Bicycle

A bicycle, or bike, is a pedal-driven human-powered vehicle with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. The International Union of Cycling adds the provision that the seat be more or less above the pedals, thus excluding recumbent bicycles. more...

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First introduced in 19th-century Europe, bicycles now number over one billion worldwide, providing the principal means of transportation in many regions, notably China and the Netherlands. They are also a popular form of recreation, and have been adapted for use in many other fields of human activity, including children's toys, adult fitness, military and local police applications, courier services, and cycle sports.

The basic shape and configuration of the bicycle's frame, wheels, pedals, saddle, and handlebars have hardly changed since the first chain-driven model was developed around 1885 , although many important details have since been improved, especially since the advent of modern materials and computer-aided design. These have allowed for a proliferation of specialized designs for individuals who pursue a particular type of cycling.

The bicycle has affected history considerably, in both the cultural and industrial realms. In its early years, bicycle construction drew on pre-existing technologies; more recently, bicycle technology has, in turn, contributed ideas in both old and newer areas.

History

Several inventors and innovators contributed to the development of the bicycle. Its earliest known forebears were called velocipedes, and included many types of human-powered vehicles. One of these, the scooter-like dandy horse of the French Comte de Sivrac, dating to 1790, was long cited as the earliest bicycle. Most bicycle historians now believe that these hobbyhorses with no steering mechanism probably never existed, but were made up by Louis Baudry de Saunier, a 19th-century French bicycle historian. However, the term hobbyhorse was later applied to the first documented ancestor of the modern bicycle, first introduced to the public in Paris by the German Baron Karl Drais in 1818..

The ancestor of the bicycle was first created by a German Baron, Karl Drais, who invented and patented his machine in 1817. So the first bicycle ride was from his residence town Mannheim to the suburb Rheinau. A number of these draisines or dandy horses still exist, including one at the Paleis het Loo museum in Apeldoorn, the Netherlands. These were pushbikes, powered by the action of the rider's feet pushing against the ground. The Draisienne had two in-line wheels connected by a wooden frame. The rider sat astride and pushed it along with his feet, while steering the front wheel.

Read more at Wikipedia.org