Henley To Paris by Penny Farthing

The world's first organised bicycle race was won by an Englishman on 31 May 1868 in Paris. It was part of an event held at Parc de Saint Cloud sponsored by cycle manufacturer Michaux et Compagnie. Public interest in the new "velocipede" was riding high and eager spectators were treated to races for those using machines with wheels of less than a metre, another for those with larger wheels and even a comical "slow" race, the winner of which was the last to cross the line while remaining upright.  There is dispute among historians about the opening statement above but most accounts name a 19 year-old Englishman, James Moore, as the winner of the race for those with larger wheels. In any event, there is no doubt that Moore was the world's first cycling star. A year later he won the first road race: from Paris to Rouen, beating over three hundred competitors and finishing the eighty mile course in ten hours and twenty five minutes. Moore rode a velocipede or ...