1896 Map of Washington "Bicycle Tours"

PDF of this newspaper page provides the best image quality and ability to zoom in. Given that this image is from microfilm of the original (that is, several times reformatted from the original paper item) the quality is pretty good. Not great, but good.

From the article below the map ~

There has never been a season when there was half as much travel on the flying wheel as there has been, is, and is going to continue to be this season.

and

Not a night passes but some gay party passes out for a run through the country. All routes are being tried and becoming better known, so that even the inexperienced, with the assistance of a map and a little information from a friend can make pleasant and health-giving trips into the open country.

The article goes on to provide descriptions of different possible excursions.



Above, somewhat more detailed view of the Northern Virginia part of the map; below, zooming in further



Already in 1896 bicycle rentals were available ~

Escape from the heat and air of the city for a few hours a day is possible to every person who cares to learn to ride and can get the small amount necessary to hire a wheel - it is of course better to own one, but no longer absolutely necessary.

Japanese Bicycles, 1896

A Japanese bike from 100 years later than the two articles below

Short article about Japanese bicycle industry in 1896, from the Morning Times of Washington DC, September 13, 1896

JAPANESE BICYCLES.
An American Says They Are Not Being Largely Exported.

D. H. Kenaga of Port Townsend, Wash., has received the following letter from a friend in Yokohama, related to the oft repeated Japanese bicycle rumor:

"I have visited the oldest bicycle factory in Japan, and had an interview with the proprietor. He gave me a printed price list of all the cycles he is now putting out. The retail prices varied from forty five to one hundred and ten Yen. He informed me that his factory is unable to supply the demand iu Japan at these rates. At wholesale he could not offer 10 per cent reduction. There is a factory in Tokio which I have not yet heard from, but owing to the large demand for wheels in this country a large number being imported from America and Europe, I believe that the Japanese are not now exporting, and never have exported cycles to America. The great danger on this side is not from the Japanese alone, but from foreigners who may establish factories for the purpose of flooding foreign markets. In a few years the country will be all opened to foreign enterprise. The Japs [sic] have the will and facilities to compete with foreigners, but they lack in enterprise, originality,
and organization. In due time these drawbacks may be corrected, but it will not be for years to come."

In 1897, the Yen was worth about fifty cents to the U.S. dollar according to a Wikipedia article. So these prices were (in theory) about half the U.S. range for bicycles at the time.

Thus it would seem that at this early period of industrial production in Japan there was a concern in the U.S. that inexpensive Japanese bicycles could or would flood the American market. (Presumably that potential flood is what is meant by "oft repeated Japanese bicycle rumor," above in bold.)

Short piece in the magazine "Cycling Life" for bicycle tradesmen, 1896

JAPANESE BICYCLES.

Yokohama, Japan, Oct. 9.—There are at present four bicycle workshops of note in Japan, two in Tokyo, one in Kyoto and one in this city. All were opened some three or four years since. Kajiuo's workshops in Yokohama and Sasaki's in Asabu, Tokyo, being the pioneers. One other big workshop is that of Morita, in Honjo, Tokyo. The output of each shop does not exceed 130 machines, 17 mechanics being employed in one, and only 10 in another. They are not adepts at the work. At present many different kinds of bicycles, are manufactured in the workshops of Tokyo and elsewhere, the price of the machines varying very much. A pneumatic tire machine of the first-class from the Morita factory costs $58.92, a second machine $49.10, but one of special make costs $73.05 The pneumatic tire being difficult to repair, is not in favor with Japanese riders, who prefer substance to fashion. They like the solid tired bicycle, which costs less to keep in repair The latter sell for a first-class machine at $51.50; second class, $46.64; third class, $39 GS and fourth class at $34.39. The high, thin tired machines, though much more in vogue formerly, are not now so popular. Their price is comparatively low, a first-class machine costing $31.15, a second-class one $27 and a third-class one $22. Both the Tokyo shops are patronized by the post office and one is under the patronage of the metropolitan police. Generally speaking, bicycle riding is not so popular in Tokyo as in Yokohama riders of that city being confined to employees of mercantile and banking corporations, head clerks of large shops and school teachers. In Tokyo the home-made machine and foreign makes are closely balanced in point of numbers. With the increase of riders the patronage accorded to Japanese machines is on the increase.

This author does not seem concerned about imports of Japanese bicycles to the U.S. but rather interested in trade heading the other direction. From time to time Cycling Life would report export figures of bicycles to different countries, including Japan, although by today's standards the figures would generally seem modest, Japan was generally in the top half.

Cycle Path in Qatar

What one usually thinks of when (rarely) thinking of cycling and Qatar - the Tour of Qatar race event

Web announcement (with mocked up photos) of a proposed 35 km bike path in Qatar to promote the health of the local over-wealthy, under-healthy population. Some of it seems unintentionally funny.

. . . problem is the fact that Qatar's climate is intensely hot and humid. The project group therefore came up with the idea of cooling the entire cycle path using cold ground water.

and

The American consultancy firm the Rand Corporation has been leading in advising the Emir on the realisation of his goal of getting Qatar's population to cycle.

