1 00:00:03,279 --> 00:00:06,240 Speaker 1: Welcome to Part Time Genius, the production of I Heart Radio. 2 00:00:11,760 --> 00:00:14,600 Speaker 1: I guess what, Well, what's that man? Go? So this 3 00:00:14,680 --> 00:00:16,959 Speaker 1: is something I certainly haven't thought about that often, but 4 00:00:17,520 --> 00:00:20,040 Speaker 1: it is much harder to balance on a bike that 5 00:00:20,200 --> 00:00:22,759 Speaker 1: isn't moving compared to one that is. I'm glad to 6 00:00:22,760 --> 00:00:25,200 Speaker 1: know you haven't thought about it that often, but it 7 00:00:25,360 --> 00:00:26,960 Speaker 1: is actually strange when you think about it, Like you 8 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:29,320 Speaker 1: think it would be harder to balance on something that's 9 00:00:29,320 --> 00:00:33,239 Speaker 1: whipping along and like ten fifteen right exactly, And it 10 00:00:33,240 --> 00:00:35,200 Speaker 1: turns out the difficulty is mostly due to the fact 11 00:00:35,240 --> 00:00:37,440 Speaker 1: that a bike only has two points of contact with 12 00:00:37,479 --> 00:00:39,519 Speaker 1: the ground, like the thin parts of the front and 13 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:42,640 Speaker 1: back wheel, and typically you need three contact points with 14 00:00:42,680 --> 00:00:44,960 Speaker 1: the ground to create a good base of support, and 15 00:00:45,040 --> 00:00:47,199 Speaker 1: four is actually I deal with like a table or 16 00:00:47,200 --> 00:00:50,519 Speaker 1: a bed. But what bikes lack and static stability, they 17 00:00:50,520 --> 00:00:53,120 Speaker 1: actually make up for in dynamic stability, which is the 18 00:00:53,159 --> 00:00:56,320 Speaker 1: ability to remain stable while moving forward. And it works 19 00:00:56,360 --> 00:00:59,040 Speaker 1: because a rider can maneuver the bike's points of support, 20 00:00:59,400 --> 00:01:01,680 Speaker 1: or in other words, the rider can reposition the wheels 21 00:01:01,720 --> 00:01:04,200 Speaker 1: as needed to keep everything nice and balanced from one 22 00:01:04,240 --> 00:01:06,840 Speaker 1: moment to the next. And the best part is riders 23 00:01:06,920 --> 00:01:09,840 Speaker 1: usually steer like this without even realizing what they're doing. Like, 24 00:01:09,920 --> 00:01:12,839 Speaker 1: that's how subtle these microadjustments are. Yeah, I was actually 25 00:01:12,840 --> 00:01:15,560 Speaker 1: gonna say, I never feel like I'm that focused on, 26 00:01:16,080 --> 00:01:18,319 Speaker 1: you know, like the handlebars when I'm out riding a bike. 27 00:01:18,400 --> 00:01:20,040 Speaker 1: It's just one of those things where your brain goes 28 00:01:20,080 --> 00:01:24,480 Speaker 1: into autopilot and you really just respond without thinking about it. Yeah, 29 00:01:24,480 --> 00:01:26,040 Speaker 1: I mean, that's one thing I realized this week. There 30 00:01:26,040 --> 00:01:27,920 Speaker 1: are a lot of things about bikes we don't really 31 00:01:27,959 --> 00:01:30,880 Speaker 1: think about, from how we ride them, to where they 32 00:01:30,920 --> 00:01:33,560 Speaker 1: came from to what they have to do with horses deaths. 33 00:01:33,560 --> 00:01:36,360 Speaker 1: So that's what I thought we could tackle today, all 34 00:01:36,360 --> 00:01:39,040 Speaker 1: the weird questions about bikes we never think to ask. 35 00:01:39,080 --> 00:01:41,120 Speaker 1: And this is usually where I suggest we dive right in. 36 00:01:41,200 --> 00:01:43,760 Speaker 1: But since today's all about bikes, why don't we put 37 00:01:43,760 --> 00:02:08,280 Speaker 1: on our helmets and roll out instead? Heither podcast listeners, 38 00:02:08,280 --> 00:02:10,639 Speaker 1: Welcome to Part Time Genius. I'm Will Pearson and as 39 00:02:10,680 --> 00:02:13,120 Speaker 1: always I'm joined by my good friend man Guesh Ticketer 40 00:02:13,560 --> 00:02:15,760 Speaker 1: on the other side of the soundproof glass. He's been 41 00:02:15,800 --> 00:02:17,960 Speaker 1: doing this all morning, and I gotta be honest, it's 42 00:02:17,960 --> 00:02:22,359 Speaker 1: pretty impressive. He's there popping yet another wheelie on his 43 00:02:22,600 --> 00:02:26,280 Speaker 1: office chair. That's the world's most impressive producer on one 44 00:02:26,320 --> 00:02:29,919 Speaker 1: of these wheelly chairs, Little Berlante. So, Mango, are you 45 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:31,560 Speaker 1: much of a biker? I don't think I've ever seen 46 00:02:31,600 --> 00:02:33,880 Speaker 1: you ride a bike before. I know. It's funny, you 47 00:02:33,919 --> 00:02:35,760 Speaker 1: know what I was when I was a kid, Like 48 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:37,960 Speaker 1: I used to have this little BMX and I'd ride 49 00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:40,160 Speaker 1: it around the neighborhood into the country store we had 50 00:02:40,160 --> 00:02:42,400 Speaker 1: in our town and to get candy and whatever. But 51 00:02:42,639 --> 00:02:45,200 Speaker 1: you know, when I hit sixth or seventh grade, like, 52 00:02:45,280 --> 00:02:47,920 Speaker 1: my dad got super the safety all of a sudden, 53 00:02:48,320 --> 00:02:51,239 Speaker 1: and he put this long plastic stick on the back 54 00:02:51,280 --> 00:02:54,120 Speaker 1: of our bike that had this orange flag at the 55 00:02:54,120 --> 00:02:56,240 Speaker 1: top of it, and he made us wear helmets and 56 00:02:56,240 --> 00:02:58,240 Speaker 1: and suddenly it was like, I'm good, I think I 57 00:02:58,240 --> 00:03:02,079 Speaker 1: can walk for me here? You did you did you 58 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:04,760 Speaker 1: ride around much? Oh? I rode to school every single day. 59 00:03:04,760 --> 00:03:06,359 Speaker 1: But yeah, I was that kid. You know, we were 60 00:03:06,400 --> 00:03:10,800 Speaker 1: the first generation where some parents started making kids wear helmets, 61 00:03:10,840 --> 00:03:12,399 Speaker 1: you know, And so I were a helmet every day. 62 00:03:12,400 --> 00:03:14,560 Speaker 1: But yeah, we were definitely like these days kids don't 63 00:03:14,560 --> 00:03:17,280 Speaker 1: think that much about it, but but yeah, it was 64 00:03:17,320 --> 00:03:19,400 Speaker 1: a little cooler. They do a little cool. Yeah, it's 65 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:21,240 Speaker 1: it's a very big different day. Some of them have 66 00:03:21,280 --> 00:03:24,320 Speaker 1: those mohawk helmets, which are just so jealous of. Yeah, 67 00:03:24,360 --> 00:03:26,080 Speaker 1: I know that the helmets really are so much cooler 68 00:03:26,120 --> 00:03:28,959 Speaker 1: with the mohawks. But let's get off my hesitation about 69 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:31,200 Speaker 1: bikes because I still don't really ride that much and 70 00:03:31,240 --> 00:03:34,400 Speaker 1: talk about a different weird story that bikes were invented 71 00:03:34,440 --> 00:03:38,520 Speaker 1: because of volcano killed all the horses, right, of course. No, Actually, 72 00:03:38,560 --> 