Los Angeles native Steven Barnett got his first motorcycle at age 15 and has since traveled to nearly 80 countries over the past 50 years.
Now, at age 77, he is preparing for the biggest adventure of his life: becoming the oldest person to cycle around the world.
Barnett, who immigrated to Panama from the United States 20 years ago, will fly to Madrid, Spain, on March 7, before embarking on an estimated 50,000-mile journey through 27 countries, including France, Australia and Peru.
The retired professor expects the journey to take at least a year. He said he has “no idea what tomorrow will bring,” but is looking forward to getting on the road.
He had only been planning for a few months, but after suffering a heart attack last year and needing a stent, he was convinced it wasn’t worth delaying.
“You never know how much time you’ll have,” he told CNN Travel. “You’ll never be as ready as you’d like. But that’s no excuse to put things off.”
Barnett said she was inspired by a CNN article about Bridget McCutchen, who was aiming to become the youngest girl to circumnavigate the world solo.
He got in touch and met her in Panama in December 2022, about a year before she successfully completed her journey.
“I said, ‘Wait a minute. If she can do it as the youngest woman, why can’t I do it as the oldest man?'” he said, admitting that the idea never occurred to him until he heard her story.
He contacted Guinness World Records after discovering that the record holder was not registered.
“I think 78 or 79 is good enough to set a record,” he added. Guinness World Records confirmed this to be the case and his application was accepted.
A veteran of long-distance motorcycle trips, Barnett says he loves the “freedom of going anywhere” and the “connection to people and places that you don’t get when you’re stuck in a car.”
In October he bought a brand new motorcycle, a Suzuki DR650, and spent several months modifying it for the trip, adding a larger gas tank and stronger suspension.
With medical clearance including a heart scan, he is keen to fly to his starting point in Madrid. “Everything is fine,” he says. “Once you get on the plane, you’ll breathe a huge sigh of relief.”
From Spain, Barnett will cross Europe via France, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey.
To meet the requirements of the Guinness Book of World Records, Barnett must ride the same bike for the entire journey and record his progress. You may use other means of transportation only in areas where motorcycles are not allowed.
He is excited to visit places he has never been before, especially Central Asia. His route would take him to China via Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
From China, he plans to head to Laos, Thailand and Malaysia, then fly to Australia via Indonesia, where he hopes to “scuba dive” across the continent. They will then return to Panama via Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.
“That’s the plan,” he says. “I know plans never work out.”
It is unclear whether or how the current Middle East crisis will affect his trip.
Barnett feels well suited for the trip, but admits his age will dictate his approach.
“Before, I didn’t mind driving on dirt tracks in the middle of nowhere,” he says. But now he would rather run in crowded areas.
“I’m going to be more careful about that this time…because I can’t lift a bike the same way I did when I was 50.”
Barnett plans to stay in hotels, hostels and guesthouses along the way, but says he won’t be camping because he doesn’t like sleeping on the ground. You don’t have to worry about your budget, and you don’t have to take time off from work. Retirement comes with some perks, he says.
He likes to enjoy the scenery, but he says it’s the “people you meet along the way” that define the experience. Despite not having a common language in Brazil, he became friends with other bikers and had fun, and when he went to see a waterfall in Laos last year, he was invited to dinner with his family.
“It’s a roller coaster,” he added. “Some days you say, ‘It’s so great to be here, this is the best thing in the world.’ Other days, you say, ‘Oh my God, what am I doing here?'”
He plans to pack light, but he plans to bring his toy raccoon Rocky (a “great icebreaker,” he says) and a mandolin.
“I’m looking forward to meeting people I can play with and learning about local musical influences,” he says.
Barnett said she has been sharing details of her trip through social media and has been surprised by the response.
“I’ve encouraged so many people,” he says. “They say, ‘Wow, you’re doing that at your age, it’s really cool and it’s kind of impressive.'” So it feels really cool. ”
He has been supported by his wife of 43 years, Karen, and by McCutchen, a young cyclist.
Despite being, as he puts it, “on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of age, gender, and station in life,” they stayed in touch, and McCutchen offered tips from her own journey.
“I think she can be an example to people young and old to just try,” he says.
He says the heart attack only strengthened his resolve. Two months after his health scare, he embarked on a three-month journey across Vietnam, visiting the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Ha Long Bay and Ho Chi Minh Road.
“My cardiologist thought I was crazy,” he says. “But I told him that’s why he fixed me.”
