The Dunlop Company can trace its roots back to 1888, when young John Boyd Dunlop patented a design for specialized tires for his child's tricycle. What began as an intimate invention swept the land, and soon Dunlop tires became international racing standards.

Dunlop was not an engineer by trade--he was a surgeon of veterinary medicine. Another man, by the name of Robert William Thomson, came up with the patent for the inflatable tire. Unfortunately, Thompson's tire suffered from too many mechanical glitches. Dunlop took Thompson's idea to its next logical level. He introduced the notion of rubber treads and modified a hose pipe to create an 'inner tube' prototype.

After only one year of manufacturing tires, Dunlop was already a huge success. His business flourished and spread from Dublin, Ireland out to the four corners of the globe. Dunlop partnered with a Japanese firm to establish that country's very first tire plant. Throughout the company's development, its engineers have constantly pushed the envelope in terms of what the technology can accomplish. For instance, by the 1920s, Dunlop had developed tires which could withstand speeds approaching 200 m.p.h.--faster than any car engine at the time could produce.

During the 1950s, the heyday of competitive motor racing, Dunlop tires helped carry a whopping 66 racers to victory in Formula One events. Dunlop has also led the way in terms of safety. A recent rollout introduced Dunlop Self-Supporting Technology (DSST), which allows drivers to ride on flat or punctured tires for up to 80 kilometers at speeds topping 50 m.p.h. with no ill effects.