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Cartes du Tour tells the story of the Tour de France through it route maps for every year from 1903's inaugural race through this years 2018 Tour. Through route maps for each year the author traces the history of the Tour from it's early years through the modern sports spectacle it has become.The commentary on each year is written in both English and French. The maps are both decorative and functional.  Many were designed with spaces for the owner to write in the stage and classificati …

Night biking is an adventure into darkness. There is an inherent danger to the world when night falls, even more so to a biker on busy streets or unlit roads. Wearing lights is not only a good idea for bikers, not having them is grounds for a ticket in some places. You want to be able to see and be seen. One old trick is to clip a red light to the back of your helmet, but that’s the definition of basic compared to the Lumos.Lumos is a bike helmet with all the lights you need built in. The campai …

Fun 1937 St. Raphael QuinQuina poster featuring their "waiters" in traditional Rouge and Blanc colors. This is an example of bicycles being used to advertise other products. Just added to our selection of fine art prints at St Raphael Tandem Bicycle Poster …

  In 1891, Pierre Giffard, the publisher of the French newspaper Le Petit Journal, sensed that something had to be done to boost the sagging French morale. Unlike some more conservative journalists of the day who thought the bicycle was an oddity quickly to be disposed of, Giffard was a dyed-in-the-wool cyclist. This was easy in Giffard’s day since Lycra hadn’t been invented yet. What had been invented in 1885 was the “safety bicycle,” the basic form of the bicycle we know today.Althou …

Stone Lithography was invented in 1798 by Aloys Senefelder. The printing process is based on the principle that oil and water do not mix. The artist begins with a smooth block of limestone ("lithos" is Greek for stone). Stone from the Bavarian quarries where Senefelder developed the process is preferred because of it’s qualities. The artist begins by drawing an image on the stone with a greasy crayon, or with a strong liquid called "tusche". Tusche can be brushed on like ink or applied with a pe …