Speaking of Those Infernal Machines

Pictured here is an illustration, from the Salt Lake Herald (20 June 1899), of John "Terrible Swede" Lawson's electric tandem. Lawson was busy racing in the city during the summer of 1899, after having competed, with brother Iver, in California earlier in the year. While at Salt Lake he telegraphed third brother, Gustav who was racing in New York, that he should go immediately to Chicago (where the family lived), pack up the tandem and bring it to Salt Lake City. Iver, who was racing at the opening of a new velodrome in Kansas City, and Chicago, was also planning to join the sibling reunion at Salt Lake, saying the prizes in the Windy City were small.

Lawson planned to put the electric tandem to use, pacing riders during a 24-hour race on 12-13 July (while races did take place that weekend, there is no mention of a 24-hour race). Replying to the original telegram, Gustave (Gus) said that the bike had been fitted with new batteries and equipment, which would give it a "speed capacity of thirty-five miles an hour." The two tandem riders assisted "the motor in its work," rather than the other way around which tends to be how they are marketed these days. The bike had a gear of 140, and the tandem (without riders) weighed "in the neighborhood of 400 pounds."

While the tandem was shipped from Chicago, it is unclear whether or not it was ever used for pacing at Salt Lake; during John Lawson's world record setting one-mile, paced ride (13 July) on the Salt Palace Track, the description of "man-paced" (Oscar Julius and Clement Turville) may suggest the pace was provided by leg-power alone.