Cycling
Biking
It is not known when the first bike was made, but their were designs made by Leonardo de Vinci in the 15th century. It became popular in the 1790. It was called the Velocifere. You could not steer and it did not have any pedals. It was pushed like a scooter. By removing the ornamental animal head and making some improvements the bike became lighter, graceful in appearance and was steerable. In the 1860's, Scotsman Kirkpatrick Macmillan made a bike of wood and iron. It was pedalled and had a front wheel that could be steered. There was also a brake operated from the handlebars, a spring seat to absorb road shock, and fender to protect the rider from dirt thrown up by the rear wheel. In 1865, riding became a popular sport in France, the United States, and England. One of the next bike models made was called Ordinary which enabled the rider to travel high speed over rough terrain. In the 1890 inventors developed what came to be called the safety bicycle. The first bike with two wheels of equal size and pedals driving the rear wheel through a system of chains and sprockets was in 1884. The Rover was produced in England in 1886 and it looks like a modern bike.
