Ride A Penny-farthing Bicycle
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| Field | Transportation |
| Went Obsolete | 1885 |
| Made Obsolete By | Invention of the Rover Safety Bicycle |
| Knowledge Assumed | Balance, persistence, handlebar moustache, hard skull |
| When useful | If you can ride a penny-farthing, you can ride anything. |
| Field | Vehicle for transportation and commute |
| Went Obsolete | 1885 |
| Made Obsolete By | Safety Bicycle |
| Knowledge Assumed | Mounting, braking, and dismounting |
| When useful | Replica high-wheel bicycles are still produced. If you should come across a modern, rideable version, it could be helpful to not look like a fool when trying to mount it. |
See Penny-farthing in Wikipedia for how it went obsolete. >>>>>>>
The rider would stand behind the bicycle, placing one foot on a small peg. He would push the bike forward until gaining enough speed to pull himself up onto the saddle. Once in the saddle, the rider must be cautious of any bumps, stones, holes, etc. in his path as trips over the handlebars were frequent and very painful. The handlebars were actually designed so that when going downhill, the rider could rest his legs on them to get his weight as far back as possible. This also gave the theoretical possiblity for the rider to land on his feet should the bike spill forward. With the pedals directly connected to the main wheel, coasting was not an option.
