For some of us it was a wrench to leave the trusted bright orange Raleigh Twenty in the garage and take the new fandangled 10-speed out for a spinIt was like throwing out old shoes you did not like to begin with but grew to love. And the upside-down handle bars and painfully small seat on the new bike just did not seem worth the trouble. Eventually you adjusted and the extra gears came in handy on hills.
The Raleigh Twenty was about ready for the museum by the time James Williamson was born in the late 1980s.
That did not help the 22-year-old professional cyclist one bit.
He had to cut his teeth on an equally embarrassing bicycle which belonged to his mother. It was pink and yellow. Oh the shame! Before he could take it out in public he insisted it was spray-painted a different colour.
These days his bikes come in any colour you like as long as it is black - glorious black. The team colours. And at $10,000, they are worth significantly more than the hand-me-down he got his start on.
Williamson joined fledgling professional cycling team Pure Black Racing at the start of the year and is one race away from completing his first season.
He flies to Australia on Sunday to compete in the Jayco Herald Sun Tour, which begins on Wednesday, and will then take a break for about a month.
The travelling and constant training takes a toll but it has all been worth it.
"It was a really good first season and probably better than anyone expected," Williamson said.
"We've got a really good group of guys and we got some pretty good results. Everything seemed to go pretty well."
The team is still feeling its way in many respects, as is Williamson. But the year has also produced some highlights and bodes well for the future.
In June, Williamson placed sixth at the Philadelphia International Championship - a race former Dunedin-based cyclist Greg Henderson won in 2006. It is the No 1 one-day cycling event in the United States and most of the top teams contest the race, so it was a major feather in his cap and he rates it as his greatest achievement.
Competing at the world championships in Copenhagen last month, alongside his younger sister Sophie, came a close second.
The under-23 race did not go as he had hoped. He got caught behind a pile-up and lost too much time to mount a serious challenge. And Sophie missed a key break in the under-19 race and spent a lot of energy chasing. Zapped, she did not have anything left in the legs for the final sprint.
Proud parents Martyn and Liz were there to watch.
"There aren't too many Kiwis in that part of the world, so to have people there supporting you is pretty special."
That support has been crucial over the years.
At 1.70m and a racing weight of about 67kg, Williamson is a wee bloke. But in the world of professional cycling every "extra" kilogram is just more weight you have to hump over the hills.
Of course, a powerful frame comes in handy for the sprint finishes.
Williamson, though, is sort of stuck in the middle.
"The climbers tend to be 10kg lighter than I am. I've thought about going down that track and losing weight. But climbing is something you are either good at or you're not.
"I'll never be a pure climber but over time I hope to get better. I think I'm better off working on finishing off the races. That is probably what is going to be best for me and the team."
Williamson is at his best on flat, fast courses and the longer the better. It makes him a very handy team-mate.
Ideally he would seem suited for chasing down breaks or setting the pace at the front of the peloton. But Williamson said he does not have a clearly defined role with Pure Black.
"It changes from race to race and it can change depending on what happens in the race.
"We don't have specific roles but we have guys who can fit in and do what they need to. I've had races where I've been able to take a leadership role and have a go myself. But I've also had races where I've been working for team-mates who have been doing well. With the group of guys we've got, it is pretty easy. Everyone wants to get the team success, so a win for someone else feels like a win for everyone."
