Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-08-07
TO SAIL ON A BICYCLE
Possible TO Equip the Wheel
Like a Ship.
WINGS OF WHITE SILK
-
Fastened to Bamboo Poles, the Sails Are Run
Up and Down as the Wind
May Turn

should be finished and floating the blue
horizon, says the Washington Times.
This unwonted activity is caused by
the sudden appearance of the bicycle sail,
out of which has sprung demand for
sails unprecedented even in cup years
The bicycle sail is a little affair. 1t is
made of duck or sail cloth. and its di-
mansions are little more than a yard
square. But its making takes many peo-
pie, for each bicycle that is turned out
must have a sail prepared for it, and the
getting ready of thousands of little ones
takes more time than the preparation OF
few large ones.
The bicycle sail is preferably of duck.
There is a fine quality of this material
that is light and much favored for sails
Sail cloth is considered too coarse for
most sports people, except few that are
going to use their sails for desperately
hard work.
Whittier Than Snow.
The best material is what is known as
silk duck" 1t is white duck, with a
fine silk finish. 1t Is very glossy and
spotless white. The peculiar exquisite
whiteness given to expensive sails can be
impaired to this white silk duck, until 1t
is a snowy beauty.
In getting up the bicycle sails the
makers thereof have the same difficulty
sails. The demand is all for
the exquisitely white sails, yet
the process of making them
thus is so expensive that few want to
pay the cost. To get that dazzling white
there must be the utmost care not to in
lure the goods. This makes the sail cloth
expensive.
The cost of white sails for a bicycle
comes to something like SIS, If you are
contented with a good quality and a fair
ly white sail. If you want the silk finish
and the dazzling white you must pay for
it fully twice as much.
The manner of rigging these sails to
bicycle may be accomplished in one or
two ways. The sail can be raised from
the back of the machine and allowed to
blow front, or it can be raised in front
of the riders by coming up from the
handle bars and being supported on tall
spars
Many riders like better the sail that
rises from behind. Though not so pretty,
because 1t cannot be seen from the front
it is easier to manage. The high front
sail throws the center of gravity a little
out making 1t hard for any but expert
riders to, manage it. But with the sail
in the rear the sail itself is flung to the
breezeS lower and does not as greatly
increase the difficulty of riding.
For the park and boulevard roadster
the sail of duck is raised upon light
spar Bamboo is the usual material.
This is very light, yet tough enough to
fulfill it's mission of supporting the
weight of the sail. Upon a sail of, say a
yard square, there is not great deal of
pull and the bamboo easily supports it.
The spars themselves are very orna-
mental. All things about bicycle are
purposely made to please the eye and the
bamboo sticks are shaded stripes and
white to meet all tastes.
Hard to Manage.
Tr ~
a great deal Of care necessary. A person
not an expert, starting off swiftly upon
a wheel rugged with sails of his own maxi
ing, would undoubtedly get a fall of the
most sensational description. His sails
being raised too high would carry him
along at a top-heavy pace and he would
be unable to keep back his machine by
back peddling, or any of the arts known
to the wheelmen. More than that, it
would throw him forward upon his
wrists in a frantic effort to keep his
seat. And the result would be awkward,
even IL he escaped calamity.
A sail expert raises the sails to CORE
spond with the rider. A stout person
can have the sails high without fear of
being top heavy. A lighter one must
lower them. Upon tandem they can
be placed as you please, as the tandem
is heavy enough to hold it's balance and
the sails can be set in the pretty fashion
suggested by many sailmakers, of one
a little lower than the other. This pre-
sents a fine appearance as the machine
approaches at full pace with the riders
gently moving their feet and keeping
the balance.
Sails for bicycle are very nice things
indeed, and seem particularly adapted
to 1t. For example, on a hot day, when
1t Is an exertfon to work the pedals, the
sails will carry the machine along well.
They can be adjusted in such way that
they will catch the breeze, and unless 1t
happens to be very contrary minded the
rider can be helped by 1t.
On the other hand, bicycle cannot be
run with sails in cold and windy wealth
time that the cyclist is willing to propel
the machine himself. In such weather,
when north wind catches every available
point offered 1t, there would be great
trouble managing the wheel. The sud
den gusts of wind would carry 1t along
too fast A rider could not calculate
upon obstacles before him and his time
in reaching them. His whole attention
would be devoted, like beginners, to
keeping the balance. He could do moth
ing but steady himself. The sails would
be torn off and discarded by him after
one short trial.
Friahtens Horses.
In city, too, the bicycle sails are out
of the question. And this Is from their
whiteness as well as their size. That Pc
culiar dizzy white Is very trying to the
eyes of horse. 1t is painful to the eyes
of a man; and to horse 1t is absolutely
terrifying. Experiments have been
made with sail cloth, when full furled
sails have had TO be transported upon a
little craft from one point to another; and
the only way to get the horses to draw
their white. Tapping burdens was to
blindfold them until harnessed, then
start them off at pace with their regu-
lar CYLINDERS" in place. In q city's
streets the sails would work wreck and
ruin everywhere; and this is one obstacle
to their use.
Makers of sporting goods say there are
lot of bicyclists who are ready and
waiting to take UP every new thing and
invent new ideas OF their own. They are
the ones who want the sails, and GER
tain very enterprising renter of wheels
in one of the suburbs Of Boston has laid
in large stock OF these sails. so you can
stop and get one fitted to your wheel be-
fore starting out along the suburban
roads.
Sails like this cannot be hard to make
at home. A square yard Of the best
white material you can find-the cost
Hest strongest and whitest is what you