You begin to interest me…vaguely
Those 90s Trek VW bikes keep showing up. Who knew you could get a bike jersey and other swag, too? An unused ’97 purple bike with paperwork is up on Facebook Marketplace now [edit: or not – possibly sold?].
More on the VW/Trek collab is here and here, but contact the seller directly [edit: looks like it might have been sold] if you want this one. Seller is asking $750 and it’s in Pompton Plains, New Jersey. Perfect for the Volkswagen or Trek aficionado.
This bike was put out with the trash and I picked it up before the scrappers grabbed it. After a thorough cleaning, removing a lot of surface rust (with some assistance), and replacing one tube, it looked pretty good. It will need new tires soon if I can find an inexpensive pair of whitewalls, and new handlebar grips are also on the way.
All the decals were removed during the cleaning, but the bike is a Huffy Santa Fe single speed with coaster brake. Huffy used the Santa Fe model name at least as far back as the 1970s, but I’m guessing this one is maybe from the 1990s or 2000. Now it joins the fleet of old bikes and e-bikes. Will I ever rat rod it? Unlikely.
Orvis and Barbour have been teaming up to give away restored classic Land Rovers (like this green one, which was won by a Massachusetts woman and her dog ). 2019’s sweepstakes vehicle was a 1994 Defender. Looks like the winner flipped it for cash (maybe to pay the taxes on the prize). A ’95 Range Rover, restored by Congleton Service was the most recent prize. No word yet on where it ended up.
Remember that time in the 1990s when Volkswagen gave you a Trek mountain bike if you bought a car? Here’s one of the original brochures for the 1996 Jetta, as seen on A2resource.com.
Browsing a garage sale, I examined a plastic bag full of watches. It was mostly junky stuff, including a lightweight piece that said “Rolex” on it, but there was also one Casio G-Shock.
Not that I needed another watch, but I had been casually looking at new Casio G-Shocks, which have a reputation for toughness at affordable prices. This one, however, had been sitting in the sun all morning and when I picked it up, the plasticky looking watch felt like it was melting. I ended up paying a dollar for it, the price helped by the fact that the bezel surrounding the watch face cracked in my hand while talking with the seller.
Her 1995 performance of Christmas (Baby, Please Come Home) on Late Night with David Letterman.
Sticking with the 90s Volkswagen theme for a bit longer, 1997, in addition to the Trek Bike joint venture, was also the year VW marketing scored with a commercial for the Golf that polished off the early 80s song Da Da Da (full title: Da Da Da, ich lieb’ dich nicht du liebst mich nicht aha aha aha), by the band Trio.
Back in 1996, Volkswagen partnered with Trek bicycles, offering a special VW Jetta Trek edition that came with a Trek mountain bike and a roof rack to put it on. The following year, they also offered a VW Trek Golf. One of those bikes turned up at a charity bike store, and, although I’ve never owned a VW, I picked it up because, as it says on the frame, it’s a Limited Edition.
The 1996 Jetta Trek Limited Edition Sedan started under $16,000 and came with either a five speed manual or four speed automatic. The VW Trek bike came with 21 speeds and custom seat, handgrips, and special graphics: a dude on a multi-colored rocket, orbiting the VW logo, and holding…something?
Details on the bikes are a bit harder to find. The 1996 ones had a steel frame, but this one has an aluminum frame, which may be the 1997 version. The OCLV on the rocket stands for Trek’s patented carbon fiber, but it’s unlikely that there’s any of it on this bike. A few parts had been replaced in the past twenty years, including the saddle (which also would have had that rocket boy logo), but it still has the original VW hand grips.
It’s definitely in better shape than some of the Trek Edition automobiles out there: Junkyard Gem.
Update: It’s 2022, and someone is selling a never-used VW Trek bike and branded gear in NJ.
Still on the lookout for a Jetta Shepherd edition, though:
