Information Sheet - History of Cycling
The bicycle has undergone many changes over the past 200 years. These changes have not only been in the design, but also the materials that have been used to make them.
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The first bike of sorts was made in Paris around 1790. It was wooden, and actually required the rider to 'walk' it as it had no pedals! |
Within a short time, many kinds of bikes with lots of unusual bits and pieces were designed. Some of these were rather weird and had a very short life. However, as better technology and materials were discovered, others developed over time into what we ride today.
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c1870 - The Velocipede or 'man-powered vehicle', known as the boneshaker. Wheels were made from wood but the frame from wrought iron. Brakes were a block of wood mounted on an iron bed. Pressure was placed on the back wheel when a cord was shortened by twisting the handle bars. Pedals were fitted to the hub of the front wheel which was slightly larger than the back wheel and was fitted with brass bearings so that it could turn from side to side. The saddle was on a spring which stretched from the steering column and fitted to the back wheel with a bolt. A mounting step was placed on one side to help the rider get on. This bike required a lot of leg muscle. |
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c1880 - The Penny Farthing A lot of skill was needed to get on and off this machine. A jagged mounting step was added later to assist. The brake worked by twisting the front handle bars which tightened a cord and applied a metal stop to the back wheel. The front wheel was larger so more ground was covered in one revolution, - one turn of the pedal gave two turns of the wheel The diameter of the front wheel ranged up to 150cm. The back wheel small to reduce weight. The bike weighed around 12kg. Metal was used for its construction. |
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c1885 - The Rover Safety Bike Regarded as the forerunner of the modern bicycle, it had direct steering, an adjustable saddle and a forked head. The rear chain was a new development, as was the use of ball bearings in the wheel hub caps. The beginning of the diamond frame can be seen. This was tubular steel and meant that machines could start mass-producing the bikes. The drooping cross bar and the front forks made the bike stronger than any others before. Solid rubber tyres were used but these were soon replaced by air filled pneumatic ones. Both wheels were about the same size. |
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1990s - Monocoque. This is the bike that powered Chris Boardman to gold in the 1992 Olympic 4,000m pursuit. It features a single, hollow, moulded, shell frame to reduce stress on welded joints;.lightweight alloy crank, pedals and chain; narrow tyres to reduce rolling resistance; forearm rest and hand grips; narrow racing saddle for freedom of movement. It does not have any gears or brakes. |
Eye Witness Science Book – Technology, 1995, London
DID YOU KNOW?
In 1493 Leonardo da Vinci drew a plan of a machine that looked remarkably like a bicycle, with pedals, brakes, handlebars and a toothed gear like a chain. Why was his idea not invented until much later?