draisienne

The draisienne, also known as a hobby-horse or dandy horse, was the first two-wheeled, rider-propelled machine for which there is clear evidence. Invented by Baron Karl von Drais of Germany in 1817, it was made of wood, and riders propelled themselves by pushing their feet against the ground. While von Drais called it a Laufmaschine (running machine), draisienne and velocipede became more common names. Though patented, copies were soon produced in other countries. An improved model, the \"pedestrian curricle,\" was patented in London in 1818 and became known as the hobby-horse. This brief fad did not immediately lead to sustained development of two-wheeled vehicles, with most experimenters focusing on three- and four-wheeled velocipedes for the next 40 years.12