A dot, an arrow or a droplet on a map on your phone: that is how we indicate our location today. But for those who grew up before the smartphone, the ANWB emergency roadside telephone was a reassuring presence along the motorway.
For many people it is a milestone: the moment you can ride a bicycle without training wheels. Remarkably, in the Netherlands there are more bicycles than people. A number of inventions in the 19th century gave the bicycle the form it largely still has today. In 1885, John Kemp Starley introduced the Safety Bicycle, with two equal-sized wheels and chain drive. Between 1880 and 1920, the bicycle developed across Europe from a luxury item into a means of transport for everyone. Its design led to major social changes, including women’s emancipation. Thanks to the low step-through frame, women could ride comfortably without lifting their skirts. The bicycle offered freedom, independence and mobility.
The invention of the pneumatic tyre by John Boyd Dunlop in 1888 made cycling faster and more comfortable, opening the door to sporting use. This further increased the popularity of the bicycle. Around the turn of the century, cycling began to develop into a performance-driven sport. Lighter frames, curved handlebars and gears created the first true racing bicycles, designed for speed and endurance. With the first Tour de France in 1903, the racing bicycle grew into an icon of strength and perseverance.
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