You probably know about the brothers who made the first powered heavier than air flights on Dec 17, 1903 at Kitty Hawk, NC. Before that, Orville and Wilbur Wright built bicycles in their own shop in Dayton, OH. They even invented their own safety bicycle models and invented some improvements that improved the durability of their products.

Orville and Wilber Wright flew kites as boys and developed an interest in flight. They corresponded with aviation pioneers.

The Wright Brothers used their engineering knowledge, their bicycle shop and some familiar bicycle parts to build and test their flyer. They made a machine that was sturdy and light weight. They also used familiar principles to get the most they could out of propulsion between engine and propellers. Notice the chain and sprocket drive system, one of the most noticeable bicycle spin-offs (no pun intended) the Wrights included in their Flyer.