YouTube documentary: The Extraordinary Journey of the Bicycle

Jeremy McCreary

Jeremy McCreary

Bought it anyway
Region
USA
City
Carlsbad, CA
Worthwhile YouTube documentary on the history of the bicycle:


Well-researched and nicely illustrated with no glaring errors till the ebike is reached at 45:50. Some relatively minor misconceptions about how ebikes really work follow but nothing egregious.

Their version of the early history squares with what I recall from Wilson & Scmidt, 2020, Bicycling Science, 4th ed. But the video adds some interesting connections — e.g., to the cataclysmic 1815 eruption of Tambora and the women's emancipation movements of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
 
The Rough Stuff Fellowship
In 1955, off-road cyclists in the United Kingdom established the Rough Stuff Fellowship, which is considered Britain's oldest off-road club. The club's members include people from all ages, genders, and backgrounds. Some notable feats include the first self-supported bicycle trip across Iceland's desert interior in 1958 and the first trip to Everest South Base Camp by bike in 1984.
:)
 
Chargeride said:
The Rough Stuff Fellowship
In 1955, off-road cyclists in the United Kingdom established the Rough Stuff Fellowship, which is considered Britain's oldest off-road club. The club's members include people from all ages, genders, and backgrounds. Some notable feats include the first self-supported bicycle trip across Iceland's desert interior in 1958 and the first trip to Everest South Base Camp by bike in 1984.
:)
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They have a book out with stunning pictures. But every time a picture pops up on instagram with these skinny bearded pipe smoking fellas in short shorts carrying their touring bikes over some impossible waterfall I want to scream at them to get wider tyres! Fit lower gears! But of course there wasn't anything like that back then. Shows that we live in lucky times - at least for variety of bikes out there.
 
Rás Cnoic said:
They have a book out with stunning pictures. But every time a picture pops up on instagram with these skinny bearded pipe smoking fellas in short shorts carrying their touring bikes over some impossible waterfall I want to scream at them to get wider tyres! Fit lower gears! But of course there wasn't anything like that back then. Shows that we live in lucky times - at least for variety of bikes out there.
Click to expand...
I think the best time for the Repack downhill in Marin in the early days was around 4:30. That was on a rigid DIY "klunker" with coaster brakes. Wonder how much faster a modern FS downhill MTB would be?

Spent a lot of time riding trails in southern Marin on my rigid steel StumpJumper in the mid-late 1980s. Recognized some of them in the documentary, but my memories of those rides would probably be a lot sharper if I hadn't rattled my brains out on the descents.
 
I'd love to watch the Original Post video but it is unavailable in my country. I could turn Nord VPN on but is the film worth it?

Rás Cnoic said:
Shows that we live in lucky times - at least for variety of bikes out there.
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Amen to that!
 
We had wood irons as we called them, 10 geared Puch Free Spirit fitted with 'stag' handlebars and knobbly tyres.
1979ish, we had one each and there was always one broken, so 90% of the time we were two up with one on the handlebars.
It was such cool bike back then and now looks hilariously vintage.
Bit like myself
Vintage-1975-Puch-Free-Spirit-10-speed-Gents~2.jpg
 
Jeremy McCreary said:
I think the best time for the Repack downhill in Marin in the early days was around 4:30. That was on a rigid DIY "klunker" with coaster brakes. Wonder how much faster a modern FS downhill MTB would be?

Spent a lot of time riding trails in southern Marin on my rigid steel StumpJumper in the mid-late 1980s. Recognized some of them in the documentary, but my memories of those rides would probably be a lot sharper if I hadn't rattled my brains out on the descents.
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Same over in Ireland - after years on a bmx got my first proper mountain bike around 85. Would devour the monthly MTB magazines, the only way to see what was happening and so my first intro to the Gary Fisher Charlie Cunningham et al exploits were b&w photos from the 70s; long hair and flared jeans & probably stoned heading down hill fast in Marin & Colorado. Made a big impression. Only saw moving images with the arrival of Youtube. Never realised there was an earlier crazy off road go anywhere group until recently seeing the Rough Stuff Fellowship pics.
 
From a PressReader article behind a paywall:
Screenshot_20241231_102327_Chrome.jpg


From the internet:
bke080119storoughstuff-005-preview-ppi-72-embedmetadata-true-1566833956.jpg

Rough stuff indeed. To fend off temptations like this, I've purposely set up my bike with no good way to carry a big rope.
;^}
 
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Rás Cnoic said:
Same over in Ireland - after years on a bmx got my first proper mountain bike around 85. Would devour the monthly MTB magazines, the only way to see what was happening and so my first intro to the Gary Fisher Charlie Cunningham et al exploits were b&w photos from the 70s; long hair and flared jeans & probably stoned heading down hill fast in Marin & Colorado. Made a big impression. Only saw moving images for baixar instagram video with the arrival of Youtube. Never realised there was an earlier crazy off road go anywhere group until recently seeing the Rough Stuff Fellowship pics.
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Yes,Over the decades, the club has achieved several remarkable milestones, including the first self-supported bicycle crossing of Iceland’s desert interior in 1958 and the first-ever bicycle journey to Everest’s South Base Camp in 1984.
 
Anyone know when the first fat-tire bikes came out (unassisted, that is). My first time on one was in the early oughts. It was unrideable for me. That’s one of the reasons I was so excited to get an e-fatty twenty years later! :)
 
Spoke to Marco a few times, I think it was early 2000-isch when he started the project

As I recall he was also a member of the wereldfietser communitie (www.wereldfietser.nl)
 
Spoke to Marco a few times, I think it was early 2000-isch when he started the project

As I recall he was also a member of the wereldfietser communitie (www.wereldfietser.nl)
 
Fantastic! All I can say is WOW. My friend did some research and it looks like this “Artic” bike was around 2004… I’m feel like I tried a Surly or something fatty before that, but it’s too long ago to be sure. All I remember is that it was so cool and so impossible for me.
 
First Surly fatbike came in the model 2006 so in the shops in 2005. As I recall Rakower build a few custom's in the late 1980's, problem was finding a proper bicycle compatibel tire. Since there where no wide tires available for Marco, Marten build this idea of triple rims and an elevated drivetrain in the early '00's and the big expidition started indeed in 2004, prior to that there where some test rides years before.
 
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