00:03:41,080 Speaker 1: I think we're gonna have to explain this one because 73 00:03:41,080 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: I have no idea what you're talking about. So today 74 00:03:43,480 --> 00:03:46,000 Speaker 1: we tend to think of bikes mostly as recreational items, 75 00:03:46,000 --> 00:03:48,320 Speaker 1: but their invention was actually a matter of necessity, so 76 00:03:48,400 --> 00:03:51,600 Speaker 1: it was a weird, tragic necessity. Here's what happened in 77 00:03:51,720 --> 00:03:55,320 Speaker 1: eighteen fifteen of volcano named Mount Tambora erupted on an 78 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:58,880 Speaker 1: island in Indonesia, and that eruption was and still is, 79 00:03:58,920 --> 00:04:01,960 Speaker 1: the largest eruption in recorded history. It was so bad 80 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:05,120 Speaker 1: that the blast all but wiped out the island's inhabitants, 81 00:04:05,200 --> 00:04:07,560 Speaker 1: and to make matters worse, the neighboring islands became so 82 00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:09,920 Speaker 1: choked with ash and smoke that tens of thousands of 83 00:04:09,960 --> 00:04:12,760 Speaker 1: people died from famine and disease in the months that followed. 84 00:04:13,200 --> 00:04:16,080 Speaker 1: But here's the thing. The effects were even more widespread 85 00:04:16,120 --> 00:04:19,320 Speaker 1: than just that area. In fact, they were worldwide, and 86 00:04:19,600 --> 00:04:22,440 Speaker 1: such a massive amount of ash and sulfur dioxide had 87 00:04:22,440 --> 00:04:25,400 Speaker 1: been shot up into the atmosphere that actually blocked sunlight 88 00:04:25,480 --> 00:04:27,880 Speaker 1: and disrupted weather patterns all over the world for a 89 00:04:27,960 --> 00:04:30,200 Speaker 1: full three years. Wow. So this was one of those 90 00:04:30,240 --> 00:04:34,080 Speaker 1: massive eruptions. It actually affected the Earth's climate, the whole 91 00:04:34,080 --> 00:04:37,320 Speaker 1: Earth's climate. Yeah, it did so. The average global temperature 92 00:04:37,360 --> 00:04:39,960 Speaker 1: actually dropped almost a full degree after the blast, and 93 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:42,000 Speaker 1: while that doesn't sound huge, it was enough to make 94 00:04:42,040 --> 00:04:45,080 Speaker 1: eighteen sixteen the coldest year on record since the fourteen hundreds. 95 00:04:45,480 --> 00:04:48,159 Speaker 1: It was so bad that historians now referred to eighteen 96 00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:51,640 Speaker 1: sixteen as the year without Summer. It's a pretty depressing 97 00:04:51,720 --> 00:04:53,760 Speaker 1: label for a year. But but all right, Well, what 98 00:04:53,760 --> 00:04:56,000 Speaker 1: what happened next? I guess the temperature drop and the 99 00:04:56,040 --> 00:04:59,160 Speaker 1: lack of sunlight actually led to all kinds of global 100 00:04:59,200 --> 00:05:03,000 Speaker 1: problems like of hers froze, crops failed, disease broke out, 101 00:05:03,080 --> 00:05:05,680 Speaker 1: and lots and lots of people and animals starved to death. 102 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:08,400 Speaker 1: And in fact there was so little food in Europe 103 00:05:08,440 --> 00:05:11,400 Speaker 1: that the vast majority of horses and draft animals wound 104 00:05:11,480 --> 00:05:13,760 Speaker 1: up being slaughtered and eaten by their owners who were 105 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:18,159 Speaker 1: themselves starving. And it was bleak and tragic, obviously, But 106 00:05:18,200 --> 00:05:20,120 Speaker 1: you know, if there's any bright side to it, it's 107 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:23,640 Speaker 1: that two great creations were inspired by this dreary atmosphere, 108 00:05:24,160 --> 00:05:29,120 Speaker 1: Mary Shelley's Frankenstein novel and Baron Carl van dress early bicycle. 109 00:05:29,320 --> 00:05:31,960 Speaker 1: You know, I'm tempted. I've got a couple good Frankenstein 110 00:05:32,000 --> 00:05:34,039 Speaker 1: facts that I'm ready to share with you for some reason, 111 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,719 Speaker 1: But but I'm gonna be disciplined. Let's stick to the 112 00:05:37,720 --> 00:05:40,280 Speaker 1: bike for today, I think. So. In Germany, this guy 113 00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:43,200 Speaker 1: Andres worked both as an inventor and also as a 114 00:05:43,240 --> 00:05:45,960 Speaker 1: forestry master for the government, and this meant that he 115 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:48,039 Speaker 1: had to travel between the different parts of the forest 116 00:05:48,080 --> 00:05:51,040 Speaker 1: that he was in charge of, which became pretty difficult 117 00:05:51,080 --> 00:05:52,960 Speaker 1: once all the horses in the region had been eaten. 118 00:05:53,320 --> 00:05:57,240 Speaker 1: So basically Von Dreis needed this reliable, horseless way to 119 00:05:57,279 --> 00:05:59,480 Speaker 1: get around, and the solution he came up with was 120 00:05:59,560 --> 00:06:02,599 Speaker 1: this two wheeled running machine, or lau machine as he 121 00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:05,520 Speaker 1: called it. His device had no pedals, and as the 122 00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:07,719 Speaker 1: name implies, the riders would actually have to run to 123 00:06:07,760 --> 00:06:10,120 Speaker 1: propel it, kicking off the ground with their feet, kind 124 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:12,200 Speaker 1: of like you might on a scooter. Aside from the 125 00:06:12,279 --> 00:06:14,359 Speaker 1: lack of pedals, though, the design looked pretty close to 126 00:06:14,360 --> 00:06:16,520 Speaker 1: what we're used to today. It's got kind of like 127 00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:19,080 Speaker 1: the two in line wheels, a seed, a pair of handlebars, 128 00:06:19,120 --> 00:06:21,640 Speaker 1: so so fairly similar. Yeah, but it almost makes me 129 00:06:21,680 --> 00:06:25,200 Speaker 1: thinking like those little balanced bikes that toddlers use right totally, 130 00:06:25,240 --> 00:06:27,159 Speaker 1: so it was exactly one of those kind of this 131 00:06:27,200 --> 00:06:30,440 Speaker 1: protobike andv Andreys pattens is design in eighteen eighteen, and 132 00:06:30,640 --> 00:06:33,320 Speaker 1: soon after that other manufacturers in England and France begin 133 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:36,159 Speaker 1: putting their own spins on the invention. So France comes 134 00:06:36,200 --> 00:06:37,960 Speaker 1: up with a pretty cool name for the version. It's 135 00:06:38,000 --> 00:06:42,400 Speaker 1: called Velocit Pede. England goes the other way. They call 136 00:06:42,480 --> 00:06:46,719 Speaker 1: their bikes Dandy Horses, which, yeah, one name is definitely 137 00:06:46,760 --> 00:06:50,880 Speaker 1: cooler than the other. Yeah, yeah, I mean, I guess 138 00:06:50,880 --> 00:06:54,320 Speaker 1: it's a tribute to their horses, which you know they'd eaten. 