Our history
1877
A farmer from Michigan by the name of George Sheffield invents a three wheeled railroad hand-car propelled by a combination of hand and foot power used in a push-pull fashion. At about 140 lbs., it was light enough to be swung off the tracks to make way for trains, and made an excellent track inspection car.
1895
G. W. Miller of the Kalamazoo Railroad Velocipede & Car Co designs a bicycle based velocipede using many common bicycle components for easy servicing.
Early 1900’s
Four wheeled track inspection bicycles begin to appear on smaller railroads and are actively used in mines.
1975
Ron Forster, a pizza parlor owner from New Hampshire, invents a crude yet effective outrigger that he attached to his bicycle. The design worked and enabled easy travel on railroad track. Over the next five years the design is further redesigned and evolves into a 4 wheeled pedal powered bicycle. The Railrider™ is born!
1980
Ron Forster begins offering the original Ron’s Rider™ kits to the public for purchase.
1985
Ron Forster continues to develop the Railrider™ wheel. Many materials were considered such as steel, iron and aluminum but were rejected because of their weight. Polyurethane was ultimately chosen due to it’s durability as well as its quiet and smooth running properties.
1987
People Weekly Magazine runs a feature on Ron Forster and Railriders™
1996
The Ron’s Rider 2.0 is released and instantly becomes a big hit. While popular with tourists it also became a popular workhorse.
2005
The RailAnt (Adaptable Nimble Transport) is released as a more economical alternative to the Ron’s Rider
2007
The Railrunner replaces the Ron’s Rider 2.0 as the standard model from Railriders™