BSA Paratrooper Bicycle: Wheels For the Red Devils
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The BSA Paratrooper Bicycle was developed by the Birgmingham Small Arms Factory early in the Second World War to give British airborne troops greater mobility in combat. Hinged in the middle, it folded up compactly enough to be carried in an assault glider, dropped on its own parachute, or carried by a parachutist during a jump. More than 60,000 were produced, but due to the availability of better vehicles such as jeeps few were used in their intended role. They did, however, see extensive use in utility roles and in civilian hands after the war.
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I rode a bike around Miami after a hurricane-much more practical than driving with trees down across the roads
It’s criminal that these videos don’t have at least 10x the views and likes as the numbers that are attributable to this video.
A video of one of these with a Cyclemaster motor wheel added to it popped up in my recommended section. I wondered why the frame was shaped that way and you answered this question in this video. The shape reminds me a lot of certain American cruiser bicycles. I'm not sure if that was intentional or if the resemblance is purely coincidental. Also must have been quite an uncomfortable ride without a sprung saddle. I'm guessing they went with an unsprung one to keep weight down and perhaps to keep cost down too. Those "pedals" must have made riding one with wet shoes an unpleasant experience too. I'd imagine the rider's feet must've constantly slipped off of them, resulting in a lot of "shinners" as we call them here in the UK. Probably even happened with dry soles.
J`aime beaucoup vos chroniques, merci de partager.
I think it must be the absence of cool factor that kept bicycles from common use by airborne troops. With a bicycle, I can carry three times the weight, three times the distance in one-third the time I could walking; silently and without need of fuel. BTW, there is another military use of bicycles you did not mention, the Ho Chi Minh trail.
@MajimaEnterprises
6 ай бұрын
Perhaps. Could have also been because they were scared of these snapping in half while they rode them (folding bikes weren't common at all back then. Most of the soldiers had probably never even heard of such a thing). Also, from the pictures, it looks like the length of the frame made them quite cramped to ride, so that could have been another reason along with the fact they didn't have a sprung saddle, so they were probably uncomfortable over bumps and the design of those "pedals" probably meant your feet constantly slipped off of them.
@nonyadamnbusiness9887
6 ай бұрын
@@MajimaEnterprises My comment is not confined to this particular model of bicycle.
@Skorpychan
4 ай бұрын
The Ho Chi Minh trail wasn't a military use, though. It was civilians doing the moving of goods, to support the military.
illegal to use for civilian service ? I wonder if the Bobbies really did harass people with them...
One might think they would be useful for dropping operatives into foreign countries who needed to be more mobile...assuming they could be built to look like a 10 year old bike from the target country.
@Skorpychan
4 ай бұрын
That would generally be accomplished through the local resistance, though. They'd bring along suitable local transport for the meeting.