139 00:06:54,480 --> 00:06:57,360 Speaker 1: But um, it wasn't long before the pedal list bikes 140 00:06:57,360 --> 00:06:59,400 Speaker 1: made their way stateside as well. I mean, if you 141 00:06:59,440 --> 00:07:01,719 Speaker 1: look at the timeline. One of the things that's funny 142 00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:04,680 Speaker 1: is that it takes about another seventy years to go 143 00:07:04,839 --> 00:07:06,880 Speaker 1: from these balanced bikes to the you know, like the 144 00:07:06,920 --> 00:07:09,440 Speaker 1: gear and chain models with pedals. Why do you think 145 00:07:09,440 --> 00:07:11,960 Speaker 1: that is? I mean, I think part of the delay 146 00:07:12,040 --> 00:07:14,080 Speaker 1: was that people were not at all convinced that it 147 00:07:14,120 --> 00:07:16,880 Speaker 1: was possible to balance on a two wheeled bike, you know, 148 00:07:16,880 --> 00:07:20,000 Speaker 1: while pedaling, and not just fall over. And so it's 149 00:07:20,000 --> 00:07:21,640 Speaker 1: exactly what you were talking about at the top of 150 00:07:21,640 --> 00:07:25,360 Speaker 1: the show. But a few decades of innovation eventually got 151 00:07:25,440 --> 00:07:28,280 Speaker 1: us there. This was by the eighteen nineties, and the 152 00:07:28,280 --> 00:07:30,760 Speaker 1: truth is the basic form of the bike has stayed 153 00:07:30,800 --> 00:07:34,200 Speaker 1: pretty much the same ever since then. But even with 154 00:07:34,280 --> 00:07:37,560 Speaker 1: better bikes and growing popularity, the cyclist of the era 155 00:07:37,720 --> 00:07:40,800 Speaker 1: still had a huge obstacle ahead of them, the main 156 00:07:40,840 --> 00:07:44,160 Speaker 1: one being that all the roads pretty much everywhere were terrible, 157 00:07:44,240 --> 00:07:47,800 Speaker 1: so they were unpaved on, even littered with holes and 158 00:07:48,200 --> 00:07:51,119 Speaker 1: easily turned into mud. So, as one New York Times 159 00:07:51,200 --> 00:07:54,400 Speaker 1: article put it, the country roads where a Martian spring 160 00:07:54,680 --> 00:07:58,200 Speaker 1: a sahara, and summer frozen stiff and later autumn and 161 00:07:58,280 --> 00:08:01,600 Speaker 1: a swamp wherever there was thought in winter and so 162 00:08:01,640 --> 00:08:04,400 Speaker 1: the urban roads weren't really that much better. I mean, 163 00:08:04,400 --> 00:08:06,960 Speaker 1: they were often covered in wood planks at least, which 164 00:08:07,200 --> 00:08:10,080 Speaker 1: made riding a little bit smoother, but still you'd sometimes 165 00:08:10,160 --> 00:08:12,600 Speaker 1: have cyclists riding on the sidewalk just to get a 166 00:08:12,640 --> 00:08:15,960 Speaker 1: break from this rough ride, and so this inevitably led 167 00:08:16,040 --> 00:08:18,920 Speaker 1: to accidents where pedestrians would get knocked over, and then 168 00:08:18,960 --> 00:08:22,560 Speaker 1: people would complain that bike should be banned entirely. So 169 00:08:22,600 --> 00:08:24,400 Speaker 1: it was a tough time to be a bike fan 170 00:08:24,640 --> 00:08:27,040 Speaker 1: or a wheelman as they were called back then. How 171 00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:29,680 Speaker 1: did things get better for bikers? Well, instead of giving up, 172 00:08:29,720 --> 00:08:33,880 Speaker 1: these cyclists formed advocacy groups, including the League of American Wheelmen, 173 00:08:34,120 --> 00:08:37,440 Speaker 1: and they began advocating for paved roads throughout the country. 174 00:08:37,760 --> 00:08:40,079 Speaker 1: There are more than a hundred thousand of these people 175 00:08:40,080 --> 00:08:42,559 Speaker 1: that joined the cause, and due to the success of 176 00:08:42,600 --> 00:08:45,880 Speaker 1: their grassroots efforts, the nation got its first paved roads 177 00:08:45,920 --> 00:08:49,160 Speaker 1: in eight So it's really no stretch to say that 178 00:08:49,200 --> 00:08:52,439 Speaker 1: the early work of these cyclists literally paved the way 179 00:08:52,520 --> 00:08:55,400 Speaker 1: for the national highway system. I had been waiting so 180 00:08:55,440 --> 00:08:59,040 Speaker 1: long to be able to say that literally paved alay. 181 00:08:59,080 --> 00:09:01,880 Speaker 1: That's pretty incredible, both the fact and you're punning, But 182 00:09:02,800 --> 00:09:05,000 Speaker 1: But since we're giving the wheel men their due, let's 183 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:06,520 Speaker 1: talk a little bit about the wheel women of the 184 00:09:06,600 --> 00:09:09,120 Speaker 1: day as well. Because as big as the bike craze 185 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:12,080 Speaker 1: was in general, from a cultural perspective, it was probably 186 00:09:12,160 --> 00:09:14,920 Speaker 1: most significant to women. Before the bike came along in 187 00:09:14,920 --> 00:09:17,600 Speaker 1: the nineteenth century, women had been expected to travel either 188 00:09:17,679 --> 00:09:20,679 Speaker 1: on foot or on horseback or in a carriage. Um 189 00:09:20,720 --> 00:09:23,040 Speaker 1: they were usually accompanied by a chaperone of some kind, 190 00:09:23,120 --> 00:09:25,319 Speaker 1: and they rarely got to travel at speeds any faster 191 00:09:25,400 --> 00:09:28,440 Speaker 1: than a leisurely trot. The bike changed all of that 192 00:09:28,520 --> 00:09:30,360 Speaker 1: by giving women the chance to travel with a whole 193 00:09:30,360 --> 00:09:33,280 Speaker 1: new level of independence. It completely flipped the table on 194 00:09:33,360 --> 00:09:35,960 Speaker 1: this old fashioned view of women as the frails, slow 195 00:09:36,000 --> 00:09:38,679 Speaker 1: going gentler sex. Yeah, and I feel like I can 196 00:09:38,720 --> 00:09:41,440 Speaker 1: finish the story because I would imagine that newfound freedom 197 00:09:41,520 --> 00:09:44,760 Speaker 1: was met with complete approval from the public and no 198 00:09:44,760 --> 00:09:48,160 Speaker 1: no backlash. Kind of changed everything for the better forever, right, 199 00:09:48,520 --> 00:09:51,559 Speaker 1: of course, So you know, there had to be detractors, 200 00:09:51,640 --> 00:09:53,600 Speaker 1: and and many of them were saying that being able 201 00:09:53,600 --> 00:09:57,040 Speaker 1: to travel free and unsupervised might somehow corrupt the women's morals. 202 00:09:57,559 --> 00:09:59,920 Speaker 1: In fact, that there was even a business that cropp 203 00:10:00,160 --> 00:10:02,440 Speaker 1: up to help guard against this threat. It was called 204 00:10:02,480 --> 00:10:06,199 Speaker 1: the Cyclist Chaperone Association, and according to its ad the 205 00:10:06,280 --> 00:10:10,679 Speaker 1: company provided gentlewomen of good social position to conduct ladies 206 00:10:10,679 --> 00:10:13,800 Speaker 1: on bicycle excursions and tours so nervous husbands could be 207 00:10:13,840 --> 00:10:16,800 Speaker 1: put to ease. But you know, it wasn't just these 208 00:10:16,840 --> 00:10:19,199 Speaker 1: husbands who were worried. Newspaper columnists all over the country 209 00:10:19,240 --> 00:10:21,640 Speaker 1: were also baffled by the sudden appearance of wheel women. 