Around
the World on a Bicycle
Synopsis
In 1884, Thomas Stevens left San Francisco on a Columbia high-wheeler
with the outrageous goal of becoming the first man to ride a bicycle
across the United States. When he reached Boston, he decided to continue
around the world, and soon sailed to London for the ride across Europe,
the Middle East, and Asia. The high-wheeler was heavy and cumbersome,
his supplies were limited to socks, a spare shirt, and a slicker that
doubled as tent and bedroll, and much of the country he traversed was
wild. Yet he persevered, recording his colourful and often harrowing
adventures during the three-year odyssey in a classic of 19th century
adventure and travel writing.
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Miles from Nowhere
Synopsis
The author describes her experiences as she and her husband traveled on
bicycles 23,000 miles through twenty-five countries.
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Spokesongs:
Bicycle Adventures on 3 Continents
Synopsis
In Spokesongs, Willie Weir demonstrates the rare combination of
indomitable spirit and poetic soul. Spokesongs will thrill you
with its daring adventure and touch you with its sensitive portrayal of
Willie's personal interactions. Spokesongs is a great read and a
perfect gift.
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The Adventure of Two Lifetimes: A Mother/Daughter Journey Across America- And Time.
Synopsis
The Adventure Of Two Lifetimes by Peggy Newland Goetz and Brian
Goetz, with June Meyer Newland, is part travelogue, part memoir, and all
excitement as it tells of an American husband and wife who embarked on a
bicycle tour from New York to California. The Adventure Of Two Lifetimes
also transcends generations, viewing the great journey through the eyes
of mother and daughter and son-in-law.
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Synopsis
George not only made one of the epic bicycle tours around but wrote about it in a way that makes a great read. He spun his pedals from one interesting event to the next without dwelling on the hills, headwinds and rain; which are just some of the less interesting points of bicycle touring. He takes you with him on his adventure in a way that makes you want to get on your bike and go for a ride.
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Synopsis
The author, an American-born teacher whose
career has been primarily overseas, gives a lively recounting of nearly
five years in southern Africa, in the village of Mapoka, Botswana. His
stories provide an outsiders view of traditional African society and
culture. A dangerous bicycle ride across the Kalahari and Namib deserts
provides the framework for telling the story: as he bikes across 3000
miles of sand, dodging lions and elephants.
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Cold Beer and Crocodiles
Synopsis
It's not every day that a fellow decides to pack in a good job, pack
up his saddlebags, and set off by bicycle to make a circumferential
journey around Australia. In 1996, that's just what American-born Time
magazine correspondent Roff Martin Smith did, though; as he explains,
he'd been living in Australia for 14 years but didn't really know the
country, and he "felt no emotional bond to it." About to turn
38, a few pounds over his ideal weight, and untested as a distance
bicyclist, Smith faced up to considerable odds, but he survived to tell
the tale.
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Synopsis
Bicycle Across America chronicles five trans-America tours, provides
route notes and maps, and offers suggestions on what to see and expect
along the way.
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Where
the Pavement Ends: One Women's Bicycle Trip Through Mongolia, China and
Vietnam
Synopsis
Living in Seattle and failing to make her mark as an actress, Erika
Warmbrunn decides to chuck it all and go traveling. Her resulting novel,
Where the Pavement Ends, is an absorbing account of her ambitious
eight-month solo bicycle trip through the countries of Mongolia, China,
and Vietnam. While Warmbrunn's accounts of the travails of traveling in
far-off lands doesn't necessarily break new ground, she writes with
humor and candor. If you have even a twinge of wanderlust, you'll
appreciate this book.
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Essential
Touring Cyclist
Synopsis
The classic guide for beginning and intermediate cyclists is
back--and it's better than ever. With the latest on bikes, gear, and
training techniques and new sections on short tours, and touring abroad,
this new edition of The Essential Touring Cyclist promises to appeal to
a whole new population of aspiring cyclists. Whether you're heading out
for five hours or five months, this vividly designed, heavily
illustrated, and resource-rich guide delivers everything you need.
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Synopsis
At age 54, Anne Mustoe left her job and set out alone to circle the globe on her bicycle (as detailed in "A Bike Ride"). Once was not enough for the intrepid Mustoe, however, and at 60 she embarked on a second world cycle tour which she describes in "Lone Traveller". Starting from the Coliseum in Rome, she followed Roman Roads to Lisbon. From there she traveled the routes of the Conquistadors across South America, followed in the footsteps of Australian explorers through the Outback and embarked on the fabled Silk Road from China to the Mediterranean.
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A Bike Ride: 10000 miles around the world!
Synopsis
Feeling 50 and old? Stuck in your ways with life a bit monotonous?
Read this and feel the freedom of following the trail of Alexander the
Great. Ride on the Royal Road through Turkey staying at local Inns and
stopping for coffee. A fascinating book!
