ABSTRACT
We have a wide range of braking systems available for bicycles, the very first bicycles did not have brakes. To stop a Draisienne, the riders dragged their feet on the floor; on a Penny-farthing, riders back pedalled, as you would do with a modern fixed gear bicycle. The Penny-farthing riders started to take their feet off the pedals to go faster downhill, unable to catch their feet back onto the pedals to slow down, a few crashes and then the spoon brake was introduced. This is literally a spoon-shaped piece of metal that presses against the tyre tread—remembering that tyres were solid.
