I’ve often wondered why, after a century of innovation, modern bicycles look so similar to the ones that people rode in the 1890s. After all the innovations in the world since that time, why haven’t we improved on the bicycle?
That question drove me to compare a brand-new, just-out-of-the-box bike to one that was built in 1895. And maybe you’ll be as surprised as me at the similarities and the differences between them.
A big thanks to the Reynolds Museum, particularly to Juanita Voth, who shared her time and knowledge. You should visit the museum: https://reynoldsmuseum.ca/
The modern bike is a 2024 Priority Eight (and it’s super fun to ride). The old bike is an 1895 Singer Ladies’ Safety Bicycle (and it’s fascinating).
You are describing me starting my 125 cc 2 strokes motorbike.
Except I had to jump on before disengaging the clutch because otherwise the rear wheel lacked traction and would stop and slide
You think that’s scary? you should see me kick start my old PoS hyundai truck
My old VW Beetle had an unreliable starter, so I often found myself push-starting it. You don’t see many people push-starting vehicles today, and even fewer doing it by themselves.
You have no idea bud … I run a local car club … every year there’s less and less manuals. There’s only a handful of manual car models left.
We’re being pushed around and they’ll have to pry my manual shitbox from my cold dead body.