Bicycle safety video(1950)

[brumario]

Poor Johhny

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QEKTZyQmwk&search=bicycle

[eubi]

I vagely remember this one....and a few other Young America films.

After all, I WAS the head Projector Boy for my elementary school.

They were still showing these to us in the early 60's. Too funny!

[Helmet Head]

Outstanding! Thanks for posting this.

Actually, I think it's pretty good. My only complaint would be with the "keep to the right" obsession, especially at intersections and there approaches, where it should not apply at all.

[timmhaan]

Johhny's dad is an idiot.

i thought this was particularly interesting: "you are the automobile driver of tomorrow". Also, when did helmets start making an appearance in cycling?

[Mr. Miskatonic]

Also, when did helmets start making an appearance in cycling?

Early to mid eighties. I found some old comic books from the 70's (valueless crap, but amusing to glance at the ads) there were some ads for Schwinn bikes with drawings of the riders. Helmetless.

Most safety things can be dated to that era, when Baby Boomers started having kids in earnest. Child seats, bike helmets, warning signs on everything, lawsuits.

[John E]

Early to mid eighties. I found some old comic books from the 70's (valueless crap, but amusing to glance at the ads) there were some ads for Schwinn bikes with drawings of the riders. Helmetless.

Most safety things can be dated to that era, when Baby Boomers started having kids in earnest. Child seats, bike helmets, warning signs on everything, lawsuits.

I myself have worn a helmet longer than that. The racers wore those ineffective padded leather hairnets in the 1950s, and serious club cyclists began to emulate them in the early 1970s. I wore an unusually heavily padded Kucherik helmet from 1972 to November 1976, when I had my one close enounter of the worst kind with a motor vehicle. I immediately switched to a hard-shell Bell Biker and have gone through a series of increasingly more effective and more comfortable brain buckets ever since, culminating in my Giro Xen.

[CB HI]

Got my first bicycle helmet in 1982.

[Bikepacker67]

"Be sure that the chain and sprocket are well guarded!"

[MacTech]

Okay, was I the *ONLY* one MST'ing this video?, c'mon everyone, raise your hands, you *know* you made fun of it as well...

[closeup of the bell then pan to the horn]
<annc>"every bike must have a bell or horn to use as an emergency signal"
[pan over to long handlebar-mounted flashlight]
<Crow> Torpedo-mount Death-Ray optional
<Servo> Some higher end bikes come standard with anti-car torpedos

[3 riders abreast]
"You know what these riders are diong wrong, right?"
<Crow> yeah, they're not riding wheelies

[stupid kid cuts in front of car nearly being hit]
"You know why little Johhny's going to be spending time in the hospital, right?"
<Joel> He hasn't been keeping up on his bike payments?
<Servo> He forgot to pay his "protection money?"
<Crow> He's got a latent suicidal tendencies?

[brumario]

Here is another one:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IPh3zJ6lmn8&search=bicycle

[kf5nd]

Me, 1978. Other high schoolers thought I was nuts. They were right.


Got my first bicycle helmet in 1982.

[merlinextraligh]

I myself have worn a helmet longer than that. The racers wore those ineffective padded leather hairnets in the 1950s, and serious club cyclists began to emulate them in the early 1970s. I wore an unusually heavily padded Kucherik helmet from 1972 to November 1976, when I had my one close enounter of the worst kind with a motor vehicle. I immediately switched to a hard-shell Bell Biker and have gone through a series of increasingly more effective and more comfortable brain buckets ever since, culminating in my Giro Xen.


USCF mandated real helmets, instead of the leather hair nets about 1980. That really got helmet use going in the U.S. One it created a market for a light, cool, helmet, and helmet technology started taking off, and , Two, the fast guys all were wearing helmets, so it became a little cooler to wear them.

[Artkansas]

According to Bell, their classic Bike Helmet went into production in 1975
http://www.bellbikehelmets.com/timeline.asp

I got mine in after zooming down Topanga Canyon from Mulholland Dr. and realizing that I liked the speed, but if I slipped I was screwed. I can't remember when I bought it, probably soon after that, it has a low serial number. I used it till last year.

[bbonnn]

Those are some beautiful "new" vintage bikes, eh?

It was a little painful watching the waifish blonde chick ride -- she was going so slowly, she looked like she was going to tump over several times.

All the riders look so happy and carefree. Other commuting threads have alluded to "riding for pleasure," and this film also reminded me of how fun it is to bike at a leisurely pace, when you're not in a hurry to arrive somewhere or up your speed to get a workout. Pedaling for delight. Wheeeee!



Also, I love how the narrator upbraids the girl for carrying the tall grocery bag in her basket, obstructing her view ... and then the dad gets out of the car with two grocery bags in front of his face and suddenly it's Junior's fault he fell down? I guess it was part of the "Father Knows Best" ethos.