210 00:10:21,760 --> 00:10:25,280 Speaker 1: And here's what the confused editors at the San Francisco 211 00:10:25,360 --> 00:10:29,680 Speaker 1: Call wrote in quote, it doesn't really matter much where 212 00:10:29,720 --> 00:10:32,280 Speaker 1: one individual young lady is going on her wheels. And 213 00:10:32,360 --> 00:10:34,760 Speaker 1: maybe she's going to the park, or to the store 214 00:10:34,800 --> 00:10:37,600 Speaker 1: for a dozen hairpins, or to get a dollar, or 215 00:10:37,679 --> 00:10:41,760 Speaker 1: to get a doily pattern of somebody, or a recipe 216 00:10:41,920 --> 00:10:45,240 Speaker 1: for removing tens and freckles. Right, of course, let that 217 00:10:45,280 --> 00:10:47,560 Speaker 1: be as it may. What the interested public wishes to 218 00:10:47,640 --> 00:10:50,319 Speaker 1: know is where are all the women on wheels going? 219 00:10:52,559 --> 00:10:54,760 Speaker 1: You know, just one woman on an errand for I 220 00:10:54,760 --> 00:10:56,800 Speaker 1: guess a freckle cream is is the type of thing 221 00:10:56,800 --> 00:10:59,720 Speaker 1: you can excuse. But dozens of them traveling without knowing 222 00:10:59,720 --> 00:11:02,280 Speaker 1: where the going is something to rail against. And the 223 00:11:02,640 --> 00:11:05,720 Speaker 1: truth is the outcry against women riding bikes did get 224 00:11:05,760 --> 00:11:09,439 Speaker 1: pretty serious. So female cyclists were frequently harassed as their 225 00:11:09,520 --> 00:11:13,120 Speaker 1: road men and women would both taunt the riders, demanding 226 00:11:13,120 --> 00:11:16,000 Speaker 1: they go home where they belong. Some women were banned 227 00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:20,160 Speaker 1: from public places where male cyclists were permitted, and and 228 00:11:20,480 --> 00:11:23,160 Speaker 1: in the worst cases, the female cyclists were actually assaulted 229 00:11:23,200 --> 00:11:25,040 Speaker 1: with rocks and bricks. Yeah, I mean, it sounds like 230 00:11:25,040 --> 00:11:27,240 Speaker 1: there's a lot more play here than just not wanting 231 00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:30,120 Speaker 1: women to ride bikes, right, Yeah, definitely, And I do 232 00:11:30,160 --> 00:11:32,199 Speaker 1: want to talk a little bit more about what exactly 233 00:11:32,280 --> 00:11:35,240 Speaker 1: was fueling that outrage, including the role bikes played in 234 00:11:35,280 --> 00:11:37,520 Speaker 1: the women's suffrage movement. But before we get into that, 235 00:11:37,600 --> 00:11:53,439 Speaker 1: let's take a quick break. You're listening to Part Time 236 00:11:53,480 --> 00:11:56,200 Speaker 1: Genius and we're talking about all the unexpected ways that 237 00:11:56,320 --> 00:11:59,760 Speaker 1: bicycles change the world. All right, mego, So before the break, 238 00:11:59,760 --> 00:12:01,880 Speaker 1: you were saying that all the public outcry in the 239 00:12:01,920 --> 00:12:06,760 Speaker 1: early twentieth century wasn't just about the bike's women were riding, right, Yeah, 240 00:12:06,840 --> 00:12:09,680 Speaker 1: So the outrage was also partly about what women wore 241 00:12:09,800 --> 00:12:13,040 Speaker 1: whild riding bikes. So long skirts and dresses post as 242 00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:15,400 Speaker 1: a safety risk for female cyclist because they could get 243 00:12:15,400 --> 00:12:18,719 Speaker 1: caught in the bike chains and spokes. And in light 244 00:12:18,760 --> 00:12:21,760 Speaker 1: of this, the modest fashion of the Victorian age, it 245 00:12:22,000 --> 00:12:24,280 Speaker 1: all started to give way, and all of a sudden, 246 00:12:24,320 --> 00:12:27,320 Speaker 1: women were, I guess, taking up the scandalous practice of 247 00:12:27,400 --> 00:12:30,880 Speaker 1: wearing ankle bearing bloomers in public. This was an appalling 248 00:12:30,920 --> 00:12:33,760 Speaker 1: development for some people, and in fact, one US newspaper 249 00:12:33,800 --> 00:12:37,319 Speaker 1: referred to the bloomers as a gateway garment. Man. I mean, 250 00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:39,840 Speaker 1: it starts with wearing bloomers, but the next thing, you know, 251 00:12:39,920 --> 00:12:41,840 Speaker 1: like she's moved on to book learning, you know what 252 00:12:41,840 --> 00:12:45,520 Speaker 1: I mean. It's dangerous, I know, And when you think 253 00:12:45,559 --> 00:12:48,240 Speaker 1: about it, all that kind of criticism really just proved 254 00:12:48,240 --> 00:12:51,160 Speaker 1: the level of cultural impact the women's movement was having. 255 00:12:51,320 --> 00:12:53,679 Speaker 1: And probably the best example of that is the bicycle 256 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:56,560 Speaker 1: actually became a symbol of women's rights. This was both 257 00:12:56,600 --> 00:13:00,200 Speaker 1: with Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Katie Stanton there is 258 00:13:00,200 --> 00:13:04,160 Speaker 1: credited as saying that women were quote riding the suffrage 259 00:13:04,200 --> 00:13:07,240 Speaker 1: on the bicycle. I mean that was literally the case, though, right, 260 00:13:07,280 --> 00:13:09,679 Speaker 1: I mean suffragettes relied on bikes when they were out 261 00:13:09,720 --> 00:13:12,800 Speaker 1: campaigning for the vote. They might not have won nearly 262 00:13:12,840 --> 00:13:15,440 Speaker 1: as much support as they did without bikes to help 263 00:13:15,480 --> 00:13:18,400 Speaker 1: them reach all these people. Yeah, that's true. In fact, 264 00:13:18,440 --> 00:13:20,719 Speaker 1: The Atlantic ran this great article a few years ago 265 00:13:20,760 --> 00:13:23,480 Speaker 1: about just how much of a game changer bikes were 266 00:13:23,559 --> 00:13:26,439 Speaker 1: for women. It closes on this really beautiful sentiment that 267 00:13:26,480 --> 00:13:29,040 Speaker 1: I wanted to share. It's from the author, Adrian le France, 268 00:13:29,120 --> 00:13:32,120 Speaker 1: and this is what she writes. Quote, Imagine what it 269 00:13:32,200 --> 00:13:34,520 Speaker 1: must have felt like in an age when American women 270 00:13:34,520 --> 00:13:37,320 Speaker 1: were still decades from the right to vote and inundated 271 00:13:37,360 --> 00:13:40,080 Speaker 1: with men's opinions about their ankles, for a woman to 272 00:13:40,120 --> 00:13:43,080 Speaker 1: go outside, hop on her bicycle and ride as fast 273 00:13:43,120 --> 00:13:45,400 Speaker 1: as she could wherever she wanted, leaving the rest of 274 00:13:45,440 --> 00:13:48,040 Speaker 1: the world wondering where she might go next. Yeah, I mean, 275 00:13:48,040 --> 00:13:50,720 Speaker 1: maybe she's out looking for freckle cream and but but 276 00:13:50,800 --> 00:13:53,880 Speaker 1: maybe she's not. It's it's still really a mystery. But 277 00:13:54,760 --> 00:13:57,559 Speaker 1: let's talk about another public good