Re-Inventing The Wheel - The Bicycle Wheel: observations on its history and technological development - Adrian Emilsen, Melody Wheels.
Wheels are an essential part of the bicycle. Without two wheels the concept of a bicycle would be meaningless: there would be no ‘bi-cycle’. However, despite this ubiquity, the bicycle wheel has received comparatively little attention amongst popular and scholarly cycling histories.
Technological developments in bicycle frame and drive-chain systems have appeared far more spectacular, while wheels have served as a mere accompaniment. The popular catchphrase “re-inventing the wheel” typifies the notion of the wheel as a steadfast and unwavering technology.
This talk will reconsider the bicycle wheel as a more noteworthy object of cycling history. Drawing on a number of key inventions and developments in wheel design, Adrian will highlight some of the changes that have brought us to bicycle wheel as we know it.