With 13,600 Km already covered on his 19th century “penny farthing” bicycle, a 39-year-old Briton has embarked on one of the toughest legs of his world trek—China.
The penny-farthing is one of the world's earliest bicycles, boasting a giant front wheel that has a 47-inch diameter and a tiny back wheel.
The bike has no chains or gears, making hills extremely difficult to climb and dangerous to descend due to its small brake.
Summerfield said he had always wanted to cycle around the world, but it was only in 1996 when he started -building penny farthings that he decided the big wheeler would be his vehicle of choice.
Since leaving London on May 1, 2006, the engineer and bike builder cycled through Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Macedonia, Greece Turkey, New Zealand and Australia.
In China, he plans to cover around 60 Km, and spend no more than five pounds a day. And he has allotted about six months here, a plan that gives him ample time for sightseeing, but means that he also must do a lot of camping to save on hotel expenses.
He carries a tent, a sleeping bag, and a stove, while his all-important water bottles are strapped to his handlebars.
Besides his saving and proceeds from a book on a previous round-the-world attempt, Summerfield relies on donations and maintains a log of his trip on his website （www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/joff1）.
Most of his navigation is done by compass on smaller, less-traveled roads, but a large English-language map of China and a cyclists' guide to the country are handy back-up tools. He does not speak Chinese.
The penny-farthing is one of the world's earliest bicycles, boasting a giant front wheel that has a 47-inch diameter and a tiny back wheel.
The bike has no chains or gears, making hills extremely difficult to climb and dangerous to descend due to its small brake.
Summerfield said he had always wanted to cycle around the world, but it was only in 1996 when he started -building penny farthings that he decided the big wheeler would be his vehicle of choice.
Since leaving London on May 1, 2006, the engineer and bike builder cycled through Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Serbia, Macedonia, Greece Turkey, New Zealand and Australia.
In China, he plans to cover around 60 Km, and spend no more than five pounds a day. And he has allotted about six months here, a plan that gives him ample time for sightseeing, but means that he also must do a lot of camping to save on hotel expenses.
He carries a tent, a sleeping bag, and a stove, while his all-important water bottles are strapped to his handlebars.
Besides his saving and proceeds from a book on a previous round-the-world attempt, Summerfield relies on donations and maintains a log of his trip on his website （www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/joff1）.
Most of his navigation is done by compass on smaller, less-traveled roads, but a large English-language map of China and a cyclists' guide to the country are handy back-up tools. He does not speak Chinese.