The Invention of the Bicycle

The invention of the bicycle was a great invention for it’s time. It provided a way to get around that didn’t require a horse that ate a ton of food. It also was faster than walking. The bicycle also helped improve women’s rights. As the bicycle and other transportation has changed it has played a different role in people’s lives.

In 1817 the first bicycle-like vehicle was invented by Karl Drais. It was called the velocipede, running machine, Draisine, or dandy horse. It is not considered a real bike today, but it started the development of lots of different kinds of bikes that were to come. The Draisine was invented because Karl Drais wanted something that was not horse powered and was faster than walking. Horses were very expensive and ate a ton of food. This new invention weighed about fifty pounds, had a front wheel that you could steer

with, and  two wooden wheels. You would sit on a seat and run, kind of like today’s Skuuts for toddlers who are learning how to ride a bicycle.

The velocipede was invented in 1863. This invention was commonly called a boneshaker because it was made of very stiff materials, steel wheels, and straight angles and, when you went over bumps, it was very shaky. The improvement was that there were pedals on the front wheel. This invention became a fad and there were indoor riding academies that were similar to roller rinks, except that people would ride the new velocipede.

Then in 1870 came the high wheeler. This was the first of the bicycle’s ancestors to be called a bicycle. This bike was more comfortable than the previous ones, but is pretty hard to ride. It was the first bike to be made out of metal and have rubber wheels. It had such a big wheel because people realized that the bigger the wheel, the farther you can go with one rotation of the pedal. The pedals were attached directly to the wheel, without a chain. Since the rider was so high above their center of gravity, if they hit a pebble or were surprised, the rider would tip forward, with their legs trapped under the handle bars and fall on their head. Yikes!

While the men had to risk their heads on the high wheeler, women rode around on an adult tricycle which was invented in 1880. This tricycle included lots of new technology such as the brakes and better steering. This was invented because the women of that time had to wear long skirts and corsets.

In the year 1886 the first automobile was invented. This had a great impact on the bicycle. It became more of a toy or way of getting exercise. It was also used for races.

In 1890 the safety bike was invented. It was safer than the high wheeler because you were closer to the ground, but the ride was less smooth because it was missing the long spokes that absorbed the shock. It had a chain instead of the pedals connecting directly to the wheels. This became very popular, but it cost a lot of money.

Because of the bicycle, bloomers became very popular for women in 1894. This meant that they could ride a regular bike and ride much farther because the regular bike was more efficient. This meant that the bike was helping get women’s rights better because they could go farther and didn’t have to stay so close to home. In 1894 Annie Londonderry rode her bike around the world, but she mostly had to use ships. This was the first account of a woman taking her bike around the world. Susan B Anthony said "Let me tell you what I think of bicycling. I think it has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world. I stand and rejoice every time I see a woman ride by on a wheel. It gives woman a feeling of freedom and self-reliance."

In my life the bicycle serves more as a machine for exercise or entertainment, and not as a mode of transportation because of the car. The same thing happened in the 1920s when the automobile was invented. The bike started to be seen more as a kids toy than it used to be.

http://www.pedalinghistory.com/PHhistory.html

http://www.ibike.org/library/history-timeline.htm

images:

http://www.ohtm.org/collections/bicycles/images/cyc_boneshaker.jpg

http://www.theglasgowstory.com/images/TGSA04810.jpg

http://www.oglasni-monitor.com/files/images/242.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1e/Benz-velo.jpg

http://download1.eduyun.cn/resource/0406/104/j_kx/2s/07/07_06/07_06_kz/image/jkx2s070610003.jpg

http://www.mobilityworks.com/images_vans/se_toyota_large.jpg

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