Joff and his Penny Farthing - A trip around the world




Timeline of this journey



1998 Cycle to Amsterdam on my old BSA, and decide to cycle around the world.
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1999 Build my first Mk-1 Penny Farthing.

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1999 Hit by a car, destroying front wheel.
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1999 Ride to Paris for the millennium celebrations, and realise that the Mk-1 is way to heavy.

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2000 Savings stolen in house burglary, trip delayed.
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2000 New Mk-2 machine built
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2001 Mk-3 built and I leave to cycle around the world. Disaster on first day when knees give out and I have to come back after only 26 miles. I have Illiotibial band friction syndrome.
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2002 After much physiotherapy do a three day ride up the Grand union canal with friends, knees are fine.
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2003 New Mk-4 built and leave for the second time to cycle around the world. Two and a half months later my knees give out again in Budapest with Patello femoral syndrome and I have to fly home.
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2004 (Feb) First knee operated on.
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2004 (May)
 Riding again now, doing a few 15 mile rides during the week all seems ok.
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2004 (Nov) Have done some cycling over the summer but to be honest not that much. I decided to give the knees a good rest and let them get back to their good ways. Now in November I'm getting out two or three times  a week which feels good. I've also bought from the states some special knee straps which I now always wear while cycling.
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2005 (Jan) I have just taken on a workshop in Greenwich London, here I will be going into production of my Mk-4 machine.
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2005 (Jan) My first book has been published, see it at                                     Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk
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2005 (April) Just starting to get fit again then took a splendid header off my Penny. Fractured knee and elbow was the outcome of this, so off the bike again for a while.
........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 2005 (August) Have rebuilt my Penny with new solid forks and a smaller rear wheel to match the production bikes. Now with the knee pretty much healed I can start riding again and get prepared for the off next Easter.
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2006 (January) Have now sold the last of the Penny's that I have been building, so I can now concentrate on getting my own machine ready for the off  at the end of April.
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2006 (March) I have finished the new trailer that I will be towing with the panniers on, seems very stable which is great.
Made a visit to 
Cyclefit with the Penny, they are a company in London who specialize in measuring you on your bike to help among other things you knees! My new position feels much better, and this can only help with my problem joints.
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2006 (March) Out on a test ride when the hub lamp fell off and jammed in the wheel, result a splendid header, and a broken arm and wrist.
........................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 2006 (May) I leave Greenwich on my third attempt to cycle around the world.
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2008 (November) I return home after 2 1/2 years having cycled around the world.



[Joff's site]

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