Soul Riders

[mike j]

Think you wore out another set on this one. Great post, very informative. You certainly had my interest.

 

[MrColumbia]

Great post fordsnake. I always thought it curious why there were so few black people in the vintage bicycle collecting hobby. It's not like the hobby now is a strictly "white mans" sport as a very large percentage of it is made up of Hispanics.

Thanks for the history and pictures. I have been hoping for a Major Taylor movie or at the very least documentary for years myself. You hear about Jackie Robinson and other black pioneers but never about Major. He was the biggest pro athlete of his day.

 

[hoofhearted]

FORDSNAKE ... Awesome information on this thread you initiated ... both literary and pictoral.

I like your idea about CABErs posting more of the same. Some good stuff appears on youtube
about Marshall "Major" Taylor ......

The very first pic on this entry is the largest I could find from google images. Although I knew of
Major Taylor since the early 90's .. I had never seen a foto of him. Using Paint.Net about a year
and a half ago .. I gave more frontal, floor space to this pic .. enlarged it .. giving it high-horsepower
if reproduced as an actual foto .. AND was very successful in removing the scratch in the pic over
Major Taylor's hair. Months later I grabbed a great pic of a Major Taylor Pinback .. from an e-b auction ...
enlarged it .. dialed in the faded colors to be seen as it now appears .. and realized what I thought was
a scratch (in that studio foto) .. was actually a parting in his hair. Tried to put his part back ... always
comes out lookin' like a scratch.

The bronze sculpture .. a very-unusual blend of Low-Relief -- High Relief -- and In The Round ... shows
Major Taylor in his element .. the Bicycle Racing Track. This sculpture appears on the grounds of the
Worcester Public Library in Worcester,MA.

........... patric cafaro

 

[dfa242]

I believe this book has been mentioned before on the CABE but it bears repeating - heck of an interesting read.

 

[GiovanniLiCalsi]

http://youtu.be/WFNpBdIpj9Y

http://youtu.be/8rRzM3ufVWY

Great stories!

 

[Larmo63]

The Major Taylor book is a wonderful read. Not only is it about a fascinating man, it is

about the importance of bicycles in the times he lived. It has a sad ending, as do most

stories of famous athletes, both black and white. Far too many end on a sour note.

 

[37fleetwood]

The Major Taylor book is a wonderful read. Not only is it about a fascinating man, it is

about the importance of bicycles in the times he lived. It has a sad ending, as do most

stories of famous athletes, both black and white. Far too many end on a sour note.

another minority athlete comes to mind, Jim Thorpe.

 

[OldRider]

Lets not forget Josh Gibson either, the black Babe Ruth. Sadly he died young at age 35 only months before Robinson broke the color barrier.

 

[island schwinn]

A most excellent topic and thread. thanks for the info and lesson.

 

[fordsnake]

Several months ago when doing my research on the Hendee Indians, I stumbled across an article about early Black motorcycle riders.
It’s an interesting post…check it out http://thevintagent.blogspot.com/2012/06/atlantas-black-streaks.html

These two photos were the impetus for my searching for more blacks and bikes.