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  • Welcome to Spotlight.

  • I'm Christy Van Arragon.

  • And I'm Bruce Gulland.

  • Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting.

  • It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

  • A busy city street.

  • Cars and trucks pass quickly.

  • A few people wait to cross.

  • But then, all traffic stops.

  • Suddenly, hundreds of people riding 2-wheeled bicycles fill the street.

  • They are all riding together.

  • After many minutes, the bicycles have all passed by.

  • The traffic starts again.

  • What just happened?

  • This was a 'critical mass.

  • ' A critical mass is any large group of people riding bicycles together for one purpose.

  • In China, the idea of a critical mass started for safety.

  • Bicycle riders would stop at street crossings.

  • They would wait until more bicycle riders stopped too.

  • Soon, a large number of bicycle riders gathered.

  • Then they all crossed the street together.

  • They believed this kept them safe.

  • It is difficult for one bicycle rider to cross a busy street alone.

  • But, it is easy for car drivers to see a large group of bicycle riders.

  • Today, there are critical mass bicycle rides all over the world.

  • Sometimes they are a kind of protest.

  • But sometimes, they are just to show the importance of bicycles!

  • Bicycles are important for transportation around the world.

  • But how did they become so important?

  • Today's Spotlight is on the history of the bicycle!

  • No one person invented the bicycle.

  • Instead, many people worked together over time.

  • Experts say that the first plans came from Leonardo da Vinci.

  • This famous inventor and artist wrote plans for a modern bicycle hundreds of years ago.

  • But inventors did not create the first working bicycle until the early 1800's.

  • The first bicycle had wheels.

  • But it did not have pedals to move the wheels.

  • The rider pushed the bicycle forward by pushing his feet against the ground.

  • People called these bicycles 'pushbikes'.

  • In the 1850's and 60's French inventors changed the design of the bicycle.

  • They made the front wheel larger.

  • And they put pedals on it.

  • Riders used their feet on the pedals to push the bicycle forward.

  • They made this bicycle with a heavy steel frame.

  • And they made the wheels out of wood and iron.

  • People called this bicycle the 'boneshaker'.

  • On the stone streets of that time, the bicycle shook the rider very hard.

  • It was a painful ride!

  • Over the next ten years, inventors changed the design of the bicycle even more.

  • They made the front wheel even larger.

  • This increased its speed.

  • They also added rubber tires on the wheels.

  • People called this bicycle 'the ordinary'.

  • But these kinds of bicycles were difficult to ride.

  • They were difficult to push forward.

  • And it was difficult to change directions while riding.

  • In 1885, JK Starley invented the first modern bicycle.

  • It looked very similar to the bicycles people ride today.

  • Starley put similar sized wheels on the front and back of the bicycle.

  • He also added a thin metal chain that worked between the pedals and the wheels.

  • The chain let bicycle riders use the back wheel to change directions.

  • He also added a better seat.

  • Starley's bicycle design was a large improvement from the old kind of bicycles.

  • But it was still difficult to ride a Starley bicycle.

  • It did not offer a very smooth ride.

  • But in the 1890's inventors made more improvements to the bicycle.

  • They used better rubber for the wheels.

  • They developed good brakes to stop the bicycle.

  • It was not long before people all around the world used bicycles for sport and play.

  • People also started using bicycles as their main form of transport.

  • Bicycles helped people get from place to place easier.

  • Riding a bicycle is faster than walking.

  • People also say that making bicycles helped scientists and inventors make better machines.

  • In fact, famous inventors like Henry Ford and the Wright Brothers used bicycle technology

  • to create cars and airplanes!

  • Bicycles also had large effects on societies around the world.

  • For example, the bicycle changed life for women in many ways.

  • Before bicycles were invented, in Western countries women usually wore large, close-fitting

  • dresses.

  • But when women started riding bicycles, they started wearing different clothes.

  • They wore trousers like men usually wear.

  • They also stopped wearing such close-fitting shirts or tops.

  • Bicycles also made it possible for women to get around more.

  • Some experts say that bicycles made women feel more independent.

  • They made more women desire and demand freedom and respect.

  • Bicycles also changed the lives of people in cities.

  • They helped reduce crowding in cities.

  • People could live outside the city.

  • Then they could ride bicycles into the city to work.

  • Bicycles also made it easier for men and women to meet and marry.

  • It expanded families because men and women could meet people who lived outside their

  • small towns.

  • Many things have changed since the first bicycle.

  • More people use cars, buses and trucks for transport now.

  • But inventors have made great improvements to the bicycle.

  • Today's bicycles are easy to ride.

  • They are much more comfortable.

  • And they can go very fast.

  • Bicycles continue to be a popular form of transportation in many parts of the world.

  • In fact, in many places, bicycles are still the main form of transportation.

  • There are many good reasons to ride a bicycle.

  • Bicycles do not damage the environment like cars do.

  • Riding bicycles is good for your health!

  • Also, riding a bicycle costs less money than driving a car.

  • You do not need gas to ride a bicycle.

  • And bicycles cost less money to fix.

  • Imagine what your city would look like if everyone used a bicycle to get around instead

  • of a car or bus.

  • There are some cities in the world that do look like this.

  • Many cities in China and the Netherlands contain more bicycles than cars.

  • But in many cities around the world, people do not respect bicycle riders.

  • In fact, in many modern cities, it can be very dangerous to ride a bicycle.

  • Many people die every year in bicycle and car accidents.

  • This is one reason why people ride their bicycles in a critical mass.

  • They want people to recognize bicycle riders.

  • They want people to learn to watch for them on the road.

  • They want people to understand that bicycles are still an important form of transportation

  • today.

  • The writer of this program was Sara DeKoster.

  • The producer was Luke Haley.

  • The voices you heard were from the United Kingdom and the United States.

  • You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at www.radioenglish.net.

  • This program is called 'History of the Bicycle'.

  • We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program.

  • Goodbye.

Welcome to Spotlight.

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