1817: Baron von Drais from Germany invents the Draisienne, the progenitor of the bicycle. The Draisienne was made of wood with seat and handle bars, but no pedals. By paddling your feet, you could move forward.

1839: Kirkpatrick Macmillan, a Scottish blacksmith, creates the first self-propelled bike. Macmillan's bike used swinging cranks on the front wheel to power a pair of rods that were linked to levers on the back wheel.

1863: Pierre Michaux of Paris develops the Michaux Velocipede, which features pedals and cranks on the front wheel. The Velocipede becomes the world's first mass-produced riding machine.

1870: Englishman James Starley creates the Ordinary bicycle, which has a dramatically large front wheel and a small rear wheel. This allows riders to go farther with each revolution of the pedals.

1884: Englishman H.J. Larson designs the first chain-driven bike, which he named the Safety. His bike had medium-sized wheels of equal diameter. It was also more stable and easier to stop than the Ordinary.

1885-1900: John Kemp Starley, James Starley's nephew, creates the Rover Safety, the prototype of the modern-day bike. Starley's bicycle had a saddle, handlebar grips, and rear placement of the crank axle, making the bike both easier and safer to ride.

1888: John Boyd Dunlop, a veterinarian in Belfast, Ireland, develops the pneumatic (air-filled) tire, which provides a smoother ride. Prior to this, solid rubber tires were used.

1890s: Mass production of reasonably priced bicycles allowed working men to use them for transportation and leisure.

1900: An English manufacturer develops a three-speed wheel hub for bikes, allowing riders to cover hilly terrain with less effort.

1910: Smaller bikes designed for children are introduced, but the market for kids' bicycles doesn't really take off until the post-World War II 'baby boom' begins.

1940s: Built-in kickstands are developed. They appear on postwar bikes. European bike racers begin using derailleur's that gave them five speeds, and later 10, for climbing mountains.

1963: Schwinn introduces the Sting-Ray, the first bike with a 'banana' seat and high-rise handlebars. The Sting-Ray is the precursor to BMX bikes that will become popular in the 1970s.

1960s: The 10-speed gear shift becomes common, though lots of bikes still have only one or three speeds.

1970s: Bicycling becomes more popular because of environmental awareness (the first Earth Day was in 1970), the oil embargo, and resulting fuel shortages. In 1978, more bikes than cars are sold in the US.

1980s: California cyclists begin to modify 'klunkers' for off-road use. The first mountain bikes are mass-produced in the early 1980s.

1984: Cogs added to the rear gear cluster on some bikes allow the number of speeds to increase from 15 to 18, 21, and 24.

1986: The International Bicycle Fund cites a survey from the Department of the Interior and Nielson that shows bicycling is the third-most-popular participatory sport after swimming and general exercise.

1996: Mountain bikes first compete at the Olympic Games.