here is a photo from 1898 to prove it isn't.

Breckenridge, CO, 1900. IIRC, taken from the Denver Public Library Archives.

A fad is something that many people take part in or at least know what it is about, not the case with bicycle touring. Am considering the pro and cons of cyclo camping becoming a fad. ? First off, better motorist awareness, and the "one less car" effect, more bike lanes, and crowded camp grounds. hmmm.

Uhmm, I'm pretty sure the OP was meant as humor to introduce a cool old photo.

Any idea what is wound up in their spokes?

How did they do it? There isn't a LHT anywhere......

Don't worry, the gentlemen in the picture were using a pre-production model.

Decorations of some sort. Like how some kids put tennis balls and playing cards in their spokes. That was popular around here in the 70s and has made a comeback of sorts thanks to hipsters.

We need more mustaches.

Looks like bunting to me

Fast forwarding a few years, here are some scans from the 1973 National Geographic article, “The Bicycle Boom.”

Photo of man sitting is Greg Siple. The bike was stolen later in Panama City (it is a Gitane customized by Sam Braxton of Missoula Montana).

This is why I'm a much better literal lurker than a literal commenter!

toilet paper

Photo of man sitting is Greg Siple.

Nice man, Greg. Called into Adventure Cycling in Missoula in 1994 on my "Round the World with Bike " trip. He bought an article from me on the spot, published it in the magazine and later took me to the local radio station for a live interview with mid-afternoon DJ Bob - who knew nothing about cycling but tried his best. I remember this part of the interview as if it was yesterday.

Q. So, Steve. On this long bicycle trip, you must have spent the night in some unusual places?

A. Well Bob - you're absolutely right. Hotels, motels, hostels, backpackers, bunkhouses, strangers' guest rooms, a few floors, a disused concrete storm drain, plenty of nights in my tent.........oh and when I was in Hollywood, I spent several evenings underneath the stars....(deliberate pause)....Of course you do realise I'm not at liberty to disclose the names of any of those stars..........

At this point, Greg, who'd been sitting quietly in the corner whilst the interview was taking place, nearly choked on his coffee. I could see him thinking OMG, first time I've ever managed to get Adventure Cycling mentioned on the local radio station and they'll never have us back again..........

After the interview finished and a record was playing, I apologised to Bob for my mischievous British sense of humour and he said (and I quote).... Heck, man. That's nothin'. We had Huey Lewis in here last week and he said "Sh*t" live on the radio.

Gosh, Bob, I replied. That must have been awful for you..................

A tip for any budding radio interviewers out there. Always watch the subject's eyes very carefully. If there's a twinkle in them, watch your step, consider your questions carefully and remember the listener can't see it..........

Happy Days!

Awesome story, olly708!

Did anyone notice the cabled suspension frame ?

I think one of them is an early version of the 520, with Nitto Sparrow bars.

Thanks, Ridr and Seeker. Cool pictures

Huh. It looks like small diameter tubes to me, but yeah, pretty cool, and I hadn`t noticed until you pointed it out.

Fixed gears aren't a fad either!

Really nice picture ! Brings back some memories. Not mine, but still.

you mean the bike that is sideways to camera right? I thought the piece going from headtube area to bb was just a thin tube-its hard to see in the shot. So were there frames that used cables as part of their structure? If so, neat (I guess)

I had noticed the footrests that certainly shows they must be fixies. The tires are quite narrow, my guess is that they are solid rubber?

great shot isnt it, I love it.

Why hasn't anyone mentioned that they are not wearing helmets.

waddya mean, the Pith helmets are just out of frame on a bench right beside the ornate sign with "Pathé Scenic Daguerrotype Photographic Location" on it.

Want more proof that cycle touring isn't a fad? I have a fascinating book by the eccentric Englishman Thomas Stevens - " Around the World on a Bicycle" - which recounts his astonishing ride from San Francisco to Yokohama. By the way, he started the ride on April 22 1884, rode east from San Francisco and completed his epic journey on December 17 1886.

If your geography isn't very good: the route included cycling across the USA, a boat from Boston to England (OK, we'll forgive him that), across western Europe, via the Balkan States into Turkey, Persia (now Iran/Iraq), Afganistan, across India and China: finishing in Japan. From there he cheated and took a boat back to San Francisco. On learning this, anyone who utters the words "huh, what a lightweight" should consider .........

The bicycle he rode was a "penny farthing". You know - one of those primitive monsters with one huge wheel at the front and a small one at the back.

Read it and gasp!

BTW, the photo in post #1 was taken in Stalheim, Norway, long a popular tourist attraction even in 1898:

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...im_Norway_.jpg

Norway looks like a challenging location for bicycle touring, with all the up and down, and constant winding roads and water crossings.