Raleigh Dirt Cross

The Raleigh Dirt Cross was a children's bicycle that the Raleigh Bicycle Company of Nottingham made from 1996 to 1999. It was an unusual design, best described as a hybrid of the Grifter and a mountain bike, with 20 and 24 inch wheels and BMX style handlebars and frame sized for children of about 6 to 10 years. Shimano gears of 5 or 10 speeds with a twist grip control were standard, and the imitation front suspension forks were purely cosmetic, even though Raleigh offered children's bikes with working suspension in the late 1990s. Colours were green, red and silver. Nottingham Forest defender Stuart Pearce appeared in its television and poster advertising, and it was the first Raleigh children's bike promoted with a multimedia application of video clips on interactive public information kiosks. Sales appear to have been low, and production stopped in 1999 with no similar replacement. The name later went onto a children's go kart.