Harry Nettleton’s 1907 RaCycle Pace Maker

1907 RaCycle

There are a lot of names here so lets see… This is the Pace Maker model RaCycle, and RaCycles were made by the Miami Cycle and Manufacturing company of Middleton, Ohio.

Bikes like this one followed high-wheelers onto the cobbled streets of early 1900’s America. With newly invented roller chain and pneumatic tires, this would have been a luxuriously smooth ride compared to a Penny-Farthing.

One of the selling points of the Pace Maker was the massive front chainring (equivalent to a modern 84-tooth ring) that was meant to attract attention and suggest higher speed (but the big ring was actually offset by a big back cog that ended up producing a comfortable gear ratio).

The new air-filled tires were mounted (using shellac as glue) to wooden rims (maple, I think).

Head badge

Adjustable handlebar

Oversized drivetrain

Fork pegs

42 skip-tooth chainring

A RaSaddle?

The handlebars on the Pace Maker are really cool. They pivot at the stem, and can be adjusted in width and height, depending on a rider’s desire.

Foot pegs on the front fork allowed the rider to enjoy speeding downhill on his fixed-gear bike. Sure, without your feet on the pedals to control the speed there would be no brakes, but brakes are overrated.

Racycle advertisement

Check out the old ad that we found for RaCycle bikes. The copy in old advertising and press releases like this one was so earnest. According to the manufacturer, a 1904 Worlds Fair jury “consisting of the ablest consulting and manufacturing engineers in Europe and America, were unanimous in their decision that the Racycle was the most perfectly constructed, easiest running bicycle in the world.”

However they were judged, early “safety” bicycles like this one really brought inexpensive personal transportation to the masses. They connected people with jobs and schools, connected rural areas of the country with cities, connected extended families (and liberated family members from one another).

This bike was originally owned by Harry Nettleton of Red Wing, Minnesota. Harry raised the original $16.50 purchase price by collecting clam shells from the Minnesota river and selling them to a local button factory.

By the way, if you take a look at the Iver Johnson Truss-bridge bike from the same era, you’ll note that the RaCycle was about a third of the price of the Iver Johnson.

Jay Inslee

Washington Governor Jay Inslee

Washington Governor Jay Inslee and his bike

Washington Governor Jay Inslee and his bike

Not a bike racer or a bike builder, but a real champion for cyclists in our state.

As a private citizen, as a congressman, and now as governor Jay tries to make our roads work for two wheels. He has voted for projects and funding plans that include an equitable share for all road users in the mix. Unlike a lot of the folks in politics, Jay understands that bicyclists, ferry riders, and pedestrians all pay their share of taxes and deserve to be considered when designing and funding transportation.

Jay must be one of the first governors to spend his off hours on the bike, and we’re sure that the state patrol is getting in shape riding with him.

The gov is fast. We’ve ridden around Bainbridge with him, and taken on a couple century rides with him. Think riding 100 miles with a 60 year old congressman who happens to be on the campaign trail should be easy, right? Wrong. Try hanging on to Jay’s wheel while he averages 17mph in between shaking hands and talking with potential voters at the rest stops.

What does he ride? He switches between a Specialized S-Works carbon road bike and his vintage (beat up) Cinelli.

By paul|2013-11-02T19:34:36+00:00November 2nd, 2013|museum people|0 Comments

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