that bikes are good for, 278 00:13:57,679 --> 00:14:01,679 Speaker 1: which is they make perfect ambulances for jested cities. So 279 00:14:01,720 --> 00:14:04,080 Speaker 1: one of the first people to demonstrate just how effect 280 00:14:04,120 --> 00:14:06,240 Speaker 1: of a bike ambulance unit could be was this guy 281 00:14:06,280 --> 00:14:09,640 Speaker 1: named Tom Lynch. And so what's interesting is that Lynch 282 00:14:09,760 --> 00:14:13,679 Speaker 1: is a pro BMX rider turned London ambulance driver. This 283 00:14:13,760 --> 00:14:15,320 Speaker 1: really isn't that long ago. This was back in the 284 00:14:15,360 --> 00:14:19,200 Speaker 1: eighties and nineties. Lynch was basically the Tony Hawk of BMX. 285 00:14:19,560 --> 00:14:21,760 Speaker 1: But he got a little bit older. He wanted what 286 00:14:21,880 --> 00:14:24,960 Speaker 1: he considered, you know, a normal job, and for Lynch 287 00:14:25,040 --> 00:14:28,040 Speaker 1: that meant training with the London Ambulance Service and becoming 288 00:14:28,080 --> 00:14:31,920 Speaker 1: a licensed e m T, which he did in But 289 00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:34,680 Speaker 1: the more time Tom spent stuck in traffic on his 290 00:14:34,720 --> 00:14:37,440 Speaker 1: way to a call, the more frustrated he became. So 291 00:14:37,480 --> 00:14:40,040 Speaker 1: he often told his colleagues how much faster they'd be 292 00:14:40,080 --> 00:14:42,760 Speaker 1: able to respond to calls if only they could use 293 00:14:42,800 --> 00:14:45,880 Speaker 1: bikes instead of vans. No one else thought much of 294 00:14:45,920 --> 00:14:49,320 Speaker 1: this idea, but Tom kept pushing it until finally, in 295 00:14:50,480 --> 00:14:53,400 Speaker 1: Tom got permission to launch a trial version of the 296 00:14:53,480 --> 00:14:56,920 Speaker 1: Ambulance Cycle Responsive Unit or c r U, which is 297 00:14:56,960 --> 00:14:59,360 Speaker 1: just a great idea. Yeah, I love that. He finally 298 00:14:59,400 --> 00:15:01,880 Speaker 1: just kind of where everyone down by by talking about 299 00:15:01,880 --> 00:15:03,720 Speaker 1: it all this time. Yeah, so you know. Anyway, Tom 300 00:15:03,840 --> 00:15:06,160 Speaker 1: used his connections in the bike industry to make sure 301 00:15:06,160 --> 00:15:08,360 Speaker 1: all the top gear was on hand for his big 302 00:15:08,360 --> 00:15:10,920 Speaker 1: trial run, and he loaded up his bikes with all 303 00:15:10,960 --> 00:15:15,040 Speaker 1: sorts of customized equipment including a siren, special medic bags 304 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:18,480 Speaker 1: and there was this fifty pound defribrillator, which are much 305 00:15:18,600 --> 00:15:21,160 Speaker 1: lighter these days of course, And so you know he 306 00:15:21,280 --> 00:15:24,360 Speaker 1: set up the system, like what are his metrics for success? 307 00:15:24,400 --> 00:15:26,720 Speaker 1: They like, well, what's the goal of this exactly? Well, 308 00:15:26,880 --> 00:15:30,760 Speaker 1: basically to be able to successfully answer nine calls in 309 00:15:30,800 --> 00:15:33,680 Speaker 1: the West of London. And if you asked Tom, he 310 00:15:33,680 --> 00:15:35,640 Speaker 1: says that he could tell early on that the new 311 00:15:35,680 --> 00:15:39,200 Speaker 1: approach was definitely going to work. He told one interviewer, 312 00:15:39,400 --> 00:15:41,640 Speaker 1: I was based around the West End and the calls 313 00:15:41,640 --> 00:15:43,520 Speaker 1: were coming in and I was doing my best to 314 00:15:43,560 --> 00:15:47,360 Speaker 1: ease pressure on the ambulance cruise. I would race two incidents, 315 00:15:47,440 --> 00:15:50,760 Speaker 1: flying past traffic, cycling where motor vehicles couldn't go, and 316 00:15:50,880 --> 00:15:54,360 Speaker 1: getting to patients quickly. I went to five incidents within 317 00:15:54,560 --> 00:15:58,680 Speaker 1: one hour. I treated patients, canceled the ambulances and used 318 00:15:58,680 --> 00:16:03,400 Speaker 1: other medical centers as opposed to the accident and emergency. 319 00:16:03,560 --> 00:16:05,520 Speaker 1: And that last part is really the key in all 320 00:16:05,520 --> 00:16:07,520 Speaker 1: of this, Like the bike ke mt s free up 321 00:16:07,560 --> 00:16:12,040 Speaker 1: ambulances to respond to the calls that actually require hospital treatment, 322 00:16:12,840 --> 00:16:15,760 Speaker 1: not just the on site care. Yeah. Super interesting and 323 00:16:15,760 --> 00:16:18,040 Speaker 1: and one group that benefits from this big time is 324 00:16:18,240 --> 00:16:21,360 Speaker 1: their heart attack victims, like where every second you're not 325 00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:24,360 Speaker 1: breathing counts so much and so it really helped a 326 00:16:24,400 --> 00:16:26,600 Speaker 1: ton on that front. So where does the cycle crew 327 00:16:26,600 --> 00:16:28,920 Speaker 1: operate is it? Is it mainly like a London thing 328 00:16:29,040 --> 00:16:31,520 Speaker 1: or has it expanded? No, the unit Tom found that 329 00:16:31,640 --> 00:16:34,880 Speaker 1: is now composed of several teams that operate all over London. 330 00:16:35,000 --> 00:16:38,280 Speaker 1: More than a hundred paramedics and train volunteers are involved. 331 00:16:38,320 --> 00:16:41,440 Speaker 1: But other similar teams have started popping up in major 332 00:16:41,480 --> 00:16:44,880 Speaker 1: cities across Europe, some of the US, even China and Japan. 333 00:16:45,560 --> 00:16:48,440 Speaker 1: So each of those cycle response teams now responds to 334 00:16:48,560 --> 00:16:51,080 Speaker 1: thousands of calls every year and it's all because of 335 00:16:51,120 --> 00:16:54,920 Speaker 1: big hearted BMX or just couldn't stand being stuck in traffic. 336 00:16:55,520 --> 00:16:57,520 Speaker 1: I love that. Well. I know we wanted to cycle 337 00:16:57,520 --> 00:17:00,320 Speaker 1: back and talk about the neuroscience behind biking, but that 338 00:17:00,400 --> 00:17:02,600 Speaker 1: was such a feel good story. I just want to 339 00:17:02,600 --> 00:17:04,199 Speaker 1: bask him to glow for a minute. Why don't we 340 00:17:04,200 --> 00:17:06,040 Speaker 1: take another quick break and then we can jump right 341 00:17:06,040 --> 00:17:22,080 Speaker 1: back in. Welcome back to part time Genius. Okay, well, 342 00:17:22,119 --> 00:17:25,760 Speaker 1: so today's show is clearly all about bicycles, but nonetheless 343 00:17:25,800 --> 00:17:27,760 Speaker 1: I have to tell you about something amazing. I found 344 00:17:27,800 --> 00:17:32,119 Speaker 1: out about this week and it's all about unicycles. You know, 345 00:17:32,160 --> 00:17:34,080 Speaker 1: this is a bike episode, so I'm not I'm not 346 00:17:34,240 --> 00:17:38,239 Speaker 1: sure that a little Franken Sein facts no unicycle is 347 00:17:38,320 --> 00:17:41,639 Speaker 1: definitely shaking his head. But actually because he's doing that, 348 00:17:41,680 --> 00:17:44,200 Speaker 1: I kind of like breaking Lowell's rules. So if you insist, 349 00:17:44,320 --> 00:17:48,439 