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In New York, commuter cyclists have been braving the hazards of big-city traffic for years.
A young executive who pedals through Manhattan with an attache case strapped to his bike emphasizes the convenience and discounts the danger. “It’s really quite safe. Everyone thinks, ‘Look at that fool on the bike. Let’s stay away from him.’ ”
Not many commuters would battle New York traffic on an early American bicycle called the “boneshaker.” Patented in 1886, the machine had pedals on the front wheel and iron tires, which produced a tooth-rattling ride.
Today’s sleek, utilitarian bicycle evolved directly from the ‘‘boneshaker’’ and a high-wheeled, rubber-tire cycle first produced in England. The English version, comfortable and speedy, was the first practical bicycle although it threw its rider on the slightest provocation. Traded Horses for Bikes
Cycling became an American craze in the Gay Nineties. Doctor, lawyer, and merchant abandoned horse-drawn carriages for convenient bikes. Dandies sporting handlebar mustaches whistled “Daisy Bell” as they happily pedaled their ladies on bicycles built for two.
Dedicated fans agreed with the enthusiast who described the discovery and improvement, .of the bicycle as “of more importance to mankind that all the victories and defeats of Napoleon, with the First and Second Punic Wars...thrown in.”
Bike races were held throughout the country. In 1889 one of the greatest pitted a cyclist against a train.
New Yorker Charles M. Murphy bet he could match the finest engine on the Long Island Railroad. At first he kept pace. Then, as the train reached 60 miles an hour, he fell behind.
Thousands of spectators groaned sympathetically, but a furious spurt brought the cyclist even again and Mile-a-Minute Murphy bacame a national hero.
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