I've always been fascinated by Helene Dutrieu ever since I saw a picture of her in Andrew Riitchie's amazing 1975 book KINGS OF THE ROAD, an illustrated history of cycling.
Apparently she held the woman's hour record in 1895 at the age of 18 sponsored by The Simpson Lever Chain Co. (remember the famous Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec poster "La Chaine Simpson"?).
I made these shirts for myself and if anyone else would like me to make them one they would be $20 each shipped to you ($23 each shipped world wide)
Here's a picture of the shirts:
http://www.velo-retro.com/
Chuck Schmidt South Pasadena, Southern California
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>From googling the net:
Hélène Dutrieu (1877-1961) "La flèche humaine" -- The humane arrow 1895 Le record de l'heure 1895 Le championnat du monde, catègorie dames 1897 Le championnat du monde de vitesse sur piste 1898 Grand Prix d'Europe 1898 Course de 12 jours, Londre
Hélène Dutrieu (July 10, 1877 - June 26, 1961), the Girl Hawk of Aviation, was an aviation pioneer and the fourth woman licensed to fly in Europe and the world (She was the first Belgian woman licensed as a pilot). Prior to being an aviator, she was an accomplished track bicycle racer, racing for the Simpson Lever Chain team. She was also an ambulance driver and directed a military hospital.
Accomplishments
1897 and 1898 - As a cyclist, wins World Championship Track Speed in Ostend. Nicknamed "La flèche humaine" or "the Human Arrow". 1908 hired by the Clément Bayard factory to be the first pilot of la Demoiselle - a new ultralight airplane. 1909 - First flew solo in France April 9, 1909 - Circled the Belfied tower at 400m on a 45km route to Bruges, Belgium. Caused a stir by flying with her corset. September 1910 - Flew non-stop from Ostend to Bruges, Belgium. 1911 - Traveled to the United States to compete for the Rodman-Wanamaker trophy at Nassau Boulevard Airfield in Garden City, New York. She may have been unable to participate due to mechanical difficulties with her Henry Farman biplane. 1911 Won the Coup du Roi (King's Cup) in Florence, Italy. December 31, 1911 - Won France's Coupe Femina for the women's world nonstop flight record (158 miles in 178 minutes). September 1912 - Ouchy-Lausanne, Switzerland, won the seaplane competition. 1913 - The French government awarded her the Legion of Honor 1914 - With the outbreak of World War I, most women pilots were grounded. Hélène volunteered to join France's Air Patrol and was reportedly accepted to fly reconnaissance missions over German troops from an airbase in Paris (though no documentation of this fact has ever been found). Général Février puts her in charge of the ambulances of lHopital Messimi. She goes on to become thedirector of lhopital de campagne à Val-de Grâce. 1922 Becomes a journalist and marries Pierre Mortier.
Simpson Chain
The Simpson Chain or Simpson Lever Chain was an English-made bicycle chain invented by William Spears Simpson in 1895. The design of this chain departed radically from the standard roller bicycle chain. The chain was composed of linked triangles forming two "levels". The inner level was driven by the chainring and the outer level drove the rear cog. Instead of teeth, the chainring and cog had grooves into which the rollers of the chain engaged.
Mr. Simpson made, widely discredited, claims that the levers of this chain provided a mechanical advantage that could amplify the energy produced by the cyclist. Racing teams were sponsored amid much fanfare as Mr. Simpson hired top cyclists (such as Constant Huret, who is depicted in Lautrec's famous advertisement, and Tom Linton of Paris-Bordeaux fame) and the Gladiator Pacing Team from France to race for high stakes in England for the Chain Matches. His teams were largely successful.
This invention would probably have been long forgotten except that:
The Simpson Chain is portrayed in a famous work of the French art nouveau artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec. The Simpson Lever Chain Racing Team employed the Belgian cyclist Helene Dutrieu, who later became the first woman licensed to fly an airplane in Europe. Mr. Simpson's promotions were so wide spread and effective that much of his promotional material is collected today. ========================================================================================
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