I'm convinced that if Bobby Walthour had ridden in the Tour de France, his name would be as well known today as Thomas Stevens, Major Taylor, or Mile-a-Minute Murphy. But in Walthour's day, the big money was in motor-pacing, an extremely dangerous way to ride a bicycle. By 1901, Walthour had given up sprint riding and had turned exclusively to motor-pacing. The lure of young athletes risking death drew hundreds of spectators. Cyclists followed closely to motorcycle "pacers," at speeds up to forty and fifty miles per hour, drafting in the slipstream. The roar of the early motorcycles was as exciting to the cheering crowd as the race itself. Should a motorcycle malfunction or blow a tire, or swerve suddenly to avoid a fallen cyclist, a potentially lethal accident was inevitable. Newspapers of the day regularly featured photos and obituaries of cyclists killed in high-speed crashes. For years, Walthour miraculously avoided serious injury on the banked wood and cement tracks that dotted America until fate caught up with him in 1907, and he narrowly escaped death twice. Although he continued to race for a few more seasons, the trauma of 1907 had taken its toll, and he never again achieved champion status.
Bobby Walthour also raced in Europe, winning 11 of 12 races in Paris in 1904. By this time he was almost universally regarded as the best of all racers following pacing machines. He lived to age 71, nursing, no doubt, a legacy of broken ribs and collarbones and dozens of concussions, while watching his estranged son, Jimmy Walthour Jr., become a champion cyclist in his own right.
Like many famous cyclists past and present, Bobby Walthour signed a contract early in his racing career to ride a Chicago-built Sterling bicycle, whose motto was "Built like a watch." My circa 1895 Sterling, pictured below, is very similar to the bike ridden by "The Unbeatable Walthour" in his prime.
Bobby Walthour also raced in Europe, winning 11 of 12 races in Paris in 1904. By this time he was almost universally regarded as the best of all racers following pacing machines. He lived to age 71, nursing, no doubt, a legacy of broken ribs and collarbones and dozens of concussions, while watching his estranged son, Jimmy Walthour Jr., become a champion cyclist in his own right.
Like many famous cyclists past and present, Bobby Walthour signed a contract early in his racing career to ride a Chicago-built Sterling bicycle, whose motto was "Built like a watch." My circa 1895 Sterling, pictured below, is very similar to the bike ridden by "The Unbeatable Walthour" in his prime.
1895 Sterling (As Ridden by Bobby Walthour) ©Daniel Dahlquist