Initially conceived as a make-shift solution, the bicycle ultimately became the most successful invention ever. Still, the bicycle had a rocky start before it really took off.
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The bicycle turns 200: Two centuries of two-wheelers
The bicycle was born when inventor Karl Drais tried out his newly created dandy horse for the first time 200 years ago. The two-wheeler has taken on many forms since 1817.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Conservatoire du Patrimoine Sportif
The first balance bike
Karl Drais was actually a forest ranger - with a knack for physics and math. Some of his inventions were further developed by other tinkerers, including his "wagon without horses," which later became a railway handcar. His most significant invention was the forerunner to the modern bicycle, which was called a dandy horse. Today, small children learned to ride bikes on similar pedal-free models.
Image: picture alliance / -/dpa
From dandy horse to vélocipède
Frenchman Pierre Michaux added pedals to the dandy horse in 1861 to make what was known as the Michauline. Pierre Lallement further improved the design and patented the term "Lallement vélocipède." The model, however, was not particularly comfortable. The front gears were stiff and the seat was so high that falling could be dangerous.
Image: picture-alliance/Prisma Archivo
Going to great heights
In 1870, James Starley of Britain achieved the next milestone in the development of two-wheelers: the penny-farthing "Ariel." It proved much faster, due to its proportionately enormous front wheel. However, it wasn't particularly stable and riders needed help to get on the bicycle. Falling could result in serious injuries. Starley later developed the first chain gears.
Image: picture-alliance/akg-images
The first Tour de France
In 1890, so-called safety bicycles - with chain drives and lower seats - replaced the penny-farthings. With this modern model, the world's most famous cycling event the Tour de France, was launched on July 1, 1903 in Paris. Sixty riders raced from Lyon to Marseille, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Nantes and back to Paris. Frenchman Maurice Garin (pictured center) won the first 2,428-kilometer race.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Conservatoire du Patrimoine Sportif
Racing through the post-war rubble
When it came to making life in the ruins of World War II more bearable, people had to get creative with what they had. There weren't a lot of leisure activities in post-war Germany. Here in Berlin in 1953, young people made a cycling track out of rubble.
Image: picture-alliance / akg-images
The bicycle stool
A soccer game is taking place on the other side of this wall in Vienna. These spectators used their bicycles as stepping stools to catch a glimpse. This historic scene has been repeated over the years. At an AC/DC concert in Cologne in 2015, the band performed on a fenced-in field, while hundreds of ticketless spectators stood on their bikes at the fence to enjoy the show.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/ASA
Tandem plus three
Pictured in 1895 are the five sons of Adam Opel. They were all successful racing cyclists and made the Opel bicycles popular. Opel starting producing bicycles in 1886 and became the world's largest manufacturer by the 1920s. The company is now better known for its cars, which it started making in 1899.
Image: picture-alliance/akg-images
The world's heaviest bike
To set a world record, tinkerer Frank Dose just had to move his 1,080-kilogram monster of a bike 100 meters with his own strength. He got the idea after a few beers at the heavy metal festival Wacken Open Air. Dose just needed some scrap metal and truck wheels. The most important feature are the tiny wheels at the back - it's not a bike you want to fall over with.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Scholz
You can actually ride this too
Designer Dieter "Didi" Senft is renowned for his unusual bicycle designs. He has also set several new records with his models. This one, made of elements from 111 garden rakes, is four meters long and two meters high. It is one you can ride too: There's a hip-high seat from which one can sit to push the bike with the feet.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Pleul
Pedaling in different directions
Bicycle collector Ulrich Teige is also specialized in particularly eccentric models. In his museum Pedalwelt (Pedal World), he exhibits exotic bikes like rickshaws, wobbly bikes, reverse-steering bicycles or this one here: a recumbent tandem that only moves when one person pedals forward and the other backwards.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Stable and eco-friendly
Bamboo bikes are not only stable, they can also be used for long-distance trips. Karina and Tim Poser (photo) traveled with such a model from Hamburg to the Chinese metropolis Chengdu. The bikes, built by a social enterprise based in Ghana and Germany, covered the 12,000-kilometer journey without major problems.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. Reinhardt
Attracting attention is the goal
Meanwhile, there are no limits to possible designs. Recumbent bicycles allow the rider to sit in a laid-back reclining position. There are also tall bikes and fat bikes, with oversized tires. This picture shows a cruiser bicycle. These models are particularly comfortable and have an eye-catching design. Their rounded forms and unusual style makes them popular advertising vehicles.
