How bicycles keep the rubber on the road

Engineers try to explain the surprising stability of two wheels

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An unusual riderless bike with two wheels that spin backwards demonstrates that the physics behind the stability of bicycles is more complicated than previously thought. Sam Rentmeester/FMAX

Bicycle abuse isn’t something you’d expect from the Dutch. But engineers in the Netherlands who love bikes enough to hurt them are challenging long-held beliefs about how a moving bike keeps its balance even when slapped, shoved or otherwise insulted.