Business · Companies · 5 hrs ago
How Christian Bühlmann invented Grindelwald’s Velogemel
Christian Bühlmann invented the Velogemel in Grindelwald, Switzerland, and patented it in 1911.
He was a woodworker who lived with a walking disability after contracting polio as a child.
Winter journeys home after music rehearsals were difficult because the last train did not run late enough, and snow made cycling impractical.
He built a vehicle that combined a bicycle with a sled, using wooden parts and runners.
Riders could push along flat roads and glide downhill, while pushing the vehicle uphill like a bicycle.
The invention became useful for travel in snowy Grindelwald, where sleds were known as “Gemel,” giving the vehicle its name.
Bühlmann began making them after people showed interest, and the Velogemel became a Grindelwald landmark.
Christian Bühlmann invented the Velogemel in 1911 as a way to travel home over snowy roads near Grindelwald.
The vehicle combined a bicycle and a sled and could be pushed along flat ground, ridden downhill and pushed uphill.
Bühlmann made the first Velogemels in his sawmill after winter conditions made his usual bicycle journey home impractical.
The name came from “Gemel,” a local word for a sled in Grindelwald.
The Velogemel later became a symbol of Grindelwald.
- Who
- Christian Bühlmann, a woodworker and inventor.
- What
- He invented a steerable, one-track vehicle combining a bicycle and a sled, later known as the Velogemel.
- When
- He filed the invention with the patent office in Bern on 1 April 1911.
- Where
- Grindelwald, Switzerland.
- Why
- Winter snow made his bicycle journey home after music rehearsals impractical, and no train ran back after the evening rehearsals.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Bühlmann entered the woodcarving school in Brienz.
Christian Bühlmann married Susanna Balmer.
The couple bought a sawmill and house in Schwendi, at the entrance to Grindelwald.
Bühlmann filed his invention with the patent office in Bern.
Bühlmann received inquiries and began producing Velogemels.
- Inventor
- Christian Bühlmann
- Patent application
- 1 April 1911
- Vehicle
- A one-track, steerable sled made from 12 pieces of ash and maple wood
- Fasteners
- 5 wooden dowels, 6 carriage bolts and 1 wood screw
- Local name
- Velogemel,” from “Gemel,” a local word for sled