Who invented kick scooters

The wooden kick scooter with skate wheels, crude but very effective, dates back to sometime in the late 19th century, when motorized bikes were also developed. The first motorized scooter for adults, the Autoped , was developed in and patented in by inventor Arthur Hugo Cecil Gibson seen in cover photo. A hundred dollars went quite a lot farther in the s and 20s than it does today. But the Autoped was well designed. It featured inch tires and an air-cooled, 4-stroke, cc engine on its front wheel which could reportedly generate speeds up to 35mph.

The rider pushed the steering mechanism forward to engage the clutch and apply force to a handlebar-lever to control speed. At over pounds, however, the scooter was hardly portable, just as it was not particularly affordable.

But like the electric scooter, it surpassed initial expectations, and it did appeal to a wide range of users. Despite its characterization as a toy for the rich, the Autoped was ridden by delivery men, postal workers, and New York City traffic cops and captured in several photographs of the period. The Autoped also arrived at a time of significant political reform and increasing mobility, literally and figuratively, for women. British humor magazine Puck ran an advertisement with a speeding flapper on an Autoped.

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Bookmark the permalink. May 5, at am. June says:. December 31, at pm. Scooter says:. February 22, at pm. The Kickscooter. Walter says:. April 4, at am. The photo of the Razor scooter under the header is so nostalgic.

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The Sports Archives. The Sports Blogs. Create a free website or blog at WordPress. Follow Following. The Sports Archives Blog Join 1, other followers. Sign me up. Already have a WordPress. Log in now. Loading Comments The aluminum scooters of today are virtually quiet.

They have polyurethane wheels and the only sound you might hear are the screams of fun or wind resistance from your clothing unlike the metal wheels of yesteryear. They have a hollow tube for the steering shaft and soft handle grips to keep the riders hands from slipping off.

Many of them fold up and can be placed in a backpack for safe keeping. They don't take up as much space as a bicycle and if you have to take yours with you it doesn't invade anybody else's space either. You might still see a big wheel for sale at a mass retailer, they are still around and letting kids grow into new ways of transporting themselves is always fun.

I remember riding my big wheel down the middle of the street. My plastic wheels made so much noise I never heard a car behind me, every now and then somebody would honk and that was a great indication to move aside, they did have a bigger bumper than I did. Toys like that were fun to have and distant memories are all we have since you don't see commercials for big wheels much any more, safety is key for parents. That's why push scooters are becoming more popular, the child is upright, they are controlling the steering and the toy is very quiet.

You still need to be cautious because we live in a society where people are always rushing around and personal safety needs to be exercised. A kick scooter can also be ridden in the house, unlike a bicycle. When it gets cold and the kids get stir crazy you can pull the car out of the garage and give them a little more room to scoot around.

Razor has recognized the market for kick scooters and is making them available to those who want to do tricks on them. You can do the same amount of tricks on a Razor scooter that you can on a skateboard.

I don't know if kick scooters will make an appearance at the X Games anytime soon but they are fast becoming a new tool for professional skaters.