Why was
cycling not included in the ancient Olympics?
By Les Earnest, August 2004
This is a revision of an article that appeared under
the same title in the January 1989 edition of Cyclops USA.
The obvious answer to the
title question is “Because bicycles had not been invented yet.” However
technology sufficient to build a bike had been around for about 1,200 years
before the Olympics began in 776 BC. If bikes had been invented in a timely
manner, world history would have been quite different.
Old Technology
Much of our
written history is taken from earlier writers who have filtered and adjusted
their reports to fit their models of the world. The further back we go, the
sketchier is the record, in general, and major segments are obscure because
observers were illiterate, accounts have since been lost or mythmakers have
been at work. All successful inventions seem to accumulate mythical baggage and
the bicycle is no exception. I will skip over known frauds such as the bikes
allegedly designed by Leonardo da Vinci and the
mythical M. Sivrac of
The first
proto-bicycle was invented in 1817 by Baron Karl von Drais
de Saurbrun in
Draisienne or Hobby Horse, 1817
This
machine had a steerable front wheel and was propelled
by the rider’s feet acting against the ground, which provided a faster and more
efficient means of locomotion than walking. It was very fast downhill as long
as it was kept under control because the rider could lift his feet and coast
(at some peril since it had no brakes). It was demonstrably faster than runners
and was even able to beat horse-drawn carriages over rolling terrain. It was
also hard on shoes, which had to mediate both propulsion and braking.
The
Draisienne was mostly made of wood, a very old
technology. This raises the question, “Why did it take until 1817 for the first
proto-bicycle to appear?” Wooden wheels with axles and roads to roll them on
were being built in the Middle East by the beginning of the Bronze Age, around
3500 BC. The Old Silk Road ran 6,000 miles from China to Europe. Spoked wooden wheels similar to those used on the Draisienne appeared in Mesopotamia by 2000 BC and were used
in chariots in Syria, Egypt, and Western Mediterranean before 1400 BC. The Iron
Age began in Asia Minor around 1100 BC.
Spoked wheels appear to be an essential precursor to
building a bike that is light enough to be useful, so the technology needed to
build the Driasienne had existed for around 1,200
years before the Olympics began in 776 BC. High quality roads appeared in the
Roman Empire beginning with the Apian Way in 312 BC but still no bikes were
invented. In fact, the roads in Europe and Americas in the 19th
Century, when bicycling eventually took off, were mostly unpaved and in worse
condition than those of the Roman Empire.
During the 17th
through 19th Centuries various four wheeled human powered vehicles
were built, generally for gentry to ride while their servants provided the
power. That changed temporarily with the introduction of the hobby horse in the
period after 1818, which turned into a fad among much of the aristocracy of
Europe and America. These machines also were used to deliver mail in France for
a time. They worked well in summer but bogged down in winter and were
subsequently abandoned. Surprisingly there was no further development of bikes
for the next 40 years and they faded from general use.
The reason for this
stagnation is not clear, but may be related to other concurrent technological
developments. The first steam locomotive was built in 1814 by George Stephenson
of England. Stephenson continued to develop his invention and by 1829 had built
a practical locomotive called the “Rocket,” which immediately led to
development of railroads throughout Europe, the Americas, and Asia.
Did
the importance and popularity of railroads deter further development of the
bicycle? This seems unlikely inasmuch as
these two transportation devices were complementary -- trains can carry large
numbers of people very efficiently but are constrained to a small number of
routes and a limited number of departure times whereas bicycles can convey
individuals in almost any direction at any time.
The
technological sophistication involved in building railroads and locomotives was
much greater than would be required to build an efficient bicycle, but somehow
it didn't happen right away. The principal competition for the bicycle (such as
it was) continued to be the horse and the latter remained dominant. Given the
logistical and potential economic advantages of bicycles over horses, it is
hard to understand why bicycles were not further developed in this period.
Bicycles did not become
popular until cranks and pedals were added to the front wheel in the 1860s, as
shown below. This was done by either Ernest Michaux
or Pierre Lallement, both of France. Whoever invented
it, the other one swiped the idea, pedaled off and peddled it, but we don’t
know for sure who was the bad guy. In 1866 Lallement
moved to the U.S. and patented it there.
Velocipede, 1863
Wire
spokes were invented in 1868 by Edward Copper, which made possible the
construction of much lighter wheels. Solid rubber tires were also introduced
that year and softened the ride of the “boneshakers,” as they were then called.
The first all metal bike was built in 1871 and led to the development by 1873
of the “high wheeler” or “ordinary,” as it came to be called. The pursuit of
higher speeds led to the development of grotesquely large wheels that, in their
extreme forms, could be ridden only by very tall men.
High Wheeler, 1873
Despite
all these advances and a general cycling craze in the late 1860s, public
interest in these machines waned significantly in the 1870s. They continued to
be used by enthusiasts but were not in the mainstream of transportation.
