Bloomer Girl
French Racing Cyclist Marie Tual Wearing Bloomers on a Racing Bike in 1896 or in 1897.
Many of these cycling pioneers adopted an updated version of the old “bloomer” outfit which allowed for more freedom of movement — and less risk of their clothes becoming caught up in the chain or wheels.
“If women ride the bicycle or climb mountains, they should don a costume which will permit them the use of their legs,” Suffragist Susan B. Anthony has been quoted as saying. “My one word about the ‘bloomers’ or any other sort of dress, is that every woman, like every man, should be permitted to wear exactly what she chooses.”
Racing gear.