Speaker 1: let's hear the story. Okay, So here's my fact. Unicycles 350 00:17:48,440 --> 00:17:52,399 Speaker 1: have basically become a cornerstone of Japan's educational curriculum. Is 351 00:17:52,480 --> 00:17:55,080 Speaker 1: Japan like really into clowns or something? I've just somehow 352 00:17:55,240 --> 00:17:57,679 Speaker 1: never noticed this. How did that happen? I don't know 353 00:17:57,720 --> 00:18:01,520 Speaker 1: that there are any countries that are still really into uh. 354 00:18:01,920 --> 00:18:04,719 Speaker 1: In Japan's case, the really feel is that unicycling can 355 00:18:04,760 --> 00:18:06,879 Speaker 1: be a good way to teach and improve both motor 356 00:18:06,920 --> 00:18:10,520 Speaker 1: skills and balance, and the idea to use unicycles and 357 00:18:10,560 --> 00:18:12,840 Speaker 1: schools with the result of a series of studies done 358 00:18:12,840 --> 00:18:15,800 Speaker 1: in Japan in the nineteen eighties, I guess researchers found 359 00:18:15,840 --> 00:18:18,040 Speaker 1: that children who learned to ride a unicycle were more 360 00:18:18,080 --> 00:18:20,680 Speaker 1: successful at school and in their home lives than children 361 00:18:20,720 --> 00:18:23,040 Speaker 1: who didn't. It's pretty interesting. So did they figure out 362 00:18:23,040 --> 00:18:25,000 Speaker 1: why that would be the case. I guess the leading 363 00:18:25,040 --> 00:18:28,120 Speaker 1: theory is that it's because the high level of concentration 364 00:18:28,560 --> 00:18:30,600 Speaker 1: that it takes to to ride a unicycle like that 365 00:18:30,680 --> 00:18:32,960 Speaker 1: kind of focus engages a different area of the brand. 366 00:18:33,040 --> 00:18:36,480 Speaker 1: Then then other physical activities, including biking. So based on 367 00:18:36,520 --> 00:18:40,520 Speaker 1: these findings, Japanese schools started teaching kids to ride unicycles. Yeah, 368 00:18:40,680 --> 00:18:44,040 Speaker 1: I guess the Ministry of Education added unicycling to the 369 00:18:44,040 --> 00:18:47,159 Speaker 1: p curriculum in all of the country's elementary schools. But 370 00:18:47,359 --> 00:18:49,960 Speaker 1: Japan's schools aren't the only place you actually find this today. 371 00:18:49,960 --> 00:18:52,840 Speaker 1: They're unicycle programs and schools across the US and and 372 00:18:52,880 --> 00:18:55,399 Speaker 1: more and more educators are starting to see unicycles as 373 00:18:55,440 --> 00:18:58,440 Speaker 1: a tool not just for brain development but for character development. 374 00:18:58,680 --> 00:19:02,240 Speaker 1: So you think about people like the psychologist and Angela Duckworth, 375 00:19:02,320 --> 00:19:05,040 Speaker 1: who who talks about like the most important metric for 376 00:19:05,080 --> 00:19:08,639 Speaker 1: a person's successes is grit um, because that's kind of 377 00:19:08,680 --> 00:19:11,040 Speaker 1: what makes you keep trying when you fail instead of 378 00:19:11,040 --> 00:19:14,720 Speaker 1: giving up. So riding a unicycle is so unnatural and 379 00:19:14,840 --> 00:19:17,680 Speaker 1: so awkward and hard that the kids in these programs 380 00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:19,840 Speaker 1: fall off dozens of times before they finally start to 381 00:19:19,840 --> 00:19:22,440 Speaker 1: get it. And it's sort of like thought to reinforce 382 00:19:22,480 --> 00:19:25,320 Speaker 1: that perseverance. Yeah, it kind of reminds me of that 383 00:19:25,359 --> 00:19:27,879 Speaker 1: famous Samuel Beckett quote. I think it was try again, 384 00:19:28,160 --> 00:19:32,200 Speaker 1: fail again, fail better. But a speaking of well known phrases, 385 00:19:32,400 --> 00:19:34,840 Speaker 1: you know the old cliche about how once you've learned 386 00:19:34,880 --> 00:19:38,040 Speaker 1: to ride a bike, you never forget right. Well, it 387 00:19:38,119 --> 00:19:40,480 Speaker 1: was always a strange saying to me because it seemed 388 00:19:40,480 --> 00:19:43,199 Speaker 1: to imply that riding a bike is super simple, like 389 00:19:43,280 --> 00:19:45,520 Speaker 1: you could pick it up any time in life and 390 00:19:45,560 --> 00:19:48,399 Speaker 1: just nail it without practice. But the truth is that 391 00:19:48,480 --> 00:19:52,040 Speaker 1: riding a bike is incredibly complex as a task. So 392 00:19:52,080 --> 00:19:56,080 Speaker 1: according to the author and world class endurance athlete Christopher Bergland, 393 00:19:56,560 --> 00:20:00,479 Speaker 1: riding a bike quote requires seamless coordination, dexter and an 394 00:20:00,520 --> 00:20:04,840 Speaker 1: intuitive ability to subconsciously calculate algorithms that take into the 395 00:20:04,840 --> 00:20:08,720 Speaker 1: account the forces of gravity, velocity, and momentum. Makes me 396 00:20:08,760 --> 00:20:10,720 Speaker 1: feel so smart that that it can ride a bike 397 00:20:10,800 --> 00:20:12,920 Speaker 1: no one that I'm doing all of this. Yeah, I mean, 398 00:20:13,240 --> 00:20:14,680 Speaker 1: as we talked about at the top, there's a lot 399 00:20:14,720 --> 00:20:16,560 Speaker 1: that goes into it that that we don't even think about. 400 00:20:16,640 --> 00:20:19,200 Speaker 1: So in that sense, it's not that riding a bike 401 00:20:19,280 --> 00:20:21,520 Speaker 1: is actually easy. It's it's more that our brains process 402 00:20:21,560 --> 00:20:24,560 Speaker 1: all this information so efficiently that riding a bike seems 403 00:20:24,600 --> 00:20:26,960 Speaker 1: easy to us. Yeah. Yeah, But here's the thing, like, 404 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:29,840 Speaker 1: despite all that hard work from our brains, it turns 405 00:20:29,880 --> 00:20:33,000 Speaker 1: out that we can absolutely still forget how to ride 406 00:20:33,040 --> 00:20:37,359 Speaker 1: a bicycle. So not only is it cliche, it's also inaccurate. 407 00:20:37,480 --> 00:20:39,960 Speaker 1: It is definitely inaccurate. And we know that partly because 408 00:20:39,960 --> 00:20:43,000 Speaker 1: of this oddball experiment that a guy named Destin Sandlin 409 00:20:43,040 --> 00:20:44,919 Speaker 1: did a few years back. We of course worked with 410 00:20:44,960 --> 00:20:46,840 Speaker 1: Destin some when we were at Mental Flaws, but he 411 00:20:46,840 --> 00:20:49,359 Speaker 1: has this this show called Smarter every Day. It's a 412 00:20:49,440 --> 00:20:52,480 Speaker 1: channel on YouTube, super popular channel, and if you haven't 413 00:20:52,480 --> 00:20:56,520 Speaker 1: seen the video, it's called Backwards Brain Bicycle. And the 414 00:20:56,560 --> 00:20:58,639 Speaker 1: gist of it is that Destin took a bicycle and 415 00:20:58,720 --> 00:21:02,719 Speaker 1: basically invert the steering direction of the handlebars, So if 416 00:21:02,720 --> 00:21:05,639 Speaker 1: you turn the handlebars right, the front wheel would go 417 00:21:05,800 --> 00:21:09,240 Speaker 1: left and vice versa. So in that scenario, all the 418 00:21:09,280 --> 00:21:12,320 Speaker 1: automatic motor skills that a person develops from years of 419 00:21:12,440 --> 00:21:15,720 Speaker 1: riding a regular bicycle, all of a sudden those are 420 00:21:15,840 --> 00:21:19,000 Speaker 1: just worthless. And the effect is that anyone who tries 421 00:21:19,080 --> 00:21:22,560 Speaker 1: to ride the backwards brain bike pretty much tips over 422 00:21:22,680 --> 00:21:25,800 Speaker 1: or falls off the bike before they've even gone two feet. 423 00:21:26,480 --> 00:21:30,119 Speaker 1: So Deston spent months riding only this backwards bike, and 424 00:21:30,200 --> 00:21:33,480 Speaker 1: little by little he slowly got used to the inverted 425 00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:35,320 Speaker 1: steering of it all. It's one of those things like 426 00:21:35,359 --> 00:21:37,719 Speaker 1: I actually saw a clip of someone riding in and 427 00:21:37,720 --> 00:21:40,200 Speaker 1: thinking like, oh yeah, I could like think around that challenge. 