Image: DW/S. Wünsch
Drink and ride: the beer bike
A wooden bar counter, a beer tap, and a sound system: This one-ton vehicle can be pedaled by up to 10 people. The rolling bar has been threatening road traffic safety in German city centers for years. The riders were often way too drunk to properly steer their beer bike: That's why they are now forbidden in most cities.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Five-wheeler
Here is another example of a particularly creative modification. For the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, this Chinese cyclist added colored wheels to his bicycle to reproduce the Olympic rings.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Imaginechina
Nine million bicycles
Beijing long held the title of world capital of bicycles. Autos have since invaded the Chinese metropolis as well. If anyone were to guess the numbers of bikes still cycling through the city, many might be inspired by Katie Melua's hit, the 2005 ballad titled "Nine Million Bicycles."
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. Klar
International means of transportation
Several rankings try to determine the world's most bicycle-friendly cities. Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, with its potholes, herds of animals and reckless car drivers, would probably come towards the bottom of such lists. Fearless livestock owners still carry their animals from A to B on a bike. The Danish capital Copenhagen has been elected the most bicycle-friendly city in the world.
Image: picture alliance / dpa
New mobility: the folding bike
Folding bicycles have incredibly evolved over the last decades. They used to be heavy and clunky to ride; new models are easy to fold into a small and easy-to-carry format and can reach normal speeds on the road. They are very popular among commuters, as folding bikes can be carried onto a bus or train at no extra charge, which is not the case with a normal bicycle.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Brompton maniacs
The British folding bike Brompton has reached cult status not only in the UK, but also in Japan and the US. It is the Mercedes of folding bikes: Thanks to its sophisticated gears, it's actually faster than it looks. There are Brompton races held every year in London and New York. At the events, cyclists not only have to be fast, they also compete for the most elegant outfit.
Image: Imago/ZUMA Press
Built-in tailwind
There are different categories of bicycles with electric motors. Some powerful e-bikes barely need to be pedaled, whereas the widespread "pedelecs" simply assist the rider's pedal-power. Although they had a reputation of being the senior citizen's bike, there are now models for all types of extreme cyclists, such as the mountain bikes pictured here. A good bike costs about 2,500 euros in Germany.
Image: Imago/MITO
A wedding on a bicycle
A deep declaration of love to the bicycle: While many rent a limousine or a horse carriage for their wedding, this just-married couple picked a bicycle to ride off to their honeymoon. Bicycle weddings are gaining popularity - even among stars: Beyoncé's sister, Solange Knowles, and her fiancé rode to their wedding on white bicycles.
Image: picture-alliance/ROPI
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On June 12, 1817, forest ranger and inventor Karl Freiherr von Drais sat down on the saddle of his wooden riding machine and took off. The trial run was a success and the predecessor to today's bicycle was born.
The timing couldn't have been better. The region was immersed in a climate disaster, triggered by a gigantic cloud of ash that circled the globe following a volcanic eruption in Indonesia. The consequences were harrowing: severe cold, drought, ruined harvests, and a hunger crisis. Countless horses were killed as a result - simply out of the need to feed starving people.
Von Drais had already been pondering a sensible replacement for horses. And that's when the balance bike was born. It was called the "Draisine." When he invented it, however, he surely didn't realize that he would be altering the course of mobility for humanity forever. His original intention was simply to make money.
Bizarre idea
The balance bike's maiden voyage began in Mannheim, now in Germany, and meandered 14 kilometers south toward Schwetzingen. Journalists across Europe reported on the new invention. The financial benefits were celebrated most: the purchase of a Draisine cost around 20 pounds. A horse cost 1,900 pounds. The other unbeatable aspect was that the bike did not entail further costs; after all, it did not have to be fed.
But much to von Drais's dismay, the new vehicle did not spark universal enthusiasm. Why on earth would people propel their bodies forward if they did not have to? Most rural people of the period stayed put in the places they were born. They considered the idea of moving away from home downright bizarre. So this new balance bike was more of a toy for those well-heeled sports enthusiasts who wanted to put on a show in town by rolling through on a Draisine.
Von Drais's invention did not go unnoticed by other inventors, however. He did have it patented, but only for his small duchy of Baden. Beyond its borders, people were avidly copying his idea and developing it further.
