Ever heard of a penny farthing? Those are the bikes with the larger front wheel and the smaller rear wheel. They were popular a hundred years ago, and some change.

They also lack chain drives. The crank arms are connected directly to the hub axle. Lacking a chain drive, speed is determined primarily by the size of the wheel.

This is also influenced by the length of the crank arms, but ultimately, it’s wheel diameter that does it. That’s why their wheels are so huge.

And so, you need to sit pretty high off the ground to engage such a large wheel. This improves speed (“pennies,” as they are called, are deceptively fast) but it also comes with another less-positive consideration.

You sit higher off the ground so your center of gravity is higher. This makes it much harder to stop one of these odd bikes without flying off the front.

That being the case, here are some suggestions for how to effectively (and safely) slow one of these bikes down without “taking a header” as they say.

Coast It

Penny farthings do generally have brakes, but the truth is, if you can avoid using them, you should at all costs. They are ineffective and more prone to skidding the bike, and if you do succeed in abruptly stopping the thing, you’re likely to end up over the handlebars and on the ground.

So the trick here is not to brake at all, but to anticipate where you want the bike to stop, and then coast to that spot. It’s easier on you, easier on the bike, doesn’t require any use of the brakes, and a lot safer, too.

Plus, it’s not stressful, if you can pull it off.

Get Over the Rear Fork and Be Judicious

Now, these odd bikes have brakes for a reason, and if you do plan on using them, the best thing we can tell you is never to slam on the brakes, no matter what. That’s a recipe for disaster.

The first tip we have is to apply a little pressure through the brakes to slowly bring the bike to a stop. If you hit them too hard, even if you don’t fly over the front, probably what will happen is the rear tire will lock and skid.

That’s not good for obvious reasons. For one, you won’t slow down effectively (which is the goal of braking, isn’t it?), but for another, you’ll wear your rear tire unevenly, affecting performance in other ways.

So the trick here is this: get off the crank arms, out of the saddle, and step on the pegs over the rear fork. This will accomplish two things: it will lower your center of gravity (improving safety) and it will shift the center of gravity so that it is over the rear wheel, where the braking occurs, improving efficiency.

Still, all other notes apply. Don’t hit the brakes too hard. Do it steadily and in metered fashion, and if you feel the rear wheel lock and slide, let off the brakes a bit. That said, this is arguably the most effective method available for braking a penny farthing bike.

Where to Get One of These Odd Bikes

In the market for one of these odd bikes? You can explore a full collection of these and other unique and eclectic finds at Unicycle.com. Don’t let the name mislead you; though they are the leader in all things unicycling, they also carry a bunch of odd bikes, including numerous sizes of penny farthings. Visit their website or get in touch with them for more information.

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