In 1884, 17 year old Pittsburg resident Frank Lenz took a month of his accountant's salary and jumped headlong into the most bad-ass hobby of the time: Penny Farthing. Unfortunately, the march of time and mankind's slow but sure ability to eventually use common sense meant that Frank's dream of riding a big-wheeled bike around the world was unlikely to happen. So instead, he traded his ridiculous 55-lb monstrosity for a "safety bike" and took off west. 

Would he make it home? No. 

Sources:

The Adventurous Life and Mysterious Death of Frank Lenz - JSTOR Daily

Frank Lenz (cyclist) - Wikipedia

Thomas Stevens (cyclist) - Wikipedia