun to ride modern era, especially when combined with a disc front brake and a 1×10 drivetrain. It’s simple, easy, and rips around, as it should. A sweet PDW takeout basket and dynamo light round out the daily driver niceties. Don’t forget the compass bell to always find your way home and signal passing on the left. The handlebar Spitfire plane reminds you, of course, that you are flying.

Even more compelling than the story of this bike’s journey is the story of the rider, 9-year-old Nico Danger. Starting with an avocado green Burley MyKick at 3 and 1/2 years old, he spent 16 months smoothing the tread off the plastic tires. At the end of its run, the Burley looked like the Blues Brothers Plymouth, broken down and beaten. That said, it’s satisfying to see a 4-year-old carving turns on a downhill with feet swinging in the breeze or slicing up the banked turns at the skate park.

After 2 weeks on a 12-inch pedal bike, he went right to a 16-inch single-speed, coaster Specialized Hotrock. I’m not all about spending the big money on fancy kids’ bikes, even though I get how amazing they are, so $35 hot rock it is. Anyway, shouldn’t everyone have a basically indestructible coaster brake bike when they get started? I mean, skids are so much fun, and who needs tread on the rear tire anyway? He did actually ride it about 10 miles one time before bonking royally and napping the rest of the day. At 6 years old, he graduated to a rigid, aluminum, 20-inch hot rock with V brakes. Another low-cost, big-value score, this bike really stretched our rides and upped the speeds.

Soon, he was riding the 3 miles home from school and holding onto our ebike mid-ride for a tow. He also got the ice cream handup at Ladd’s 500, a ride at a famous roundabout in Portland, and went on to complete about just under 40 laps. He was smooth like butter in thick bike traffic with mixed speeds and ages, and even dodged a couple of crashes. Valuable skills for later in lif,e some might believe. Around 8 years old, he stepped up to a 24 inch Trek Wahoo, again, rigid, aluminum with v brakes thanks to the magic of Craiglist. He rides on errands with the family and around the neighborhood with buddies and seems quite comfortable, but sometimes says, I don’t like riding my bike. It’s a mystery to me. I try not to push him to ride, but who doesn’t like cruising to the bakery for hot chocolate with sprinkles?

By next year, he should be ready to make the jump to his rad new Barracuda, and he is excited to try it out. He helped a bit during assembly and has started to learn some mechanical basics. Mostly, I wonder, will he always ride bike,s or is it just something dad likes that we did when he was young? Will he become a tinkerer and builder like me?

Build Spec:

• Frame: 1995 Barracuda A2E
• Fork: 1 1/8th straight blade, cromo w disc tabs
• Wheels: Front – SP dynamo to Sun Rhynolite 32 hole and Rear – Red Chumba 135mm QR to Sun Rhyolite
• Tires: Thickslick 26 x 2.0
• Shifter: Sram x-7 10 speed
• Rear Derailleur: Sram X-5 10 speed
• Brakes: Rear – diacompe V brake and Front – BB7 mountain w 160mm rotor, 6 bolt
• Brake Levers: Shimano BL-M600 for V brake
• Cranks: Shimano M540 through axle 104 4 bolt w Deckas 32T 1x chainring and outer chain guard.
• Basket: PDW Takeout basket
• Stem: Kalloy uno 25mm
• Bars: FSA low rise
• Seatpost : Control tech, 2 bolt, 26.4
• Light: B&M IQXS silver
• Pedals: Straightline BMX w pins
• Saddle: WTB
• Bell and Plane : Compass bell and Spitfire w spinning propeller

We’d like to thank all of you who submitted Readers Rides builds to be shared here at The Radavist. The response has been incredible and we have so many to share over the next few months. Feel free to submit your bike, listing details, components, and other information. You can also include a portrait of yourself with your bike and your Instagram account! Please, shoot landscape-orientation photos, not portrait. Thanks!