[WalterMitty]

Here is another one:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IPh3zJ6lmn8&search=bicycle


Can't be 1948, there's a 1956 Chevy and Ford in the second scene. Nice picture though.:D

[Stor Mand]

Loved it! And it was not bad as bicycle education either. Hearing the narator brought me back ... I mean, I hear he did naration on lots of educational films ;)

[chephy]

:roflmao:

Wonderful! But wait till I post those '50s sex education records! :D

[Stor Mand]

:roflmao:

Wonderful! But wait till I post those '50s sex education records! :D

Can't wait! :D

[trackhub]

I seem to remember the first widely available bicycle helmet being the Bell Tourister. It was white with some red striping and vents. It offered good protection, and was also quite heavy, which led to neck fatigue. On occasion, I'll see some character riding along Garden street (Cambridge, MA) wearing one. Must be a Harvard faculty member.

Two other helmets from the past, that most of you have probably never seen: Skid-Lids, and Bailen helmets.

Some of you might find this link interesting:

http://www.helmets.org/history.htm

[DCCommuter]

I seem to remember the first widely available bicycle helmet being the Bell Tourister. It was white with some red striping and vents. It offered good protection, and was also quite heavy, which led to neck fatigue. On occasion, I'll see some character riding along Garden street (Cambridge, MA) wearing one. Must be a Harvard faculty member.



I would think MIT actually. Was the guy on a recumbent? That would be a positive ID.

[joejack951]

All the riders look so happy and carefree. Other commuting threads have alluded to "riding for pleasure," and this film also reminded me of how fun it is to bike at a leisurely pace, when you're not in a hurry to arrive somewhere or up your speed to get a workout. Pedaling for delight. Wheeeee!

Did any else notice that every time a car was shown behind the cyclist, it was moving at the same snail's pace as the kids on the bikes? Wouldn't that be nice?

Thanks for posting this. I extended my lunch break today to finish watching it. I imagine my coworkers thought it was amusing, not that they don't get enough amusement at my expense.

[huhenio]

Excellent post ... now it is time to deface the narration.

[Litespeed]

I thought that was pretty interesting. There was no mention of riding against traffic (which is good), wonder when people starting telling kids that. I never rode against traffic and I grew up in the 50's, but I might have ridden sidewalks, can't remember, been to long ago. Those were certainly carefree days! :D

[MacTech]

It was interesting that in video 2 no mention was made to locking your bike when unattended, the kid just pulls off the street, parks the bike next to a tree and goes in for groceries, assuming the bike would be there when he returned, at least video 1 reccomended locking the bike to prevent theft....

<kid approaching store on the sidewalk>
<annc> "don't leave your bike where it will block other people's path.."
<Crow> Just ride it into the store, the other patrons will appreciate your assertiveness
<Joel> hey, *someone* needs to invent the "Drive-thru" after all...

[N_C]

Outstanding! Thanks for posting this.

Actually, I think it's pretty good. My only complaint would be with the "keep to the right" obsession, especially at intersections and there approaches, where it should not apply at all.

You do realize things have changed since the 1950's right? Instead of saying always to the right like they did then, now they say ride as far to the right as practical & as is safe to do so. So things have progressed since then. There are also a lot more side paths & walks that are wide enough to allow cyclists to ride on. In the 1950's there were not. These days there are more options available. So as slow as it has been things have progressed.

Another thing that has changed is the amount of traffic, the speed limits on roadways & some roadways that were residential then are probably wider & mostly commercial now. In Sioux City there is at least one I know of that this happened to in the mid 1980's.

The safety video's today are similar but not exactly the same. It is nice to see what it started with compared to today.

As much as I am in favor of VC, not as much of a zealot as you are, I'm uncomfortable with young inexperienced children being a VC rider, especially on main arterial roads.

[Mr. Miskatonic]

Okay, was I the *ONLY* one MST'ing this video?, c'mon everyone, raise your hands, you *know* you made fun of it as well...


Well, I kept expecting it to morph into another instructional movie.

"Alway use a bell or horn, and when you see the flash, DUCK AND COVER!!!"

[trackhub]

I would think MIT actually. Was the guy on a recumbent? That would be a positive ID.

Nah, the beard and the round, John Denver style glasses look like Harvard to me. He's not on a recumbent. His bike looks like vintage 70's Fuji.

Yeah, the MIT faculty folks seem to like their 'bents. Not a bad thing at all, just odd that so many of them ride them. The non-faculty MIT employees ride fixies, or re-built 3-speeds they bought at the well-known Broadway Bicycle School.

[remsav]

Well, I kept expecting it to morph into another instructional movie.

"Alway use a bell or horn, and when you see the flash, DUCK AND COVER!!!"

LOL

[genec]

Just too bad they don't show these today to the school kids, eh?

