9781422270363

J.K Starley was formed in 1889 as a manufacturer of bicycles. In 1890 the name was changed to The Rover Company.

Picture it. It’s 1885 in the English countryside market town of Warwick. In the background of lush, greens stands Warwick Castle on the River Avon. Peasants and royals yearned for a way to traverse the nine miles between Warwick and nearby Coventry. Horses cost a lot to maintain, and the non-motorized trikes of the time proved dangerous to ride. A man named John Kemp Starley revolutionized transportation with his innovation—the Rover Safety bicycle. It featured only two wheels of similar size and rear-wheel drive. The chain-driven bicycle o ! ered enhanced stability. Cycling Magazine proclaimed that Starley’s design had “set the pattern to the world.” In 1878, Starley had established a partnership with another bike designer, William Sutton, but in 1889 he formally founded J.K.

8

Range Rover: The Ultimate in Luxury

Made with FlippingBook Digital Publishing Software