Bicycle history Archives -

Australian war hero Nancy Wake riding a bike across france in world war ii

April 25, 2019 Nicola Anzac Day, Bicycle history, Women cycling

Today is Anzac Day in Australia so I thought it fitting that I find a story about an Australian woman riding a bicycle during a war, and I found such a story with Australian war hero Nancy Wake riding a bike through France during World War II. Nancy Wake is relatively unknown by most Australians. So today I’d like to change that. Nancy was an extraordinary woman and was one of the most decorated soldiers of World War II, playing a significant role in the Allied resistance to German occupation. Trained in hand-to-hand combat, espionage, sabotage, and able to drink

let’s commemorate the first woman to ride from Sydney to Melbourne

April 4, 2019 Nicola Bicycle history, Cycling Club, Women cycling

When Sarah Maddock searched the Internet for her name back in the early 2000s, she had no idea that nearly 20 years later she’d be commemorating a ride from Sydney to Melbourne by her namesake Sarah Maddock 125 years earlier. A woman named Sarah Maddock was a trailblazer of women’s cycling and rode with her husband from Sydney to Melbourne in 1894, the first woman to complete such a feat. The ride was planned as a cure for her husband’s ill health and Sarah who apparently was quite shy about her achievement, was surprised when many people along the way

On the eve of Anzac Day, let’s remember the role of the humble bicycle in the First World War

April 24, 2018 Nicola Bicycle history

On the eve of Anzac Day (a holiday in Australia to commemorate the battle at Gallipoli during the First World War) I thought it would be fitting to talk about the role of the humble bicycle in the First World War. It’s not so much a women’s cycling story because it was men who rode the bicycles but as I have a love for history I decided to share it with you. Today, bike technology has changed dramatically from the bikes that were being used in the First World War. The steel frame bikes were very basic with no shock absorbers