T He L osT H isTory
major taylor: the Fastest Biker in the world
Despite racism, hostility, champion racer rose to prominence in 1890s
By Brian stimson
Of The Skanner News
Y
PHOTO COuRTesy MajOR TayLOR assOCIaTIOn
ou might not know it, but
at the turn of the 20th
Century, bicycle races
were bigger than baseball.
And much like today, the racers
were largely White, affluent
males. But in 1896, Marshall
“Major” Taylor emerged on the
track-racing circuit. He would
become one of his era’s biggest
stars, breaking more than 8 world
track records and pushing against
the era’s violent and repressive
Jim Crow laws 20 years before
Jackie Robinson was even con-
ceived.
Born in 1878, Major Taylor
spent much of his
adolescence living
with a wealthy,
White family in
Indianapolis. After
receiving a bike
from his adopted
family,
the
Southards, at the
age of 12, Major
Taylor soon earned
a living performing stunts outside
a bike shop, and quickly moving
onto competition racing as a
young teen.
When “The Colored Cyclone”
first hit the track in Indianapolis at
age 15, he got himself banned. Not
because of bad behavior – Taylor
was well-known for his ethics and
easy-going demeanor – but
because he had the audacity to
actually win. He had broken the 1
mile amateur track record.
The persistent racism led Taylor
to move to Worcester, Mass.,
where he enjoys fame and compe-
titions in his name to this day.
Lynne Tolman, a Major Taylor
expert and spokesperson for the
Major Taylor Association told The
Skanner News that she and others
are working hard to educate peo-
ple about Taylor’s accomplish-
ments. The association has erected
Page 4 The Portland Skanner Black History edition February 23, 2011
When ‘The Colored
Cyclone’ first hit the
track in Indianapolis
at age 15, he got
himself banned
a full-size bronze statue
in his honor, holds annu-
al cycling events in his
name and also provides
teachers a Major Taylor
curriculum for use in the
classrooms.
Despite overcoming
rampant racism in com-
petition – which ranged
from threats of violence
to being turned away
from
competitions
because of his skin color
– and holding multiple
world bicycle speed
records during his life,
Major Taylor’s legacy
has largely been forgot-
ten.
Tolman thinks it has less to do
with the man than the sport.
“Cycling turned into a fringe
sport,” she says. “It was huge in
his day. That changed with the
advent of the automobile… and
World War I took out a whole gen-
eration of young men. It never
see RaCeR on page 5