We used to have popular bikes called pushbikes before, although most people would wonder why they are called pushbikes. I guess the most logical reasoning would be the fact that these bikes had to be pushed uphill when you had to negotiate a hill before gears for bikes were introduced. We have mountain bikes today, and some of the best mountain bikes out there include Mongoose mountain bikes, which are probably among the most popular bikes out there today. Mongoose bikes are well known for being durable and effective and are therefore highly sought after in today’s world.
Before gears were introduced, the bikes were racing variants or the basic running bikes that were popular with the younger generation. Bicycles usually had straps on the pedals so you could keep your foot on the pedal when you were riding a bike. Some of them even had baskets installed on the front or back of the bikes that allowed you to carry essentials and go on picnics in the countryside. These bikes were called choppers and they were very popular when baskets were a part of the bike world.
But those were the days when cars were rare and bicycles were the most popular means of transportation, both for work and pleasure. There were plenty of bike trips back then, but today, suggest a bike trip to the countryside and you’ll get a response that says, why not drive instead? Such is the scenario now that driving has become the easiest mode of transportation today, and very few people still ride a bike, unless you live in the countryside.
I guess most of us remember how many times we crashed our bikes and had to take them to the bike shop to get them back in shape. The scenario then completely differs from the one we have today, when we take the mountain bikes to the workshop, where there is no longer any remodeling work, but a new part is placed in the defective area. Some of us back then had the skill and tools to remodel our bikes ourselves, something that would be extremely rare in today’s world.
Cycling was also the romantic way to travel together back then. Many couples used to explore the reserve’s countryside, lakes, and forests by bicycle, and many relationships were fostered through their time on the bicycle. Nowadays, people would probably laugh at you if you said you would ride your date on a bike! Times have changed a lot in the last 30 years, and while life seems so much more convenient today, we’re missing out on some of the best aspects of life that were available in the 1960s and 1970s.
Well, in 1974, Mongoose bikes were introduced, with 8 different types of bikes and over 40 different models being released to the population. And the world of cycling was immediately transformed, as push bikes began to lose their popularity to these new bikes that had gears. These modern bikes were capable of going up the hill just by shifting to a lower gear, and I guess that was the turning point when hand bikes were out of style. They existed for a few more years, but eventually everyone saw that mongoose bikes were much more practical, so you hardly see hand bikes on the road today.