Oh, the Rand Corporation, consulting on bike paths! That's . . . absurd, actually. But they are probably quite happy to take the money. And involving consultants like Rand gets you a proposal to make the thing 35 km long when a more reasonable start would be to see if anyone uses a cycle path that was 3 or 5 km long - but the longer the trail, the more it costs, and the more the consulting fees presumably are.

Another blog post refers to it as being "air conditioned" but in fact it just has a mister - like riding in the vegetable department of the grocery store. Sorta.

The Velomondiale announcement has a photo at the bottom of four "trendsetters" - cyclists in Qatar today - but these look like guest workers who can't afford other transport and not the target audience the Emir has in mind. Strange.

Video "Me and My Bike" (from Kenya)

Short article about the video that was produced as part of a contest to create one-minute advocacy videos in support of the environment. Besides being energetic, gives a good street-level view of that part of the world. (Uganda looks much the same - I have not been to Nairobi.)

The video apparently won the contest (http://www.1minutetosavetheworld.com/)

Cycling "Round the Clock" in the Netherlands

Found this on a blog I just saw for the first time, A View from the Cycle Path" about cycling in the Netherlands (by a non-Dutch long term resident).



18 million bikes for less then 17 million people. And on a typical work day, five million of them take more than 14 million bike trips.

Wow.

Church Leaders & Morality of the Wheel (Bicycle), 1896

Article from the Washington DC Morning Times, August 9, 1896.



The illustration with the article provides the idealized view of the situation - bicycle as means to get to church on Sunday

This full page article looked at "the moral, the physical, and the commercial effects" of the "craze." Firsthand opinions of church leaders were gathered and presented as evidence ~

The clergy men whose views on the moral side of wheeling are given below were selected at random, the only object in view being to secure opinions to secure expressions which would represent the various denominations.

Their opinions are practically in accord, and, as will be seen, form a strong verdict in favor of the bicycle for both men and women, Practically the only point of difference among them is the question of Sunday riding.


REV. GEORGE LUCCOCK, D.D., Metropolitan Presbyterian "As I ride a wheel myself, I naturally approve of the invention, of course it can be used to an immoral end, like everything else. It's greatest abuse, to my mind is using it as a means of desecration of the Sabbath, but this in not the fault of the wheel; it is due to the ungodliness of the riders."

In other words, this minister assumes riding bicycles as a Sunday activity is in competition with church attendance but otherwise fine. He doesn't mention the compensating possibility shown in the illustration of cyclists using their wheels to get to church.

REV. I. J. STAFFORD, of St. Patrick's "I have given the bicycle subject no thought. I, therefore, have nothing to say for the present."

Well, that's clear enough!

REV. THOMAS CHALMERS EASTON, Eastern Presbyterian. "So far as the immodesty of dress is concerned, I believe every gentleman will admit with me that the decollete dress of ladies in the circles of fashion are more suggestive and imprudent than the a la bloomer costume of the wheel."

"I endorse the wheel and regard it as healthful exercise, which can only be made a means to licentiousness where the tendencies are already immoral on the part of its patrons. Unfortunately, I have not a wheel of my own, and no doubt I would be a greater enthusiast for its use if I possessed the 'flying iron steed.'"

A number of the ministers focused on the morality (as they saw it) of women's cycling attire.

REV. W. R. STRICKLEN, pastor Hamline M. E. Church, Ninth and P streets Northwest. "As Washington is the wheelman's paradise, no minister who propose to do his whole duty should be without a bicycle. Mine is as much a facter in my work as my study. By its aid I have gone through a hard season's pastoral work with comfort and delight. I would not part with my faithful companion under any consideration. All hail to the ever increasing army of wheelmen!"

So there you have it - Washington DC, in 1896 a paradise for cyclists!

These are just excerpts from the statements in the full article of ten representatives of different denominations whose opinions were mostly positive - which isn't too surprising since judging by the content of typical articles in the Morning Times at the time it seems to have been trying to attract cycling Washingtonians as readers.

The GW Parkway Bike Trail Detour - Enhanced!!

Looking up - new asphalt "speed bump" covers the previous ruts

So, I had this email address for a fellow at the Park Service who is a manager for the GW Parkway and I wrote him over the weekend saying that the bike path detour seems rutted and dangerous - I got a reply today and he said he would send some fellows out to look at the situation although he wasn't sure if the Park Service had jurisdication. I wonder if this is the result . . .

Anyway, in order to solve the rut problem, which I guess someone thought was the most important, they have put in soft asphalt "speed bumps" with nice yellow stripes on them. The one on the top end is already (after less than a day) a wreck since the narrow bike tires have cut through it, creating a mess. The one at the bottom seems to be holding up better - assuming that is what one wants.

The main virtue of the previous iteration was that it was a wide detour, but that has been "corrected" with a new fence - now it is narrower. I can't imagine why they did that. Perhaps they will come back and fix it some more??


Rider prepares to navigate soft aphalt bump at top

This isn't one of those "instead of making it better, they made it worse" situations but more like "instead of making it better, they made it different - and still bad."

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