Ride SamplesBack to Ride Samples from the bookBamboo DickRichard Pearse is best remembered for designing and flying an aeroplane on his South Canterbury farm. But he earned the nickname ‘Bamboo Dick' for the bicycle he built in 1902. His ingenious design featured a bamboo frame, vertical-drive pedal action, rod-and-rack gearing system, back-pedal rim-brakes and integral tyre pumps that would blow the tyres up while cycling. The bicycle was patented and a lead model of it, made by Pearse in 1901, is owned by an Ashburton man. It is stored in a safe, but the key was lost in the 1970s, and the model hasn't been seen since. Urban stunts 1900 Riding down the Madras Street overbridge, on a fixed wheel bike, 1900. In 1900, The Sportsman and New Zealand Cyclist reported that Mr Spring rode down the 40 steep steps of the Madras Street overbridge in Christchurch. It appears he was riding a fixed-wheel bike with no brakes. Photo from The Sportsman and New Zealand Cyclist, 1900.
Taking off on a tangentThe Cutten Brothers of Dunedin built their first velocipede in 1870 out of Australian hardwood. It had no steering, making it unrideable, but the brothers' second attempt was a success. William Cutten described it in a letter: The machine weighed about 92 lbs, and when it fell over on its would-be rider, it usually had to be lifted off him before he could get up ... After about ten days' good hard work, and lots of bruises, we succeeded in learning to ride it, and the new sensation so fired our imaginations that we almost immediately started to build another ...
They claimed to have built the first tangentially spoked wheel in the world - more by accident than inspiration! In 1874, they were building their third velocipede and to reduce weight made the front wheel from gas pipe tubing, with number 8 wire for the spokes. They threaded the wire through the rim and to avoid bending it too tightly offset the connections at the hub. Thus the wheel was angentially spoked. This new design provided more strength and suspension for the wheel. It was reinvented in England, and by 1900, almost every bicycle in the world used tangentially spoked wheels.
Lighting the way Kirmer acetylene lamp Oil lamps were supplanted in the late 1890s by brighter acetylene lamps, which produced a flammable gas as a result of water dripping onto calcium carbide. These lamps were not superseded until the 1930s, when dynamo and battery systems were developed. Image from a cycling catalogue supplied by Martyn's Cycles
Import licencesAuckland's W. H. Worrall & Co started importing bicycles in the early 1930s. Don Worrall recalls the impact government restrictions had on their business: Licensing ran from March to March; if business went well, then a company might have run out of parts partway through the year and need to extend their licence, which was for a certain value of a
particular product, say, £5,000 worth of chains. Companies had to constantly approach the government for more licences. This task became so demanding that some companies assigned a worker to deal solely with import licences. By the mid 1960s, most licences were held by established importers, such as Hope Gibbons in Wellington (Raleigh), A. G. Healing in Christchurch (BSA), Jones Brothers in Wellington (componentry), W. H. Worrall in Auckland (Hercules) and H. S. White in Auckland (BSA). Import licences made bike assembly from imported components more viable than importing built up bikes. Bike shops and wholesalers imported bikes in boxes of 25, 'CKD' (completely knocked down) - one box of frames, the other of parts. Even wheels needed to be built up. Such work was often done by 'moonlighters'. After returning home from the Second World War, Neville Brown of Dunedin used to build up two bicycles, wheels and all, each night at home, earning 15 shillings per bike to save for his wedding.
The Green Bike Scheme Green Bike Scheme bike shed 'Green Bike' schemes in Palmerston North, Porirua and Nelson have made cycling more accessible. The most successful was started by Janice Gordon of Phoenix Trust in 1995 in Palmerston North. By 2004, the trust had over 2000 bikes and had sent 300 to East Timor. Their bikes are all donated and are repaired by volunteers interested in increasing their work skills. One third are true 'Green Bikes' (i.e. painted green and left around town for anyone to use), and the rest are 'mufti' (i.e. not painted and 'released' to people who keep them). Photo from the Green Bike Trust, 2004
Cycling soldiers Cyclists capturing Boers, c. 1900 New Zealand and Australian cycling soldiers capturing Boers near Eerste Fabrieken, circa 1900 Image from After Pretoria: The Guerrilla War
The Avon River Bicycle Race Peter Kennett after the 1957 Avon bicycle race The funniest race of all was organised by Canterbury University students. In 1960, The Press reported that "80 entrants and their pro-tection squads splashed through mud, water and slime in the annual Avon bicycle race". Flying mud and flour bombs ensured "The race ended as it began, in utter confusion." The winners had a protection squad of 50 from Rolleston House. After the race, "the river was cleared of mermaids, rafts, tanks, bicycles and students". The photo above shows the publishers' father, Peter Kennett, coming last in the 1957 Avon River Race. Photo by Barbara Kennett
The helmet debate Ian Chapman with broken helmet Ian Chapman was knocked unconscious in a mountain bike crash at the inaugural UCI World Championships in Colorado, 1990. After a brief visit to the hospital, he was able to show off his helmet later the same day. Photo by Simon Kennett
Cycling firemen Palmerston North Fire Station, circa 1910 For many years cycling was the fastest, most affordable and reliable way for firemen to reach a fire. This postcard shows the Palmerston North Fire Station, circa 1910. Photo from the Arthur Shepherd Collection
The rise of the motorcar No bikes sign on Wellington Motorway From 1950, the government invested heavily in carriage ways on which cyclists were prohibited. Robert Muldoon opened this section of Wellington motorway in 1978. Minutes later, police struggled to stop 75 protesting cyclists from rushing into The Terrace Tunnel. Photo by Jonathan Kennett, 2004
Mountain bike parks Makara Peak Mountain Bike Park road sign By the new millennium, bicycles, like Kiwi lifestyles, were faster, flashier and more complicated than ever. Despite the decline in cycling for transport, it is now one of New Zealand’s most popular recreational pastimes. Photo by Jonathan Kennett, 2004 |