One of our colleagues brought a 1967-vintage Sting Ray Fastback into the office this morning, parking it next to my desk.

Everyone in the office who saw it, remembered that they had one “sorta” like it. Maybe not with the fancy stick shifterthat was on this one, or the expensive-looking upholstery that it had.

Oh, did I tell you that we weren’t talking about anything made by Chevrolet…or about anything with four wheels?

Yes, Vette lovers, we’re talking here about the Sting Ray that you cruised around town with, long before you drove your first Corvette: The Schwinn Sting-Ray bicycle.

In 1964, Schwinn—seeing that the “customizing” trend on the West Coast had spread to bikes—added a “banana” saddle and high-rise handlebars to its rugged 20-inch “Typhoon” bicycle, long the workhorse of paperboys from coast to coast.  Add some bright paint on the frame, make a pair of chrome fenders a Mom-mandated additional feature, and….voila!

First available as single-speed/coaster-brake or three-speed (with shifter on right handlebar) models, they were a BIG hit. You saw kids riding them just about everywhere…and other bicycle makers quickly rushed their similar-looking versions into production. They may have looked good, but they weren’t real Sting-Rays.

A few years later, Schwinn took the five-speed derailleur gear set from their touring bikes, fashioned a “Stick Shift” shifter for it that looked like a passenger-car manual transmission shifter, added a five-spoke "mag wheel" front sprocket, and had another hit on their hands with the “Sting-Ray Fastback.”.

1968 brought the “factory custom” Sting-Rays—-the “Krates.” Starting with the orange-hued “Orange Krate”, they added the "mag" front sporcket, five-speed “Stick Shift,” front and rear shocks, a set of “big and little” wheels and tires, plus distinctive, candy-colored paint, and put it at the top of the Sting Ray line. Later “Krates” included the Apple Krate (painted Candy Apple Red), Pea Picker (Candy Green), Lemon Peeler (Candy Yellow), Grey Ghost (Silver-Grey) and Cotton Picker (Bright White). By 1970, those top-line Krates listed for $94.95* each (when a base Sting-Ray went out the door for $56.95*

As mentioned above, everyone who saw this Sting-Ray remembered one like it. That includes this writer, whose daily good-weather transportation was an orange coaster-brake Sting Ray during the mid/late ‘60s. It was the ideal suburban Detroit cruiser then, for the relatively flat streets that were near our on-a-circle neighborhood.

From talking with the other car people here in the building, it seems like just about every automotive enthusiast has a Sting-Ray like this in their past. Even if they’ve never driven a Corvette.  



(*Prices slightly higher in the West and South.)