Military Use:

Bicycles were widely used in World War I for delivering messages, supplies and moving troops in bicycle battalions.  Their roll was diminished  as motorized transport became more prevalent.  In World War II, although their frontline combat use was limited, folding bicycles were used by airborne troops, particularly by Canadian forces on D-Day, while Japanese forces utilized bicycle troops extensively in Asia. Bicycles remained a practical, cost-effective transport for essential services and civilian use in various nations due to their quiet operation, ability to carry loads, and independence from fuel.   

Record-Breaking Bikes and Bike Rides

Longest Bike:

The company Santos and the University of South Australia built this bike in 2015. This bike was 135 ft, and 10.7 inches in length.  Guinness World Records required the constructors to prove that the bike could travel a minimum of 100 meters, without riders touching the ground – which it could!

Fastest Bike:

The fastest speed ever recorded on a bicycle is 183.94 mph, achieved by Denise Mueller-Korenek in 2018 on a custom bicycle at the Bonneville Salt Flats. This record-setting ride was performed in the slipstream of a specially designed dragster, which significantly reduced aerodynamic resistance.  She was tethered to the dragster to get up to 100 mph, where, because of the massive gear, she could disconnect the tether from the dragster to start peddling under her own power and remain in the slip stream reaching the top speed recorded at over 183 mph. 

Longest Ride

The longest continuous bicycle ride around the world was completed by Lael Wilcox in 2024, covering 18,125 miles in 108 days.  This ride set a new women’s record for the fastest circumnavigation of the globe by bicycle.  She accomplished this averaging 166 miles per day, and sometime exceeding 200 miles.  Her total vertical accent was the equivalent to climbing Mt. Everest 21 times.  

Random Fun Facts:

•  5% of all trips in the UK are made with a bicycle.  The US number is lower than 1% while the Netherlands is a staggering 30%.
• The first recorded bicycle race took place in 1868 in Paris.
• The American to win the Tour de France was Marianne Martin , winning the Tour de France Women’s in 1984.  
• A bike without a rider can stay upright traveling at 8 mph. 
• Bicycles played a significant role in women’s liberation, providing them with independent mobility.
• The first bicycle helmet was introduced in the 1970s, and became mandatory for armature racing in the US by the late 1980s. 
• The average bicycle has 2200 individual parts.
• The average cyclist burns 400-600 calories per hour while riding.
• Annually bikes save 238 million gallons of gas per year. 
• 90% of all bike trips are shorter than 9.3 miles
• The world’s first bicycle club was founded in 1878 in New York City.
• There are estimated over 5235 cycling clubs in the United States, and over 13,000 in Belgium and France. 
• Here’s some sobering cycling safety information. If we tripled the number of cyclists on the road, the rate of motorist-bicyclist accidents would decrease by 50%. 
• Each year the world produces 2.5 times more bikes than automobiles.
• In, Copenhagen, bikes can be rented for free throughout the city. The program is so successful that only 27% of residents drive cars!
• Bicycles are more efficient in transforming energy to travel than cars, trains, airplanes, boats, and motorcycles.
• The first “Mountain Bikes” were made in 1977…and finally:
• People who ride bikes just more awesome!

by Gary Robinson, AvidCyclist.com