Early Strida c1920?

“Photograph shows a man posed with unusual bicycle; approximate in size and shape of a unicycle.”

If you’re interested in ancient bikes and Strida it will be also remarkable that the 3-speed bottom bracket gear drive of the EVO is not really new…

Back then in ~ 1949, there was already a bottom bracket drive with FIVE gears!
The Mervil Mervilex:

The Rappa had - built 1935/36 - FOUR gears:

Interestingly, there was also the Mutaped, a three speed drive from 1950 (1930?):

Unlike the others, at that time mostly acivated by cables or levers, the gear shifting worked on this one…guess how?
Yes, by pedaling backwards - the same way as the EVO drive; 1-2-3-1-2-3 :laughing:

And there are more…

Hope you’ve seen this post, too:
Lamplighter’s Bicycles

This one (bottom picture) looks like the ancestor of the Strida:

It is the 1897 model of US company Owen Mfg Co, called Owen Pyramid. They claim the simplicity of the frame, its low weight, and a good weight distribution between front and rear wheels.