428 00:21:40,200 --> 00:21:42,320 Speaker 1: It doesn't seem that difficult, but but clearly it is. 429 00:21:42,480 --> 00:21:46,080 Speaker 1: So it is confusing though. It feels like this isn't 430 00:21:46,119 --> 00:21:48,240 Speaker 1: so much about forgetting how to ride a bike, it's 431 00:21:48,320 --> 00:21:51,160 Speaker 1: more kind of learning how to ride a different kind 432 00:21:51,200 --> 00:21:53,600 Speaker 1: of bike. Yeah that I mean that part is true. 433 00:21:53,680 --> 00:21:56,760 Speaker 1: But that's where this gets weird because when Destin tried 434 00:21:56,800 --> 00:22:00,520 Speaker 1: to switch back to riding a normal bicycle, he couldn't 435 00:22:00,520 --> 00:22:03,320 Speaker 1: do it. Like, he fell over again and again until 436 00:22:03,359 --> 00:22:06,399 Speaker 1: finally something clicked in his brain and he was able 437 00:22:06,440 --> 00:22:09,080 Speaker 1: to ride his bike again. So the takeaway is that 438 00:22:09,119 --> 00:22:12,320 Speaker 1: you can indeed forget how to ride a bicycle, but 439 00:22:12,400 --> 00:22:15,240 Speaker 1: the good news is that if you practice, you'll probably 440 00:22:15,280 --> 00:22:18,040 Speaker 1: be able to relearn the automatic motor skill pretty quickly 441 00:22:18,080 --> 00:22:20,280 Speaker 1: the next time around. All right, Well, since we're talking 442 00:22:20,280 --> 00:22:22,920 Speaker 1: about the logistics and science of bicycling, I think it's 443 00:22:22,960 --> 00:22:25,000 Speaker 1: only right that we spend a minute on what's probably 444 00:22:25,040 --> 00:22:27,679 Speaker 1: the biggest mystery in the whole field, and that is, 445 00:22:27,720 --> 00:22:30,240 Speaker 1: of course, how did they get Kermit to ride a 446 00:22:30,240 --> 00:22:32,399 Speaker 1: bike in the Muppet movie? Totally that that is the 447 00:22:32,400 --> 00:22:35,919 Speaker 1: biggest mystery for anyone listening. If you don't know if 448 00:22:35,920 --> 00:22:38,639 Speaker 1: we're seen I'm talking about pauses, go watch the Puppet Movie, 449 00:22:38,880 --> 00:22:41,160 Speaker 1: the entire Muppet movie, and then come back and watch 450 00:22:41,200 --> 00:22:45,080 Speaker 1: the whole thing. Will wait. In the beginning of the flick, 451 00:22:45,200 --> 00:22:47,720 Speaker 1: Kermit's riding his bike across town, and in the context 452 00:22:47,720 --> 00:22:50,520 Speaker 1: of the story, it's this incredibly simple moment, right, But 453 00:22:50,600 --> 00:22:53,400 Speaker 1: when you watch it, it's pretty mind blowing, partially because 454 00:22:53,440 --> 00:22:56,320 Speaker 1: they keep zooming in on his feet, like you know 455 00:22:56,359 --> 00:22:58,240 Speaker 1: on some level that Kermit is a puppet and that 456 00:22:58,280 --> 00:23:00,600 Speaker 1: he's being controlled by Jim Henson or what ever off 457 00:23:00,640 --> 00:23:03,560 Speaker 1: the screen, But you can see Kermit's whole body, and 458 00:23:03,600 --> 00:23:05,800 Speaker 1: you can see his feet actually turning the pedals, and 459 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:07,840 Speaker 1: this blue audience is away. When they first saw it 460 00:23:07,880 --> 00:23:10,919 Speaker 1: back in the seventies, the Muppets had actually never been 461 00:23:10,960 --> 00:23:13,119 Speaker 1: seen in the real world like this before. They had 462 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:15,919 Speaker 1: always been tethered to a stage or studio, but what's 463 00:23:15,960 --> 00:23:18,840 Speaker 1: interesting is the technology that made it happen was also 464 00:23:19,040 --> 00:23:23,800 Speaker 1: very simple. There's no audio, animatronics, there's no green screen, 465 00:23:23,880 --> 00:23:26,560 Speaker 1: none of that. Instead, the Kermit in the scene is 466 00:23:26,640 --> 00:23:30,720 Speaker 1: just a regular marionette with nearly invisible strings attached to 467 00:23:30,760 --> 00:23:32,600 Speaker 1: his body and limbs. The other ends of the strings 468 00:23:32,640 --> 00:23:35,320 Speaker 1: are connected to a camera crane that's suspended above him 469 00:23:35,359 --> 00:23:38,040 Speaker 1: out of shot, so as the bike moved forward, the 470 00:23:38,040 --> 00:23:40,359 Speaker 1: crane would move along with it, and Kermit and his 471 00:23:40,400 --> 00:23:43,399 Speaker 1: bike would stay upright and balanced, which is super simple. 472 00:23:43,440 --> 00:23:46,399 Speaker 1: But according to the puppeteer Dave Goals, it wasn't the 473 00:23:46,400 --> 00:23:49,080 Speaker 1: original approach. The crew had actually assembled what he said 474 00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:53,000 Speaker 1: quote was a very sophisticated bicycle rig that was made 475 00:23:53,040 --> 00:23:55,760 Speaker 1: from a little radio controlled car that was mounted in 476 00:23:55,800 --> 00:23:58,520 Speaker 1: the bike between the front and rear wheels, but it 477 00:23:58,600 --> 00:24:01,240 Speaker 1: actually broke before the shoe, so they ended up rejiggering 478 00:24:01,240 --> 00:24:03,800 Speaker 1: it with three strings from a camera crane. It is 479 00:24:03,920 --> 00:24:07,159 Speaker 1: also possibly Kermit's best line in the world, or at 480 00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:10,240 Speaker 1: least my favorite current line. And what's that He almost 481 00:24:10,280 --> 00:24:13,359 Speaker 1: gets his accident with his giant construction equipment and his 482 00:24:13,440 --> 00:24:16,160 Speaker 1: bike gets demolished, and you think he's toast, but then 483 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:18,960 Speaker 1: you realize he's jumped out of the way, and and 484 00:24:19,040 --> 00:24:21,520 Speaker 1: he says, uh, that's pretty dangerous building a road in 485 00:24:21,560 --> 00:24:24,520 Speaker 1: the middle of the street. If frogs couldn't hop I'd 486 00:24:24,520 --> 00:24:28,760 Speaker 1: be gone with a shwin. Terrible fun but also one 487 00:24:28,800 --> 00:24:31,240 Speaker 1: of my favorites. I could keep shaking my head for 488 00:24:31,280 --> 00:24:33,679 Speaker 1: the rest of the episode, but instead, why don't we 489 00:24:33,760 --> 00:24:45,479 Speaker 1: jump straight into the fact off? So