In 1920's and 30's America, six-day bicycle racing was a more popular spectator sport than baseball. Imagine this: A top bicycle rider like Alfred Goullet and Bobby Walthour could earn from five hundred to a thousand dollars a day, outshining the likes of Babe Ruth! It is no wonder, then, that boys and young men across the country fantasized about joining the two-man racing teams in Madison Square Garden, where they might be cheered on by movie stars like Bing Crosby and Barbara Stanwyck, and sports celebrities like Knute Rockne.
But American boys in the 1920's and 30's could scarcely afford a single workday bicycle, let alone a second lightweight thoroughbred racing machine.The solution was to make the bicycle one rode to work Monday through Friday serve double-duty as a racer on weekends. The bicycle featured here is a 1920's/30's Greyhound, made by Emblem Manufacturing Co., Angola, N.Y. The camelback design, made for the smaller rider, originally came with 28 inch by 1 and 1/2 inch single tube tires mounted on wood rims (sometimes metal clad). The original owner of this Greyhound has removed the full-cover mudguards, substituting shortened racing guards, and he has exchanged the heavy roadster wheels for lighter weight racing rims with 1 and 1/8 inch tires. He's added drop handlebars, rat trap pedals, and toe clips. One day he will add an adjustable "Major Taylor" racing stem for his appearance at the Garden. For now he races his Greyhound on Saturdays and Sundays; on Monday morning he must come back to earth. The racing bars will be turned upright for his daily commute to school, work, and the trip to the grocery. "Don't forget the milk!" cries mother.
But American boys in the 1920's and 30's could scarcely afford a single workday bicycle, let alone a second lightweight thoroughbred racing machine.The solution was to make the bicycle one rode to work Monday through Friday serve double-duty as a racer on weekends. The bicycle featured here is a 1920's/30's Greyhound, made by Emblem Manufacturing Co., Angola, N.Y. The camelback design, made for the smaller rider, originally came with 28 inch by 1 and 1/2 inch single tube tires mounted on wood rims (sometimes metal clad). The original owner of this Greyhound has removed the full-cover mudguards, substituting shortened racing guards, and he has exchanged the heavy roadster wheels for lighter weight racing rims with 1 and 1/8 inch tires. He's added drop handlebars, rat trap pedals, and toe clips. One day he will add an adjustable "Major Taylor" racing stem for his appearance at the Garden. For now he races his Greyhound on Saturdays and Sundays; on Monday morning he must come back to earth. The racing bars will be turned upright for his daily commute to school, work, and the trip to the grocery. "Don't forget the milk!" cries mother.
1920's/30's Greyhound Semi-Racer ©Daniel Dahlquist
Catalog Pages from W. G. Schack: https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/emblem-manufacturing-info.125531/
Emblem Manufacturing and other historical images: https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/emblem-manufacturing-info.125531/
Catalog Pages from W. G. Schack: https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/emblem-manufacturing-info.125531/
Emblem Manufacturing and other historical images: https://thecabe.com/forum/threads/emblem-manufacturing-info.125531/