Okay, I confess, this is neither a photo of me nor my bike.
However these three Englishmen cycled around the world on their quite modern looking touring bikes from 1897 to 1899. Notice the rear luggage racks, sensibly wide tires, plenty of custom bags, and the nice relaxed geometry of the bikes. Our concept of properly paved roads did not exist, at best one would find cobblestones and at worst they would struggle to drag their bikes through roads which had become mud to above the ankles. The bikes often crossed over rough fields and they encountered the same punctures to their pneumatic tires we all still dread. Nevertheless, the bikes held up just fine. And the riders returned to London healthy - although a bit disappointed there were no crowds waiting to greet them.