The caliper brake was
patented by John Kemp Starley in 1879, a chain drive
by H.J. Larson in 1879 and the freewheel by J. White and G. Davies in 1881. A
three-speed gear was introduced in 1883 and the diamond frame appeared in 1886.
Pneumatic tires were invented in 1888 by John B. Dunlop, a veterinary surgeon
from Scotland living in Belfast, and became standard equipment by 1891.
The
last major change in bicycle design was the introduction in England of the
“safety” bicycle by John Kemp Starley in 1885. It
used a chain drive to the rear wheel, which permitted the front wheel to be
made much smaller. This in turn improved the stability of the machine, which
had earned the nickname of “widow-maker” because of its tendency to throw
riders from substantial heights onto their heads. By the 1891, then, bicycles
were widely available that looked much like those used now, though they were
much heavier.
Safety Bike, 1891
It
is remarkable that even after safety bicycles were introduced, many cyclists
clung to their idiosyncratic high wheelers. Even today, many people seem to
have a romantic attachment to images of those inefficient and dangerous
machines.
Nevertheless,
the safety bicycle came into widespread use in the 1890s and turned into a fad
that revolutionized travel, clothing, and the emancipation of women. The rich
used them for exercise. Working
men commuted to work and toured the countryside on weekends. Women used them
for shopping and recreation.
There were
bike races for both men and women with good prize lists. The better riders,
both men and women, were able to make a living at it and were properly regarded
as “pros.” However women pros were largely ignored by national cycling
organizations of that time and female riders were generally regarded as
indecent inasmuch as they often exposed their ankles and even calves to public
scrutiny! On the other hand, while
baseball had already become a national pastime in the U.S., cycling became even
more popular and top male racers enjoyed greater celebrity than top baseball
players.
Few roads
were paved in that era, so cyclists and their organizations such as the
original League of American Wheelmen (LAW) initiated a successful political
push to pave them, only to be overrun a short time later by motor vehicles. Many of the bicycle
manufacturers of the 1890s became automotive or aircraft pioneers in the 1900s,
including Henry Ford, the Wright Brothers, Glenn Curtis, and Charles Duryea. The
technology and manufacturing techniques used to build these new machines were
derived directly from bicycle construction practices. In other words, the bicycle was a pivotal
invention that helped society move at a faster pace and led to successive
inventions that revolutionized the world.
However,
the cycling fad collapsed in the United States in 1897. American bike racers,
who had been world class and even had dominated many international
competitions, began to fade away as many took up motorcycle or car racing.
Newer Technology
Bicycle
technology continued to advance through the 20th Century and
continues to be of great economic and practical importance as transportation in
underdeveloped countries. Despite the successes of railroads, automobiles, and
airplanes, more people in the world are currently transported on a daily basis
by bicycle than by any other means of conveyance. Motor bikes, motor scooters
and motorcycles are direct descendants of 19th Century bicycles and
enjoy widespread use for commerce and recreation throughout the world.
Bicycle
technology continued to advance throughout the 20th Century,
especially in the last 50 years, as improved drive train components, brakes,
wheels, frame materials and helmets were developed. New bicycle configurations
appeared, including BMX, mountain bikes and the unrestricted human powered
vehicles, all originating in California. However, few bicycles are now
manufactured in the U.S. because of labor costs.
Observations and Questions
Looking back, we see that
there have been three main surges in bicycling popularity:
(1) In the 1820s after the Draisienne was invented,
(2) In the 1860s after cranks
were added to the front wheel,
(3) In the 1890s after
creation of the safety bike.
There was a smaller surge in
the early 1970s when the Arab oil boycott drove up fuel prices and we can
expect that to happen again whenever fuel prices start rising substantially.
Observations above on the slow pace of technological advances lead to two unanswered
questions.
Why did it take over 3,500 years for the bicycle to be invented after it
became feasible from a technology standpoint? Was it just because nobody
thought of the ridiculous idea of balancing on two wheels? I suspect that
almost anyone who did think of that would have rejected it on the grounds that
such a machine would be statically unstable. Most likely Baron von Drais thought that his bike could be stabilized by using
his feet on either side but discovered after it was built that he could
accomplish the same thing by using the steering mechanism. In any case, if it
were not for the good Baron we might still be getting around on horses.
Why did it take over 40
years after the invention of the hobby horse to put pedals on it? The principles of cranks
had been known for thousands of years, yet it somehow was not obvious to early
19th Century inventors that a bicycle would work much better if it
were pedaled instead of pushed.
Think
of how different human history would have been if cycling had become popular
in, say,1000 B.C. Commerce would have been stimulated, armies would have moved
much more quickly and follow-on inventions likely would have advanced
technology at a faster pace. There also would have
been bicycle races in the ancient Olympic Games.
Overall, if you believe that
“Necessity is the mother of invention” then you will have to admit that her
gestation period is sometimes remarkably long.