Cycling History
The History of Cycling begins with the invention of the bicycle. The first bicycle was constructed by Comte de Sivrac of France in 1690, although it looked more like the modern scooter than a bike. In 1816, a walking machine that became popularly known as Draisienne or hobby horse was invented by the German Baron Karl Drais von Sauerbronn. This wooden device didn’t have pedals yet; you need to push your feet against the ground to glide. But it did have a padded seat and steerable front wheel. It was only in 1839 when the first pedal-driven bicycle was created by Kirkpatrick Macmillan.
Later, the Michaux family invented the velocipede, which had pedals attached to the front wheel. It gained popularity in the 1860s. However, it was made of wood (later metal). Riding it was uncomfortable, so it gained the nickname “bone-shaker”. Bicycling only became much more comfortable after the invention of the pneumatic tire in 1888 by J.B. Dunlop.
In 1874, H.J. Lawson invented the chain drive, which became the precedent for his safety bike. A carriage manufacturer named Albert Pope was the first to commercialize bicycles in 1877, when he established a bicycle factory in Hartford, Connecticut. By 1893, Pope’s “Columbia” bike, which incorporated the best features of the earlier bikes as well as mechanisms devised by Pope himself, was the best-selling bicycle in the world. More mechanisms like coaster brakes were developed later on, but the basic design remained.
When bicycles became commercially available in the 1870s, many Cycling clubs were formed in the United States. The Union Cycliste Internationale, composed of countries around the world, was formed in 1900. It is still the international governing body for Cycling up to this day.
In the History of Cycling, competitions were the key to attracting bikers around the world. Pope did not sell bikes until 1877, but the first recorded bicycle race in the world reportedly took place 9 years earlier. It was a 1,200-meter race in St.-Cloud Park in France. The victor was then 19-year-old James Moore, an Englishman. He won several Cycling races later on. Six-day races, which began in England in 1878, spread to Madison Square Garden in New York and started a phenomenon in American sports. Soon, six-day races were being staged in major cities in the United States.
Cycling experienced a brief decline when the Ford Motor Company was established in 1903. People started to become more hooked onto automobiles. Five years later, however, John M. Chapman set up a franchised racing circuit that offered substantial prize money to winners. He and his colleagues revived the six-day races in 1920, and the rest, as they say is history.
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