How cycling became a kinky vaudeville act

Somewhere in a German forest 200 years ago, during the darkest, wettest summer for centuries, the story of cycling began. The calls to ban it were more or less immediate.

Re:Cyclists is a beautifully written account of the following two centuries. It tells how cycling became a kinky vaudeville act for Parisians, how it was the basis of an American business empire to rival Henry Ford's, and how it found a unique home in the British Isles.

The Victorian love of cycling started with penny-farthing riders, who explored lonely roads that had been left abandoned by the coming of the railways. Then high-society took to it - in the 1880s the glittering parties of the London Season featured bicycles dancing in the ballroom, and every member of the House of Lords rode a bike.

Twentieth-century cycling was very different, and even more popular. It became the sport and the pastime of millions of ordinary people who wanted to escape the city smog, or to experience the excitement of a weekend's racing. Cycling offered adventure and independence in the good times, and consolation during the war years and the Great Depression.

Re:Cyclists tells the story of cycling's glories and also of its despairs, of how it only just avoided extinction in the motoring boom of the 1960s. And finally, at the dawn of the 21st century, it celebrates how cycling rose again - a little different, a lot more fashionable, but still about the same simple pleasures that it always has been: the wind in your face and the thrill of two-wheeled freedom.

Win a copy of RE: Cyclists

We have a copy of RE:Cyclists to give away. To enter the draw simply leave us a comment at the bottom of the page and we'll pick a winner next week.

An ethical company like no other

Not only are we ethical, we campaign for sustainable transport. Sometimes that means protesting until a school gets the zebra crossing they've been refused, or running 60 roadshows this year to encourage people out of their cars, or fixing bicycles for free. Supporting this work is easy - you simply have to take out cycle insurance with us, cover that just happens to be excellent.

Unlike other insurers we never devalue your bike. And if you ride a carbon bike, rest assured we will never have a cracked frame repaired - we will always replace your bike with a new one. How many other insurers can say that? Find out more

..and it's not just cycle insurance that we offer. We provide home insurance, cycle insurance, travel insurance and breakdown cover - all while putting concern for the environment at the heart of all we do.

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