CharleyFarley
Senior Member
- Location
- Japan
No Lycra. No carbon frames. No brakes. No gears. No helmets. What did they mean by 'Persuit'? Is that a team name, or an incorrect spelling of 'pursuit'? Were they pursuing other riders?
One-hundred and fourteen years ago
- Thread starter CharleyFarley
- Start date
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figbat
Slippery scientist
- Location
- South Oxfordshire, UK
Well to be fair modern track cycling has no brakes and no gears too. Team pursuit is a track cycling discipline where two teams start on opposite sides of the track and try to chase the other one down, the winner being either the team that does catch the other one, or failing that the team who crosses their start/finish line first after a set number of laps.
Cycleops
Legendary Member
- Location
- Accra, Ghana
Interesting to note the different styles of bars the riders favour.
DCLane
Found in the Yorkshire hills ...
- Location
- Dewsbury, West Yorkshire
@CharleyFarley - it's the same rules as now (as put by @figbat ) and the bikes still have fixed gears, only larger chainrings / smaller sprockets plus TT bars. Track bikes have hardly changed in decades in terms of layout (the GB Hope bike being an exception). Helmets are compulsory though.
It's one of the current track cycling disciplines.
The velodrome they're at isn't very banked, with some having 40-45° banking indoors and 20-25° outdoors, although the white line denoting the track and the côte d'azur (as it's now light blue usually) is present.
To give you an idea where (in the UK) we do this there are some velodromes here: https://www.redbull.com/gb-en/best-velodromes-uk-public-tracks although the list doesn't include the Scunthorpe and Newcastle-under-Lyme tracks I go to, or a number of the other outdoor ones such as Middlesbrough/Knowlsley/etc. It also doesn't include grasstrack, which is track racing on grass rather than wood/tarmac/concrete. I can see you're in the USA and a list of those is here: https://legacy.usacycling.org/velodromes-in-the-us.htm
Give it a go!
It's one of the current track cycling disciplines.
The velodrome they're at isn't very banked, with some having 40-45° banking indoors and 20-25° outdoors, although the white line denoting the track and the côte d'azur (as it's now light blue usually) is present.
To give you an idea where (in the UK) we do this there are some velodromes here: https://www.redbull.com/gb-en/best-velodromes-uk-public-tracks although the list doesn't include the Scunthorpe and Newcastle-under-Lyme tracks I go to, or a number of the other outdoor ones such as Middlesbrough/Knowlsley/etc. It also doesn't include grasstrack, which is track racing on grass rather than wood/tarmac/concrete. I can see you're in the USA and a list of those is here: https://legacy.usacycling.org/velodromes-in-the-us.htm
Give it a go!
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Persuit seems to be a common miss spelling
https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/women-s-team-persuit-cycling-gold-maths-poster-11310078
https://www.tes.com/teaching-resource/women-s-team-persuit-cycling-gold-maths-poster-11310078
Dogtrousers
Kilometre nibbler
Spelling changes over time. For example "show" was in the past often spelled "shew". So it's not necessarily an error.
Ming the Merciless
There is no mercy
- Location
- Inside my skull
No lycra but the shorts look tightly fitted, likely wool I’d guess. As always well defined legs are order of the day.
- Location
- London
yep- I was impressed with those - but couldn't help wondering what might happen to them/the look in rain.
figbat
Slippery scientist
- Location
- South Oxfordshire, UK
Well Lycra (elastane) wasn't invented until 1958 - I'm betting they'd have used it if it was available. They used the best material available at the time, as do current athletes.
Googling, the picture is probably from the 1908 London Olympics at the White City stadium.
Track was 3 laps to the mile, so an enormous track, compared with some modern indoor velodromes.
I think the track at Herne Hill is of similar dimensions and still survives and I rode my one and only track event at the Bootle track on Merseyside which was also similar.
Track was 3 laps to the mile, so an enormous track, compared with some modern indoor velodromes.
I think the track at Herne Hill is of similar dimensions and still survives and I rode my one and only track event at the Bootle track on Merseyside which was also similar.
OP
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CharleyFarley
Senior Member
- Location
- Japan
Thank you. I'd never heard of that.
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CharleyFarley
Senior Member
- Location
- Japan
I noticed their muscular legs. I wear shorts all the time here in Florida, and my wife noticed my muscular legs. I retired nine years ago and got into cycling about six years ago. I only ride just over eight miles each day, and sometimes twenty miles on cooler days, but it adds up.
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CharleyFarley
Senior Member
- Location
- Japan
That was awesome! I never saw anything like it, before. Doing some high speed, there, too, and so close together.
I'd give it a go if I could find some more old codgers in their mid-seventies that would join me.
DCLane
Found in the Yorkshire hills ...
- Location
- Dewsbury, West Yorkshire
@CharleyFarley - you start by learning to ride the track solo. Only then are others added in around you. It's riding fixed wheel, no brakes, with gearing dependent upon your power and/or the event.
Given this is in Florida, although I'm aware it's a decently-sized state, it may be worth getting in contact and trying it out: http://www.flavelo.org/
Given this is in Florida, although I'm aware it's a decently-sized state, it may be worth getting in contact and trying it out: http://www.flavelo.org/
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OP
CharleyFarley
Senior Member
- Location
- Japan
Anything over 8mph is too hard for me. I'm nearly 76. Anyway, I'd look funny going around a track on a fat bike.
