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A quick history of bicycles: In 1817 Baron von Dreis invented a walking machine that would help him get around the royal garden faster: two same- size in-line wheels,the front one steerable in a frame which you straddled. The device was propelled by pushing your feet against the ground,rolling your self and the device forward in a sort of gliding walk. The machine became known as the Draisienne or hobby horse. It was made entirely of wood. This enjoyed a short lived popularity as a fad, not being practical for transportation in any other place than a well maintained pathway such as in a park or garden. The next appearance of the two wheeled machine was in 1865, whene |
| pedals were applied directly to the front wheel. This machine was known as the Velocipede (fast foot), but popularly knon as the bone shaker, since it was also made entirely of wood, then later with metal tires and the combination of this with the cobblestone roads of the day made for an extremely uncomfortable ride. In the 1870 the first metal machine appeared. The pedals were still attached directly to the front wheel with no freewheeling mechanism. Solid rubber tires and the long spokes provide a much smoother ride than the predecessor. The front wheel became larger and larger as makers realized that the larger the wheel the further you could travel with one rotation of the pedals. This machine was the first one to be called BICYCLE (" two wheel"). This bicycles enjoyed a great popularity among young men (they cost an average worker six month's pay). Because the rider sat so high above the center of gravity, if the front wheel was stop by a stone or rut in the road, or the sudden emergence of a dog, the entire apparatus rotated forward on it's front axle, and the rider, with his legs trapped under the handlebars, was dropped unceremoniously on his head. That's how the term" taking a header" came into being. While the man was risking their necks on the high wheels, ladies, confined to their long skirts and corsets, could take a spin around the park on a adult tricycles. Improvements to the design began to be seen, many with the small wheel in the front to eliminate the tipping-forward problem. One model was promoted by it's manufacturer by being ridden down the front steps of the capitol building in Washington, DC. These design |
| became known as high-wheel safety bicycles, they were now referred to as "ordinary bicycles" in comparison with the new-flanged designs, and then simply as "ordinaries". The further improvement of metallurgy sparked the next innovation, or rather return to previous design. With metal that was now strong enough to make a fine chain and sprocket small and light enough for a human being to power, the next design was a return to the original configuration of two same-size wheels, only now, instead of just one wheel circumference for every pedal turn, you could, through the gear ratios, have a speed the same as the huge high-wheel. |
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