The Penny-Farthing Bicycle… did women dare to this ride this bike in the late 1800's!

 Long before women were welcomed into organized sports, two fearless cyclists—Louise Armaindo and Tillie Anderson—were quietly changing history on two wheels. In the late 1800s, their talent, courage, and determination helped turn bicycling into a powerful symbol of freedom for women.

Louise Armaindo: 

Riding Where Women Weren’t Supposed To

Louise Armaindo was one of the earliest professional female cyclists in the United States during the 1890s. She is believed to be among the first women to publicly ride and race a penny-farthing (high-wheel bicycle)—a daring feat at a time when the towering design was considered dangerous even for men, and completely inappropriate for women.

Armaindo competed in grueling endurance races, sometimes riding for hours or days, directly challenging the widespread belief that women were too delicate for athletic competition. Her true gift to women’s bicycling wasn’t just her stamina—it was her visibility. By riding boldly in public, Armaindo helped dismantle medical myths and social fears surrounding women on bicycles.

Tillie Anderson:

Speed, Fame, and Financial Independence

While Armaindo challenged endurance limits, Tillie Anderson shattered speed records. Often called the fastest woman cyclist in the world, Anderson dominated track racing in the 1890s and became one of the highest-paid female athletes of her era.

Her success proved that women could not only compete at elite levels but also earn a living through sport. Anderson’s popularity helped legitimize women’s bicycle racing and forced promoters, fans, and the press to take female athletes seriously.

The Bicycle as a Tool of Liberation

Together, Armaindo and Anderson helped transform the bicycle into more than transportation—it became a vehicle for independence. Their rise coincided with the women’s suffrage movement, and bicycles gave women mobility, freedom of movement, and even influence over fashion, encouraging more practical clothing.

Susan B. Anthony famously said bicycling had “done more to emancipate women than anything else,” and riders like Armaindo and Anderson were living proof of that statement.

Their Lasting Gift to Women

The greatest gift Louise Armaindo and Tillie Anderson gave women was permission—permission to be strong, competitive, visible, and financially independent. Every woman who rides a bicycle today does so on a path they helped carve, one bold ride at a time.

BJ  🚴