The Hill aka Westgate Road

Neil W

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Popped up the Hill this morning to get a couple of bits and got a bit of a shock .

Hunters shop was shut and according to other dealers they are now doing online parts only with no shop front , Joe Joes the breakers next door is apparently closing and M & S have now given up the KTM Franchise .

Bloody Hell going to be now't left in a couple of years
 
i used to live just off Westgate Road from 1979 to 1983, Lancaster street . It was a great place to hang out on a Saturday, pulling wheelies going up the hill from about midway. Some great shops and engineers . it certainly had changed when i rode through on the way back from the NW500
 
We, the bikers of the North East, are partly to blame. If we had patronised the businesses more then they would still be there but the internet make shopping from the armchair too easy. I've bought bikes from Wolverhampton and Oxford that I would have probably bought on the Hill some years ago
 
We, the bikers of the North East, are partly to blame. If we had patronised the businesses more then they would still be there but the internet make shopping from the armchair too easy. I've bought bikes from Wolverhampton and Oxford that I would have probably bought on the Hill some years ago

Dealers like M&S haven’t helped imho
 
I used to travel up to the Hill occasionally on a Saturday just for a morning out. You could pretty much see what was going on in biking just by being there. Cafe half way up did a great full English, and if you didn't see at least a couple of full stretch wheelies it was a quiet day.
 
Popped up the Hill this morning to get a couple of bits and got a bit of a shock .

Hunters shop was shut and according to other dealers they are now doing online parts only with no shop front , Joe Joes the breakers next door is apparently closing and M & S have now given up the KTM Franchise .

Bloody Hell going to be now't left in a couple of years

Also there this afternoon M&S have half the showroom filled with classics, mind they still had at least 30 bikes marked sold, strong rumour KtM Thirsk are opening further up with KTM,Husky and taking Ktm off road from Bikesport so watch this space, only ones who seem to be doing better are Custom lids
 
the hunters are mates of mine Alan runs the shop. said must of his business is coming from internet sales no brainer. shut the shop and concentrate on inter web
 
the hunters are mates of mine Alan runs the shop. said must of his business is coming from internet sales no brainer. shut the shop and concentrate on inter web

Will still be a big miss not having the shop front, I've known Keith since they had the place at the bottom of Shields Road beside the Byker Bridge and Alan since he started behind the counter at their old place on Blandford Square in the mid 80's.

Thinking back to the late 70's and through the 80's when the Hill was absolutely buzzing especially on a Saturday in the summer.......... Kens, Harry Woods, Kawasaki Newcastle,Rite Bike, KZ Bits, the original Custom Lids plus many others
 
andyscott,
perhaps Andy we aren’t bikers anymore a lot of the bikes I see in my little village appear to be fashion accessories. In the heyday of the hill and also the dene bsa emporium, we used bikes as a necessary part of our transport and social lives. Seems long gone now.
 
Thinking back to the late 70's and through the 80's when the Hill was absolutely buzzing especially on a Saturday in the summer.......... Kens, Harry Woods, Kawasaki Newcastle,Rite Bike, KZ Bits, the original Custom Lids plus many others

Sad tbh.

I bought my FS1E, RD250E and RD400F from Jim at Ken’s.

Bought a Z900 from Kawasaki Newcastle.

Many a tray of chips covered in curry sauce were consumed while sitting on a brick wall watching the free entertainment on a Saturday afternoon.
 
Will still be a big miss not having the shop front, I've known Keith since they had the place at the bottom of Shields Road beside the Byker Bridge and Alan since he started behind the counter at their old place on Blandford Square in the mid 80's.

Thinking back to the late 70's and through the 80's when the Hill was absolutely buzzing especially on a Saturday in the summer.......... Kens, Harry Woods, Kawasaki Newcastle,Rite Bike, KZ Bits, the original Custom Lids plus many others

Grow up with Keith and Alan. still go out on bikes with Keith. thing is the internet is killing the high-street whether you sell bike parts or clothes,
keep up to date with trends and how people shop or go bust
 
Sad tbh.

I bought my FS1E, RD250E and RD400F from Jim at Ken’s.

Bought a Z900 from Kawasaki Newcastle.

Many a tray of chips covered in curry sauce were consumed while sitting on a brick wall watching the free entertainment on a Saturday afternoon.

first bike FS1E then yam rd250 Suzuki ram air 380 them were the days
 
FS1E, SL125, CB250K4,GT500 and then a GSX1100 Katana bought with 2700 miles on the clock bought from Rite Bike in 1984 (still got that one ) .

Its not just the Hill , I remember when Ashington had Mains, H & H, Peter Littles Yamaha ? and Harry Woods, Morpeth had both H & H and Harry Woods showrooms , Berwick had Darling and Swinney Honda ,Fewsters in Alnwick was a Honda dealer, Sunderland had Kawasaki World at the top of High Street West (interesting one in an old department store with a very strange collection of stuff in the basement ), a Suzuki/ Moto Morini dealer at the top end of of Holmeside and an old bike dealer in run down semi derelict premises on Silksworth Row (where they found still crated 70's bikes in the late 80's)

Plenty more I have no doubt have forgotten about.................... now feel very old
 
Anyone remember the bike shop in NorthShields I’ve forgotten it. Well we had a good fishy year in 1976 and with money burning a hole in my pocket I tried a Laverda Jota ( road test was a total no no) a Ducati 900ss road test mmm, and a MV Augusta in red looked lovely but didn’t road test it ( dunno why) so settled on the Ducanti. The only thing I remember was his workshop was a lockup type garage and didn’t go back there as I ended up working in Scotland.
 
andyscott,
perhaps Andy we aren’t bikers anymore a lot of the bikes I see in my little village appear to be fashion accessories. In the heyday of the hill and also the dene bsa emporium, we used bikes as a necessary part of our transport and social lives. Seems long gone now.

Yeah I agree, the scene has changed
 
A shot from 1978 when I lived just off west gate hill ��

where's that robbo . I'am from a small place called Cruddas park. just along the road from the hill. the hill was are play ground when we were kids.

the graffiti in the background is a lad called Dave Ramm aka ramie little bit older than me. brings back the memories skinheads suede heads and hippies oh the 70s
 
where's that robbo . I'am from a small place called Cruddas park. just along the road from the hill. the hill was are play ground when we were kids.

the graffiti in the background is a lad called Dave Ramm aka ramie little bit older than me. brings back the memories skinheads suede heads and hippies oh the 70s

Lancaster street by the big lamp elswick . The road split at the top of west gate hill into the the great west road/ elswick road . Lived in lady Kirk Road then moved to Jesmond 😎😎😎
 


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