The+Bicycle

=The Bicycle=

The Celerifere, an early version of the bicycle, was built around 1791 by a French man. It was a scooter with a high seat. There were no pedals - you had to push with your feet like you do with a skateboard or a scooter.

Around 1816 or 1818 a moveable steering handle was added. These early bikes were often known as dandy horses or hobby horses, but weren't very popular.

Around 1839, Kirkpatrick Macmillan added pedals to enable him to get up hills. They were called bone-shakers, because of the lack of proper tyres made for a rough ride! It wasn't until around 1869 that they began to be called bicycles ("two-wheels").

In 1869 the penny-farthing was invented. The large wheel meant that the rider could go much farther with each push of the pedal, but caused many accidents because the seat was so far off the ground.

In the mid-1880s Englishman James Starley began to make what he called the "safety bicycle" which had two similarly-sized wheels and a major improvement - a chain and sprocket driven rear wheel, with the pedals between the two wheels like modern bicycles.

Today we have many different types of bicycles such as; BMX, mountain bikes and racing bikes. Kids today enjoy opportunities to ride on bike tracks. Safety helmets are worn by cyclists to keep them safe on the road.


 * What can we expect bicycles to be like in the future? **