How a French inventor shortened the distance between London and Brighton

On 14th November 1896, it was cold in London, but at the first light of dawn, some strange self-propelled contraptions, what we now call cars, some even with three wheels, were lined up waiting for the start of a race that was unthinkable just a few months earlier: to go from London to Brighton in less than four hours. Less than four hours? With a carriage pulled by well-fed horses, the 84-kilometre journey on a dirt road with deep ruts would have taken at least twice as long. Incredible. And the result was even more surprising: the noisy petrol-powered tandem two-seater tricycle, proudly named after its French inventor, Léon Bollée, covered the distance in just 3 hours, 44 minutes, and 35 seconds.