Girl's bikes, boy's bikes...
JKFabian
Hi, folks!
I work for a Q & A column called "The Straight Dope" by Cecil Adams. He's been
answering questions of all sorts since 1973. Although the home base of the
column is The Chicago Reader, it is syndicated in about 35 alternative
newspapers around the country. He also has three books out, published by
Ballantine, with a fourth book due out in March but I digress....
One of the questions we receive often is why girl's bikes and boy's bikes are
constructed differently. I assume it is because when bikes became popular,
women were wearing skirts. But I need to have solid references about this. Can
anyone recommend a book that might spell this out?
Thanks in advance!
JKFabian, Assistant to Cecil Adams
(Jane)
Frank Krygowski
In a previous article, jkfa...@aol.com (JKFabian) says:
>Hi, folks!
>
>I work for a Q & A column called "The Straight Dope" by Cecil Adams. He's been
>answering questions of all sorts since 1973....
>
>One of the questions we receive often is why girl's bikes and boy's bikes are
>constructed differently. I assume it is because when bikes became popular,
>women were wearing skirts. But I need to have solid references about this. Can
>anyone recommend a book that might spell this out?
I don't know of a reference book that's going to spell it out specifically,
but it's pretty obvious. Check any books on the history of bicycling, or
check any museum display of antique bikes. Not only did the women's bikes
have no top tube, but they originally came with string lacing between the
frame and the rear fender, to keep the long skirts from being tangled in
the spokes of the rear fender.
You might also look up "bloomers" in books about those times, which in
their original incarnation were _pants_ (gasp!) for women to wear while
riding bicycles. Apparently there were hussies who were brazen enough to
let men see that they had two separate legs! Pretty shocking stuff.
I seem to recall a book called _The Social History of the Bicycle_, or
something similar. But there should be several bicycle history books
in libraries in Chicago.
--
Frank Krygowski ae...@yfn.ysu.edu
Ned Mantei
In article <6bv7lj$sfn$1...@news.ysu.edu>, ae...@yfn.ysu.edu (Frank
Krygowski) wrote:
> You might also look up "bloomers" in books about those times, which in
> their original incarnation were _pants_ (gasp!) for women to wear while
> riding bicycles. Apparently there were hussies who were brazen enough to
> let men see that they had two separate legs! Pretty shocking stuff.
Here is a partial translation of a quotation from the Munich Newspaper of
1900, which I have reprinted on a bicycling calendar for 1998:
[concerning a young man and woman cycling through Munich on a tandem...],
the woman in a flowery silk dress, through which anyone who wanted could
observe her legs in their stamping movement, setting the vehicle in
motion. Shameless, proud as an Amazon, the young lady presented herself to
the public, continuing her ride without embarassment. We only ask: Is this
the new kind of Velocipede-sport? Can the public sense of decency be given
this sort of a slap in the face? Finally: Is this the newest sort of
advertising for certain female persons? Lastly: Where are the police?
Or in the original:
Dem die Maximilianstrasse entlang promenierenden zahlreichen Publico bot
sich gestern, Sonntag vormittag 12 Uhr, ein ebensoviel Entruestung als
Aergernis erregendes Bild dar. Auf einem doppelsitzigen Velociped bewegte
sich ein Paerchen in rascher Fahrt durch die Strasse. Das Paerchen bestand
aus einem mannsbilde und--seiner Donna, letztere in einem gebluemten
seidenen Rocke, durch den die stampfenden, das Vehikel in Bewegung
setzenden Beine sich jedem, so darauf erpicht war, sie zu sehen, leicht
praesentierten. Ohne Scham, stolz wie eine Amazone, liess die holde Dame
sich maenniglich mustern, ihre Fahrt ungeniert fortsetzend. Wir fragen
nur: Ist dies die neuste Art Velocipedsport? Darf auf solche Art dem
oeffentlichen Sittlichkeitsgefuehle ungestraft ein Faustschlag ins Gesicht
versetzt werden? Endlich: Ist dies die neueste Art von Reklame fuer
gewisse Weibspersonen? Zuletzt: Wo bleibt die Polizei?"
Aus der "Muenchner Zeitung" des Jahres 1900
It would seem that even "girls' bikes" were pretty risque back then.
--
Ned Mantei
Dept. of Neurobiology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland
to reach me more quickly, replace my first name by my last name in my e-mail address.
Matt Castelein
Ned Mantei wrote:
>
> In article <6bv7lj$sfn$1...@news.ysu.edu>, ae...@yfn.ysu.edu (Frank
> Krygowski) wrote:
>
> > You might also look up "bloomers" in books about those times, which in
> > their original incarnation were _pants_ (gasp!) for women to wear while
> > riding bicycles. Apparently there were hussies who were brazen enough to
> > let men see that they had two separate legs! Pretty shocking stuff.
