Victorian High Wheel Bicycles Postcard

Bike racing! Antique High Wheeler Penny Farthing Bicycles - The illustration was done in the mid-1880s, showing two men in a bicycle race, and wearing brightly colored racing shirts, red and blue. About the Penny Farthing Bicycle - The High Wheel bicycle was popular in the latter half of the 1800s, a most dangerous bicycle! Mounting a penny farthing bicycle requires quite a bit of skill. You have to place one foot on a peg just above the back wheel, and then you grab hold of the handlebar. Then, pull up and lift yourself into the saddle. Needless to say, these high wheel bicycles had a lot of accidents because of their high center of gravity and an inverted pendulum effect. Sudden stops and potholes often sent their riders hurling face-first, over the handlebars.