While researching Soviet WWII history, I came across reference to bicycle brigades used by the Germans as part of the siege of Leningrad (St. Petersburg). Evidently, the bicycle infantryman was seen as a replacement for the cavalry messenger and able to transport supplies in places where truck and tank travel was impossible. There’s a whole lengthy history here (including pics of folding bicycles in action). So, maybe another antecedent for my current trip.
If you haven’t read the article yet, the obituary of the Night Witch Nadezhda Popova is very interesting on the resourcefulness and bravery of the Soviets during WWII.
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/15/world/europe/nadezhda-popova-ww-ii-night-witch-dies-at-91.html?ref=obituaries&_r=0
I recently watched the Soviet Film “Only Old Men Are Going to Battle” about Ukrainian fighter pilots during the war. It features an all-women bombing unit based on the “Witches.” Of course, in addition to heroics, the USSR also formed a “voluntary” People’s Army (Opolcheniye) which basically sent 200,000 untrained and mostly unarmed civilians (women included) directly against German tanks with catastrophic results.