Forum Wereldfietser

A rider in the 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps circa 1897. That year, 20 black soldiers rode 1,900 miles of trail from Missoula, Montana to St. Louis, Missouri in 40 days, along with a white officer, surgeon, and journalist.
Their grueling trek was completed in harsh conditions and with meager rations: two meals or less per day. They rode standard bikes of the era: specifically, singlespeed Spalding bikes with approx. 1.5x28" tires. They each hauled close to 100lbs of gear: tents, bedding, rations, and tools.

Setting out to prove the bicycle's usefulness to the military, the soldiers crossed the Rocky Mountains, Nebraska's sand hills, and more terrain that is difficult even on modern mountain bikes. Their arrival in St. Louis was celebrated by the city's prominent white bicycle clubs before the soldiers returned to Missoula by train and faded into obscurity. The U.S. Military passed on the idea of a Bicycle Corps.