Man rides penny-farthing across the world

A man from London is riding his penny-farthing bicycle through the Parker area today on his way around the world.

Joff Summerfield, 46, set off on the bike in June 2014 from Toronto, Canada and plans to spend the next year or so making his way through the American continents on the custom-made bicycle. This weekend he’ll be out on Highway 62, perched four and a half feet from the ground on top of that giant wheel, heading toward San Diego. Afterwards, he’ll hit Mexico and southward through Latin America to the bottom.

Joff comes from a motor racing family and spent several years as a Formula One engine builder before quitting to make penny-farthings and tour the world on them. He spent 2006-2008 touring in 23 countries, totalling 23,000 miles in places like India and China.

“You get to meet so many nice people,” Joff told Parker Live on Friday. “What you see in the news is not the reality about the world. 99.99 percent of people everywhere are really lovely.”

He is surviving on a budget of several dollars a day, camping and staying with people along the way. His website can be found at pennyfarthingworldtour.com.