[closetbiker]

Let's not forget, "Bicycle repair-man"!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qh67Nr-6YHY&search=bicycle%20repairman

[Peterpan1]

I still have a bell Tourister, I carried it in my panniers a thousand miles on my most recent tour since some adjacent jurisdictions have helmet laws.

"and helmet technology started taking off"

The actual timing coincides with the return to cardboard egg cartons, for environmental reasons. They had to do something with the excess foam molding capacity. Didn't work for the eggs either, by the way.

[buzzman]

cool flicks.

brings back school day memories- I may actually have one of those old bicycle safety manuals somewhere. I was racing with leather hairnet type helmets in 1972 and got one of those big old white bells about a year after they came out and wore it for years. They got downright ugly after a few seasons and started to turn a gross kind of filthy gray.

I've seen a few of those helmets on riders in the Cambridge area and yeah, I think they're Harvard guys. Hopefully, an MIT guy would have the technical smarts to realize the plastic and styrofoam gave up any structural integrity 25 years ago and the helmet now offers about as much protection as a paper bag.

[mac]

Okay, so who here uses hand signals when stopping? And when where hand brakes developed? I see the kids were using coaster brakes.

[Peterpan1]

"the helmet now offers about as much protection as a paper bag."

Sounds like an uptick from the current Bells. Mine is still white, and structurally it seems fine. They were made of lexan or delrin, some kind of fairly stable plastic, melted down Becel containers maybe. I don't know how they get them so gray. Maybe turnning them uside down and sitting on them while playing the Flight of the Valkyries over their Ipods.

I only use hand signals for stopping if my brakes fail.

[closetbiker]

I've seen a few of those helmets on riders in the Cambridge area and yeah, I think they're Harvard guys. Hopefully, an MIT guy would have the technical smarts to realize the plastic and styrofoam gave up any structural integrity 25 years ago and the helmet now offers about as much protection as a paper bag.

Maybe MIT guys would have the technical smarts to know the lifespan of EPS. Unless it's been crushed or damaged somehow, it retains its' structural integrity for a very long time.

[eubi]

At about 3:10, he's at a stop light.

The light turns green, and ONE MORE CAR has to go through on the red!

Not much has changed...

[Dahon.Steve]

Here are some things I didn't agree with.

1. Ride in the gutter -- You ride to the right side of the road and not the gutter.

2. Rear Reflector --- The rear reflector is NOT adequate for night time riding.

Did you see the incident where that young boy was given the right hook by a motorcar?? Looked pretty scary and this was not a stunt man but a kid doing the actual scene! I was amazed they took a chance with the kid's life to prove a point!

[Portis]

Was there just one guy that narrated every single freakin film in the '50's? Seems like the same voice in every one i've ever seen.

[sweetharriet]

Late to the party, but I wanted to tack this find onto a relevant thread:

vintage bicycle safety films DVD fs on Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000J327L8/104-6422262-7889531?ie=UTF8&seller=A2V0B6Z75OV4LT&sn=qualityinformationpublishers)

the gorillas look hot.

[closetbiker]

I don't know about that. I grew up and first rode my bike in the 60's and it seems to me VC simply means following the rules of the road, so that's what I did.

Ken Kifer (@ http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/health/risks.htm) wrote

You see, those of us who began riding in the 60's and 70's had a strong belief that bicycles should be operated as vehicles. As a result, we adopted the behavior of riding in traffic in a safe, visible, and predictable manner as operators of vehicles, according to the law...However, during the mid-80's, there was a shift in the message going out. Many of these newer riders did not learn that they had an equal right to use the road. And cycling magazines and brochures no longer explained how to behave in traffic but started preaching, "Wear a helmet at all times!" This new message did not teach the newcomers how to avoid accidents, and it emphasized how dangerous cycling was...Now I frequently see adult bike riders riding on the sidewalks, on the wrong (left) side, through red lights and stop signs without even looking, and at night without lights, all violations of the traffic laws and all behavior that they would not do when driving cars. It's quite ironic to see some well-dressed, responsible-looking adult wearing a helmet for safety and ignoring every law and safety rule. It's disgraceful behavior too: Andy and Barney used to arrest even the little kids in Mayberry who rode their bicycles on the sidewalk.

Maybe, since you were born in '72, you just don't remember what it was like back when these videos were made.

**I guess N_C removed his comment.

for reference as to why I posted what I did in response, here's the post

HH, back then there was no such thing as VC. You do know this
was from the 1950's right? The safety & education has changed
a lot over the years. I do not think the "keep to the right"
is taught the same way it was, if at all anymore.


Maybe he re-thought his position**

[banerjek]

I thought the reference to the bike as a vehicle was interesting. It's a pity that type of thinking isn't widely taught now.

And how 'bout them roads? Smooth, wide, and very few cars (all of them moving slowly).....