Coburg at the end of the 19th century: A man, the taxidermist Franz Schröter, rides a high wheel through the streets. This pioneering act sets the small residence town in motion. Extraordinary events unfold and stir emotions - Anna, the wife of the rebel, cycles through the city in a striking Syrian undergarment (what we would now call culottes). The headlong tumbles increase, as a lady disguised as a man from the ducal court of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha repeatedly falls into Schröter's arms during her riding attempts. Soon, supporters of the high wheel and low wheel stand irreconcilably opposed to each other. Uwe Timm tells a story that is as true as it is fantastic, set in the not-so-distant past of great inventions and unwavering belief in progress.