Out for a ride on the weekend, I passed this bike servicing pop-up right by the lake (and conveniently adjacent to a café).

My eye was immediately drawn to a pair of Penny Farthings leaning up against a tree next to the stall. Turns out this business is run by ‘Simon the Bike Guy‘ a local Canberra legend who, next month, is attempting to break the Penny Farthing record for the greatest distance travelled for one hour. 

I remember many years ago on a road trip through New Zealand passing (in the middle of a storm) this guy wearing a pith helmet and a Union Jack waistcoat, busting his balls riding a penny-farthing amongst some pretty ferocious mountainous terrain. Remember, these things have no gears… and no brakes. Type 2 fun for sure.

Just in case you were wondering what that world record distance might be, I did a search. Turns out it is a little complicated, with several categories including:

• Male indoor and unpaced (34.547 km)
• Male paced (35.743 km)
• No hands (26 km)
• One leg only (20.294 km).
• No hands and one leg…..OK I made that one up. But Im sure it is only a matter of time. These Penny Farthing peeps are crazy.