here's a quick one. 490 00:24:45,520 --> 00:24:47,400 Speaker 1: I remember from an article we did in Mental plus 491 00:24:47,600 --> 00:24:50,560 Speaker 1: years ago, but apparently bikes had a huge effect on 492 00:24:50,720 --> 00:24:55,760 Speaker 1: romance and specifically long distance courtships. So, according to Julie 493 00:24:55,760 --> 00:24:59,040 Speaker 1: winter Bottom, when the prices on bikes dropped in the nineties, 494 00:24:59,200 --> 00:25:01,560 Speaker 1: suddenly it opened up this whole new world of dating, 495 00:25:01,640 --> 00:25:04,680 Speaker 1: like people could finally date outside their families, friend circles, 496 00:25:04,800 --> 00:25:07,399 Speaker 1: or their churches or parishes. And and it was the 497 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:09,760 Speaker 1: first time this has got to happen. And according to 498 00:25:09,880 --> 00:25:13,560 Speaker 1: British geneticist Steve Jones, this widening of the gene pool 499 00:25:13,640 --> 00:25:16,560 Speaker 1: had a huge impact on humanity. In fact, he calls 500 00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:21,000 Speaker 1: the bicycle quote the most important event in recent human evolution. Wow, 501 00:25:21,119 --> 00:25:23,720 Speaker 1: it's a big claim, all right. Well, I found this 502 00:25:23,800 --> 00:25:26,960 Speaker 1: amazing NPR interview with a guy named Daniel Kish who 503 00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:29,840 Speaker 1: is blind, but not only rides a bike, he rides 504 00:25:29,880 --> 00:25:34,800 Speaker 1: it through traffic. So basically he uses echolocation, which we've 505 00:25:34,800 --> 00:25:38,080 Speaker 1: talked about several times in previous episodes. So he clicks 506 00:25:38,119 --> 00:25:42,600 Speaker 1: his tongue and uses the reverberations to create spatial awareness 507 00:25:42,680 --> 00:25:46,280 Speaker 1: of buildings and vehicles and other things around him. I mean, 508 00:25:46,280 --> 00:25:49,400 Speaker 1: it's pretty remarkable, but he doesn't really see it that way, 509 00:25:49,400 --> 00:25:53,120 Speaker 1: as he told reporters. Quote, when a sided child gets hurt, 510 00:25:53,160 --> 00:25:56,280 Speaker 1: we consider it to be unfortunate. Kish says, when a 511 00:25:56,320 --> 00:25:59,160 Speaker 1: blind child gets hurt, we consider it to be tragic. 512 00:25:59,520 --> 00:26:02,879 Speaker 1: It's a dull will standard that disadvantages a blind child, 513 00:26:02,920 --> 00:26:04,840 Speaker 1: he says, which you know, I guess that makes sense. 514 00:26:04,920 --> 00:26:08,040 Speaker 1: So here's one about an Italian cyclist named Alfredo Binda. 515 00:26:08,320 --> 00:26:10,080 Speaker 1: Um have you ever heard of this guy? Have not? 516 00:26:10,160 --> 00:26:12,959 Speaker 1: So apparently he was just dominant in the sport and 517 00:26:13,040 --> 00:26:16,120 Speaker 1: at winning the Gero, which I guess is the Tour 518 00:26:16,200 --> 00:26:18,679 Speaker 1: of Italy that they have. He won it over and 519 00:26:18,760 --> 00:26:24,960 Speaker 1: over in nine and so this is like Italy's version 520 00:26:25,000 --> 00:26:27,679 Speaker 1: of the Tour de France, and it was good for 521 00:26:27,720 --> 00:26:31,200 Speaker 1: the newspaper business initially, right, Like he's this like underdog 522 00:26:31,560 --> 00:26:35,520 Speaker 1: his hero. Then he keeps winning and his winds become 523 00:26:35,560 --> 00:26:38,680 Speaker 1: bigger and bigger and so regular that the papers sales 524 00:26:38,720 --> 00:26:42,080 Speaker 1: start declining. So the organizers actually offered to pay him 525 00:26:42,080 --> 00:26:45,560 Speaker 1: the equivalent of the winning sum not to race. So 526 00:26:45,640 --> 00:26:48,359 Speaker 1: did he accept it? He did? I guess he quickly 527 00:26:48,400 --> 00:26:51,960 Speaker 1: calculated that he could buy two more houses with the winnings, 528 00:26:52,000 --> 00:26:54,000 Speaker 1: so he took the money and used it for this 529 00:26:54,040 --> 00:26:56,320 Speaker 1: great investment. But he did come back to win the 530 00:26:56,400 --> 00:26:59,320 Speaker 1: race again a few years later. That's pretty cool. You know. 531 00:26:59,359 --> 00:27:02,040 Speaker 1: It's funny that you brought up Italian cyclist because I've 532 00:27:02,080 --> 00:27:04,439 Speaker 1: got another Italian I wanted to talk about. This is 533 00:27:04,480 --> 00:27:07,520 Speaker 1: Gino Bartali, who won the Tour de France in nineteen 534 00:27:07,680 --> 00:27:10,520 Speaker 1: thirty eight. But then he made the surprising move of 535 00:27:10,640 --> 00:27:15,000 Speaker 1: not dedicating his win to Mussolini. Instead, he decided to 536 00:27:15,040 --> 00:27:18,080 Speaker 1: work for the resistance, so he helped Jews escape the 537 00:27:18,080 --> 00:27:22,239 Speaker 1: country by stuffing counterfeit identity papers into his handlebars and 538 00:27:22,280 --> 00:27:25,680 Speaker 1: his bike frame. Basically, he would fill up the insides 539 00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:28,320 Speaker 1: of his bike with papers and then go on these 540 00:27:28,359 --> 00:27:31,400 Speaker 1: long training runs in order to deliver them, and if 541 00:27:31,400 --> 00:27:33,399 Speaker 1: he was ever stopped for a police search, he was 542 00:27:33,440 --> 00:27:35,879 Speaker 1: famous enough that he'd asked the cops not to mess 543 00:27:35,880 --> 00:27:38,760 Speaker 1: with his perfectly calibrated bicycle. I mean, it was the 544 00:27:38,840 --> 00:27:41,840 Speaker 1: perfect cover. It's just brilliant. According to an article in 545 00:27:41,920 --> 00:27:45,199 Speaker 1: Mental Flaws, by the time he eventually went into hiding quote, 546 00:27:45,440 --> 00:27:48,679 Speaker 1: he had cycled thousands of miles to help hundreds escape. 547 00:27:49,080 --> 00:27:51,119 Speaker 1: That is a great story, and I think he just 548 00:27:51,200 --> 00:27:54,760 Speaker 1: earned yourself the trophy with that one. Although I might 549 00:27:54,840 --> 00:27:57,320 Speaker 1: pay you not to compete the next time I run. Well, 550 00:27:57,359 --> 00:27:59,199 Speaker 1: I'll consider it if I can buy a house. But 551 00:28:00,240 --> 00:28:02,240 Speaker 1: all right, well, thank you to the bicycle for givings 552 00:28:02,359 --> 00:28:05,720 Speaker 1: better dating options, freedom for women, and the greatest joke 553 00:28:05,800 --> 00:28:08,520 Speaker 1: the Muppets ever told. That's gonna do it for today's 554 00:28:08,520 --> 00:28:11,640 Speaker 1: Part Time Genius for myself, Mango, Gabe, and Lowell. Thanks 555 00:28:11,680 --> 00:28:20,440 Speaker 1: so much for listening. We'll be back soon with another episode. Kay. 556 00:28:28,600 --> 00:28:30,800 Speaker 1: Part Time Genius is a production of I Heart Radio. 557 00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:33,159 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the I 558 00:28:33,240 --> 00:28:35,920 Speaker 1: Heart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to 559 00:28:35,960 --> 00:28:36,680 Speaker 1: your favorite show.