Bikes, bikes, bikes. We are not talking about the many that dot the landscape around Singapore nowadays but the bicycles that you can view at Shimano Cycling World at Singapore Sports Hub. This facility is a chance for cycling enthusiasts to get a closer look at a variety of cycling exhibits and explore the development of bikes and cycling.
Shimano Cycling World: The Bike Museum
Officially launched in September 2015, this bike museum in Singapore is located next to the Singapore Sports Museum. And if you are concerned that the gallery is a sales pitch for Shimano, the Japanese manufacturer of cycling components, you need not worry. Shimano Cycling World is about all sorts of bikes of all ilk.
Inside Shimano Cycling World are displays of various antique bikes. By the entrance is one of the most iconic bikes of them all. This is a penny-farthing or what is also known as a high wheeler. It is intriguing to imagine what is must be like to hop up onto the bike and pedal away. Of course, being sat so high up, it is also a challenge to stop and hop off. Thankfully, bikes are no longer built this way and you can take in more of the history of bikes within Shimano Cycling World.
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The first section of Shimano Cycling World is a library-like area that is devoted to bikes. It is also the area where workshops are held. For example, they conduct workshops on safe cycling and other interesting topics such as cycling photography.
Venture further into Shimano Cycling World and there is an entire pull-out exhibit of bicycles. Visitors can browse through the various pull-out displays of historic and unusual bicycles from different eras.
Among these are a rattan bike. This is a reference to the Rattan ebike brand. Instead, it is actually a bicycle that is made out of rattan. Since it is made out of rattan, does this make it an organic and even more eco-friendly cycling option?
There are many other different bikes on display at this pull-out section of bikes at Shimano Cycling World. These include early bikes such as the safety bicycle and the road bike used by Kenneth Tan, Singapore’s most decorated professional cyclist when he was with the Shimano Racing Team.
It is fun browsing through the cabinet and having a closer look at each bike. It is like a cabinet of curiosities for cyclists.
You can pull the displays out one-by-one to get a closer look at each of the bicycles.
Innovation and Books
There is also a section where visitors can learn more about different cycling innovations. This area features hands-on interactive exhibits that visitors can fiddle with. It is a chance to get an upclose look at the technology that has found its way into the bikes of today.
Bike-lovers can browse through Shimano Cycling World’s large library of cycling books which cover topics such as biographies of cyclist to bike maintenance.
Shimano Cycling World will appeal to cycling enthusiasts in Singapore and it is a place where even the casual visitor can step inside to take a look at the history and technology behind bicycles and the culture of cycling.
It is also possible to arrange for a 30 to 45 minute guided tour of Shimano Cycling World at no charge. During the tour of Shimano Cycling World, participants will be taken through the history and the technological advancements that bicycles have undergone. The tour also features the variety of interactive exhibits on display. However, there is a requirement for arrangements to be made at least three days in advance.
Shimano Cycling World
Where: 6 Stadium Walk #01-02, Singapore 397698
Opening Hours: Mon to Fri: 10 am to 8 pm; Weekends, Eve of Public Holidays & Public Holidays: 10 am to 9 pm
Website: Shimano Cycling World
