Manchester Wheelers' Annual Race Meet (1901)

This film is part of the Mitchell and Kenyon collection - an amazing visual record of everyday life in Britain at the beginning of the twentieth century. For more information about the films of Mitchell and Kenyon see http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/mk/

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Category:

Sports

Tags:

• BFI
• Victorian
• Edwardian
• lifestyle
• Manchester
• Lancashire
• cycling
• bicycles

[EagleOfToledo]

@sewitt60

It was all at Fallowfield Stadium which was a multi-purpose sports arena. The land was sold off to the University of Manchester in the 1970s soon after cycle racing stopped there, and now student accomodation has been built on top. There's not even a memorial or sign to show this, so most people living on that land probably don't realise it was almost the Wembley Stadium of the north.

[EagleOfToledo]

@lvdovicvs

There was actually more to do than nowadays. You had freely accessible sporting arenas, botanical gardens, a zoo etc...

This event was actually very popular, even more so than the FA Cup and Test Cricket which were held on the same grounds in Fallowfield.

[EagleOfToledo]

What's amazing is that the 'motorised bike' event was just a novelty idea to amuse the crowd. They could only do about 5 mph. The cyclists could average more than 4 times that speed ! What a shame the Fallowfield Stadium has all disappeared now.

[openfold]

It's not just the fact he's smoking, but that he's perched on top of a tank of Motor Spirit - not petrol or gasoline - but something more like lighter fluid!!!

[rgwholt]

just love the fact that the first guy has a cigarette on the go......

[GarraiEoin]

They were saving film. Freeze frame, shows the same cyclist in each of the sequences, and the camera was turned off for a little more than 3/4s of the lap. Notice the very tall cyclist,,,,almost always drafting at the back. And the different stripedy jerseys on 2 of the cyclist,,,,,, Cheers from the frontier(chicago)

[lvdovicvs]

"The size of the crowd shows" that there wasn't a lot to do in Manchester in 1901.

[sewitt60]

Where in Manchester was this? It's unbelieveable that film from cycling in Manchester in 1901, coincides with the Olympic winning cycling team..trained in Manchester.

[fakhariqbal1954]

clip is just like a time tunel,taking me back in past,apriciate the person who uploaded this clip.