Le point de vue du cyclotourisme — L’Officiel du cycle, 1 May 1954, André Poge on the Fall in Touring Numbers and Industry Support

From L’Officiel du cycle, du motocycle et du camping, 1 May 1954, the paper’s special export number, printed in French, English, Spanish and German, page 83: le point de vue du cyclotourisme: statement by M. André Poge, president of the Fédération Française de Cyclotourisme, on the fall in bicycle touring numbers, the motorization crisis and why industry should back the bicycle (Pédalez!); French only, with a portrait. The title, headings, captions and lists are transcribed as printed; the text is summarized in Ebykr’s words, and the page images carry it in full.

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LE POINT DE VUE DU CYCLOTOURISME

Déclaration de M. André POGE, Président de la « Fédération française de Cyclotourisme » :

[Ebykr summary; the article’s text is not reproduced. Poge opens by recalling the latest meeting of the cycle-touring commission of the A.I.T., which he had the honor of chairing in Milan, where the question of membership numbers in the European associations drew attention. According to the delegates’ reports, the Nordic countries are the hardest hit by the crisis (30 %, it seems); Germany, Belgium and Italy also have a crisis; in Great Britain the Cyclist Touring-Club reports a fall of 14 % since 1950; the Fédération Française de Cyclotourisme is the least affected body, with a decline of only 5 %. The Germans were categorical that the taste for luxury shown by young people keeps them from buying a bicycle, which is not especially a sign of wealth. Poge answered that German makers had perhaps not done all that was needed to give their customers cycles of a quality, technique and finish comparable to French machines, and he adds that French cycle tourists abroad see the admiring curiosity of crowds that gather around their machines, a tribute he is glad to pay to French construction in passing.]

» Le goût du luxe est peut-être une des causes de la crise, mais il y en a d’autres :

» 1° Avant tout, la motorisation : on a persuadé le cycliste qu’il ne devait plus pédaler, le goût de l’effort se perd de plus en plus, et l’usager glisse vers la facilité. Il commence par le moteur auxiliaire, puis la moto ou le scooter, pour finir par la voiture qui est son point de mire ;

» 2° L’insécurité du cycliste sur la route qui découle du développement de la motorisation ;

» 3° Le manque de cadre dans nos clubs, la relève se fait mal, les jeunes étant attirés par des sports plus spectaculaires ;

» 4° L’insuffisance de la propagande pour le cyclotourisme et la bicyclette en général.

[Ebykr summary, after the list of causes. Poge says the situation in France is nevertheless not catastrophic and there are remedies. France has 15 million cyclists, and the customers of today are the young, in schools, lycées and apprenticeship centers, so industry’s efforts should be aimed at them. The Fédération française de Cyclotourisme is trying to form groups in teaching establishments through outings, walks, trips and guided excursions, but it needs the help of the Chambres syndicales and the big firms. He points out that makers spend considerable sums each year on competitive racing and do all they can to convince a prospective buyer that their product beats a rival’s; but such propaganda pays only if buyers exist, so a current of purchase must be raised by persuading the public of the usefulness of the bicycle, the charms of cycle touring and the physical and moral benefits of an ideal sport within everyone’s reach, repeating that the bicycle is a social benefit. The slogan should no longer be “Ne pédalez plus !” but “Pédalez !”, because pedaling is health and the body needs this open-air physical culture at every age. The day the trade bodies, the commercial groups and the big firms understand that an immense reservoir of buyers remains at their disposal and give their full support to the Federations, bicycle sales will see a new surge. The statement is printed in French only.]

[A text page of a trade review. A ruled box across the head holds the title in one line of large heavy roman capitals, “LE POINT DE VUE DU CYCLOTOURISME”, then an italic introduction naming the speaker and his office and the first paragraphs of the statement with a tall drop capital A. In the middle of the page a square halftone portrait photograph shows a man in dark clothing and a patterned tie, seen from the chest up with his head bowed and turned to the left in profile against a dark background; it carries no caption and no signature. The numbered list of causes is set in two narrow columns at either side of the portrait, and the closing paragraphs run across the full width in a second ruled box beneath it. All text is in roman type; no artist signature or agency mark appears.]