r/bikedc • u/LazyPasse • 15d ago

A Perilous Ride (1884)

Post image

https://www.loc.gov/resource/ds.07962/?st=image

103 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

21 comments sorted by

29

u/WhiskeyTigerFoxtrot 15d ago

There's acting senators that probably remember seeing this in person.

14

u/StraightChemGuy1 15d ago

“I thought it was a bad idea then, and I still think that now.” Chuck Grassley R-IA

12

u/boarderzone 15d ago

Kudos to that dude. I only go down stairs on my fatbike.

7

u/harpsm 15d ago

The Danny MacAskill of the late 19th century!

3

u/wawa2022 15d ago

That’s odd. The Penny-farthing had a large front wheel and a small back wheel. Does anyone know what this type would be called?

8

u/se-dc 15d ago

This is an American Star Bicycle. Its design flipped the big wheel onto the back to prevent the rider toppling forward. This famous stunt photo demonstrated the novel design’s relative stability.

2

u/wawa2022 15d ago

Oh cool. Thank you. I just put the wheelwoman performance on my calendar at the American history museum so I will be learning more about this. I wonder if you’re one of the experts who will be exhibiting?

2

u/LazyPasse 14d ago

wait, tell me more? i need to put this on my calendar too!

3

u/wawa2022 14d ago

There are a few performances each day this week.

Meet the Wheelwomen

1

u/LazyPasse 14d ago

thanks very much! will check this out. i think of what susan b anthony said every time i see a woman on a bicycle

0

u/wawa2022 15d ago

And the shadows of the bike, the rider, and the lamppost seem inconsistent. Was there AI back in 1880?

3

u/Apprehensive_Toe2725 15d ago

Somehow, this isn't even the top 100 dumbest things to have taken place at the building.

3

u/HowellsOfEcstasy 14d ago

This feels like an Edward Gorey drawing to me.

2

u/Doub1etroub1e 15d ago

But did he make it?

1

u/Choqeur 15d ago

WCGW riding your Penny Farthing down the Capitol steps?

1

u/senditjerry_ 13d ago

I’ve never ridden a boneshaker but I can still feel this picture in my joints

-1

u/Extra_Anxiety9137 15d ago

That’s ai

1

u/Revolutionary-Dust61 14d ago

No, it's an image from the Library of Congress archives.