Global, Historical, Gender or Contributions of Outdoor Cycling to Society

Published: 2021-07-05
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Carnegie Mellon University
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Essay
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The bicycle was a historical asset that was preserved for the affluent members of the society. Evidently, bikes were standard for the affluent communities, especially in the United State, Britain and France. The traditional historical accounts for the bicycles included the Alderson of the year 1972, the Herlihy of the year 2004 and the McGurn of the year 1999. For that matter, it would be noted that bicycles have continued to play a significant role within various communities of the world. Then following essay analyzes the global, historical, gender, and contributions of outdoor cycling to society.

The 18th century was a period that marked a bicycle craze. During these years, bicycles were a rare commodity that was admired by many. It is recorded that American bike industry witnessed an enormous sale of an estimated 2 million bicycles in the 18th century. The attributed fact of influence for the sale was the fact it was a fashion icon. Bicycles were a trade commodity adored by many who viewed the simple machine as a preferable item of leisure. Thus, cycling was the ideal outdoor activity that could unite people by creating major events that were attended by many visitors.

In many of the bicycle activities, the involved parties were organized into groups and clubs. Importantly, there were particular dress codes for the cycling activities that were highly adored by different members of the society. The outdoor activity had a global identity serving a significant population of the wealthy. Initially, men were the preferred gender that bought bicycles until the year 1896 in the event that would not accommodate for an entire bicycle population. In the event dubbed The Great Bicycle Exhibition, most of the cyclists were men. Later, women started associating with the outdoor cycling activity establishing a new wave of fashion and style.

Outdoor cycling was also considered as a significant competitive activity for individuals like James Moore in England. In the United States, the sporting event united people as a form of entertainment to great arenas like the Boston fields. Professionals like Charles M. Murphy made a living out of their perfected art. Slowly, outdoor cycling expanded to countries like Belgium and Italy spreading to other countries like Germany. In other aspects of gender equality, the bicycles were an expression of the dire need for freedom that was targeted by women. Individuals like Susan B. Anthony, cycling were an activity that was meant to convey a different meaning of the roles and responsibilities of women in the society. During this time, women were viewed to be confined to the home environment and would not be compared to men. For women, the thought of riding a bicycle to social places sent the message that they would be independent of their transportation means. As a result, women disobeyed the common norms of the social place of working at home. Consequently, it helped to push for the women rights by instigating social changes in the American community.

Conclusively, the outdoor cycling was a significant activity in the world given the fact that it instigated various changes in the society. An example case of bi-racial seamstresses like Katie Knax proves the contributions of the outdoor cycling in the community. For Knax it helped her to challenge the racial segregation in the League of American Wheelmen club.

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