The epitome of sustainable mobility
It took decades for the bicycle to evolve into its modern-day form. Tinkerers in France and England were constantly improving on the two-wheeled concept, from the first pedal-powered velocipede to the life-endangering high-wheeler. The classic bicycle finally emerged at the end of the 19th century with elements we still recognize today: two air-filled rubber wheels of the same size and a chain drive. Bicycle technology, by the way, was also implemented into automobile construction - such as tires filled with air.
Over its 200-year history, the bicycle has taken on many different forms. It had to withstand a great deal before it became a practical means of transportation for virtually anybody. It was mocked. It was deemed unseemly by stuffy old women's clubs. Later, it became an exclusive toy for the wealthy before being inched out by motorbikes and automobiles.
Nowadays, the bike is a functional object, a cult object, and a sports and entertainment device ridden by billions of people around the world. It has also become the epitome of sustainable mobility. Those who leave their cars in the driveway and mount their bikes instead not only help to protect the environment, they are also doing something for their health. Those who ride their bikes often stay healthy longer.
How to ride a bike in Germany
It's time to drag your two-wheeler out of the basement and to the local bike shop for a spring fix-up. Germany is a haven for bike riders, but here's what you need to know before flipping up your kickstand.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Bike license
Children in Germany become acquainted with bikes at a very young age. Practically before they can walk, toddlers can be seen scooting around on pedal-free wooden bike-like constructions known literally as a "run wheel" in German. A few years down the track, police officers come to schools to guide 8-to-9-year-olds through an official "bicycle license" program, where kids learn traffic rules.
Image: Fotolia
Find a good spot
Münster (above) in north-western Germany was named the country's most bike-friendly city in 2015, according to a poll of over 100,000 cyclists by German Cycling Club ADFC. Karlsruhe and Freiburg came in second and third, respectively. Needless to say, big cities don't mesh well with two-wheelers. Berlin came in 30th due to parked cars on bike paths, construction sites and uncleared winter snow.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Gentsch
Plan your route
Germany's is strewn with an extensive network of cycling paths. They lead bikers into woods (like the Bavarian Forest), urban jungles (like the cycling "Autobahn" across the Ruhr region), and through agricultural delights, like the Ahr Valley path pictured here. The region is known for its hillside vineyards and red wine. Legs getting tired? Just stop and enjoy a glass of the local specialty.
Image: Foto: Ahrtal-Tourismus Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler e.V.
Be nice to stray pedestrians
With so many designated bike paths in Germany, cyclists are inclined to take them seriously. That means if you aren't rushing to your destination on your two-wheeler, then get off the path! And we mean pronto. If you're on foot or cycling too slowly, you run the risk of bells driving you insane — or getting yelled at or run over. If you're a biker, please be kind to those who forget the rules.
Image: Fotolia/Brilt
Sunday in Germany
When the first rays of spring sun make their grand appearance, flocks of bike riders take to their local paths. If you look carefully, you might spot a small phenomenon: An abundance of elderly couples with matching cycling shirts and his-and-her bicycles. The sight is enough to make anyone fall in love again.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D. Bockwoldt
Dress appropriately
In spring most of us have to come to grips with the Christmas cookies and Easter chocolate we've been hiding behind our baggy sweaters for the past few months. While Spandex is not very compatible with winter blubber, its sweat-whisking capabilities are practical — and Germany loves everything practical. No matter how seriously they cycle, many bikers in Germany make a point of dressing the part.
Image: dapd
Rule number 1
The most important bike rule in Germany is: Don't ride drunk. This might seem absurd, since bikes are an ideal alternative to driving drunk. Up to a certain blood-alcohol content, this may be true. But a very inebriated cyclist is at least as dangerous to the nearest car driver as vice versa. That's why you can lose your driving license if you're caught swerving too much. Next time, call a taxi.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
A little help never hurt
Riding a bike in Germany doesn't mean you can't afford a car. It's a legitimate means of transportation, not just a piece of sports equipment. That's why it's also perfectly acceptable to get a bit of assistance from a small motor. So-called e-bikes are not an uncommon sight — though they're admittedly most prevalent among certain age groups.
Image: Imago
Carry your bike
In Germany, you're allowed to take your bike on trams and trains (with a special ticket). But beware: You might get mean looks if you try to cram your huge, greasy two-wheeler onto a packed tram on a hot day. Can't you just ride to your destination? That's where foldable bikes come in handy. They take up less space — and keep your fellow tram passengers happy, too.