> It would seem that even "girls' bikes" were pretty risque back then.
Imagine if they could only see Paola Pezzo!
--
Purgamentum init, exit purgamentum.
- Matt Castelein - System Operator -
-=Cold Fusion Online, Rochester NY=-
Web- http://www2.rpa.net/~night1/sysop.html
Michael Cape
I'm reading a book right now entitled: "Bicycling A History" by Frederick
Alderson. It's a bit dated (copyright 1972), and it doesn't state explicitly
the reason for the different frame design for women. However, the book has a
decent bibliography. There is a chapter in the book entitled "Fashion and
Her Bicycle: the Saftey" which has some interesting stuff. Anyway, that's
all I can offer. Unfortunately since this book is so old I'm sure it's out
of print and may be difficult to find.
BTW:
I live in Jacksonville, FL and the local alternative paper "Folio Weekly"
runs Cecil Adam's Straight Dope. In fact that's the only section of the
paper that my boss reads.
JKFabian wrote in message <19980211222...@ladder03.news.aol.com>...
>Hi, folks!
>
>I work for a Q & A column called "The Straight Dope" by Cecil Adams. He's
been
>answering questions of all sorts since 1973. Although the home base of the
>column is The Chicago Reader, it is syndicated in about 35 alternative
>newspapers around the country. He also has three books out, published by
>Ballantine, with a fourth book due out in March but I digress....
>
>One of the questions we receive often is why girl's bikes and boy's bikes
are
>constructed differently. I assume it is because when bikes became popular,
>women were wearing skirts. But I need to have solid references about this.
Can
>anyone recommend a book that might spell this out?
>
Jean-Pierre Jacquot
In article (Dans l'article) <6bv7lj$sfn$1...@news.ysu.edu>, ae...@yfn.ysu.edu
(Frank Krygowski) wrote (écrivait) :
>In a previous article, jkfa...@aol.com (JKFabian) says:
>
>>Hi, folks!
>>
>>I work for a Q & A column called "The Straight Dope" by Cecil Adams. He's been
>>answering questions of all sorts since 1973....
>>
>>One of the questions we receive often is why girl's bikes and boy's bikes are
>>constructed differently. I assume it is because when bikes became popular,
>>women were wearing skirts. But I need to have solid references about this. Can
>>anyone recommend a book that might spell this out?
>
>I don't know of a reference book that's going to spell it out specifically,
>but it's pretty obvious. Check any books on the history of bicycling, or
>check any museum display of antique bikes. Not only did the women's bikes
>have no top tube, but they originally came with string lacing between the
>frame and the rear fender, to keep the long skirts from being tangled in
>the spokes of the rear fender.
>
>Frank Krygowski ae...@yfn.ysu.edu
Sorry, I don't have any book reference available. The skirt explanation is
right. The convincing arguement is that U-frames were made in men sizes too
when there were still priests wearing "soutanes" (the long black dress
that catholic priests wear).
I would not be surprised if one or two builders are still producing such
frames for this vanishingly small market.
Jean-Pierre
--
Jean-Pierre Jacquot Chef du département informatique UHP
CRIN - B.P. 239 - 54506 Vand¦uvre-lès-Nancy - France
e-mail: Jean-Pier...@loria.fr
tel: +33 (0) 3 83 59 20 16 or +33 (0) 3 83 91 27 55
fax: +33 (0) 3 83 41 30 79
Walter Knapp
Jean-Pierre Jacquot wrote:
> I would not be surprised if one or two builders are still producing such
> frames for this vanishingly small market.
Today, at a LBS, I saw a very short, tiny woman buying a MTB. The bike
was a Specialized (I think) and the top tube made a straight line (via
the seatstays) from the headset to the rear hub. A Mixte' frame, or at
least it looks just like the geometry of one, although the top tube was
regular size. The seatpost was as tall as the seat tube. So, they are
being reincarnated in some forms.
Hajaj
> Sorry, I don't have any book reference available. The skirt explanation is
>right. The convincing arguement is that U-frames were made in men sizes too
>when there were still priests wearing "soutanes" (the long black dress
>that catholic priests wear).
>I would not be surprised if one or two builders are still producing such
>frames for this vanishingly small market.
>
> Jean-Pierre
If I understand 'U-frame' correctly, then Raleigh still makes their
all-steel(!) Tourist de Luxe that way. It's a 21 kg (44lb) monster but
a great ride once you get it up to speed.
Hajaj
Den Blaa Kurér Copenhagen
chrell...@post3.tele.dk
remove '06660' to reply
Do What Thou Wilt Shall be the Whole of the Law
And for you automated email spammers out there,
here's the email addresses of the current board of
the Federal Communications Commission:
Chairman Reed Hundt: rhu...@fcc.gov
Commissioner James Quello: jqu...@fcc.gov
Commissioner Susan Ness: sn...@fcc.gov