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Two Wheels in the Dust: From Katmandu to Kandy
Synopsis
Who better than a redoubtable English headmistress to teach
Americans about The Ramayana, a venerable hallmark text of Hinduism that
still animates contemporary Indian culture? And from the seat of a bike,
to boot. Mustoe, a 60-something "pensioner" (retiree) whose
legs and lungs must be as enviably developed as her sense of adventure,
follows by bicycle the route across India taken by the fabled prince
Rama, hero of the ancient Hindu epic poem.
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Synopsis
The author has undertaken cycling tours covering four continents, 36 countries and 80,000 miles. This is a collection of descriptions of the landscape through which she cycled and the people she met, interspersed with tales of her adventures. Her encounters range from Saharan locust invasions to tree-climbing goats, and a customs official who wanted to stop her leaving India because "you are making me a very fine wife". In Nepal she met a team of Frenchmen running from Paris to China, and a cyclist on his way from one Olympic Games to the next, whilst her view of post-Ceausescu Romania, a national suffering and starving, affected her both physically and mentally.
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Synopsis
Following "The Wind in My Wheels", Josie Dew recounts more of her travels by bicycle. This time she describes a journey across America and Hawaii, on which she met a variety of unusual characters and experienced incidents which aroused a wide range of emotions. During her eight months on the road she saw race riots in Los Angeles, suffered intense heat in Death Valley, and witnessed sexual tantric seminars in Hawaii. From Utah to the Great Lakes, via improbable places such as Zzyzx and Squaw Tit, she offers a personal memoir of the United States as seen from the seat of a bicycle.
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Synopsis
Fast paced and humorous, Josie Dew's sometimes absurd experiences riding through Japan are delightfully recorded in A ride in the Neon Sun. Cycle enthusiast or not, anyone considering a trip to Japan would do well to prepare themselves with this book. A Ride in the Neon Sun, informative and coupled with the author's social observations, provides the reader with a true picture of a country and its people. Josie Dew embraces the culture of Japan in a whirlwind Tour de Nippon, told from the saddle of her bicycle.
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Synopsis
The Sun in My Eyes is the fourth travel book by inveterate cyclist Josie Dew, telling the story of her second cycling journey around Japan.
Arriving in Hong Kong, Dew finds a sea passage over to Japan. Having now amassed the almost incredible figure of 200,000 miles on her cycling clock, there is no room for doubt as far as her determination and fortitude are concerned--so when the ship in which she is working her passage to Okinawa gets caught up in unseasonable storms, the sudden burst of fragility brought up along with her seasickness comes as a surprise. Nevertheless, Dew makes it to her destination, and the pedaling begins.
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Synopsis
Offers advice on how to plan a route, pack clothing and camping gear on
a bike, perform maintenance and repairs while on the road, and what to
expect from a bicycle trip.
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Tom Kirkendall
Synopsis
This book is the most complete, most accurate
and most detailed of the genre for touring along the Pacific coast.
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Eloise Hanner
Synopsis
"Fools rush in where angels fear to tread," as the saying
goes. This certainly applied to Eloise Hanner, a forty something woman
who signed up to ride her bicycle across the United States, even though
she had never ridden more than ten miles in one day. This is the story
of a middle-aged businesswoman who left a successful career in search of
something more meaningful to her.
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Rupert Attlee
Synopsis
Recounting the experiences of three untrained cyclists setting out to become the first to pedal across South America, from Tierra del Fuego to Lake Titicaca this story describes the physical and emotional ups and downs experienced by the cycling version of the three musketeers. Undertaken in aid of the Leukemia Research Fund, the cyclists on the expedition battled with the language barrier, sore muscles and addiction to chocolate while fuelled by copious amounts of vino.
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Synopsis
Their goal was to become the first people to ride mountain bikes unsupported across the three southern continents and, in doing so, to raise money for the charity, Intermediate Technology. This is a fast moving tale of self-discovery; it is full of adventure, conflict, humour, danger and a multitude of colourful characters. Much more than a travelogue, it proves ordinary people can chase great dreams.
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Pamela Watson
Synopsis
The story of Pamela Watson's journey across Africa, alone on a bicycle.
Cycling from Dakar to Dar Es Salaam, through 17 countries and nearly
15,000 kilometers. She was in Nigeria during aborted elections, Zaire as
they struggled to rid themselves of Mobutu, and Rwanda at the outbreak
of civil war.
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Brian Newhouse
Synopsis
A CROSSING, I knew this book was incredibly special. A CROSSING, the story of Brian Newhouse's quest to both cross the arduous terrain of America by bicycle and to resolve his troubled relationships with his father, his girlfriend, and God, is one that works on so many levels. The notion of breaking away from one's past, and looking for answers to guide one's future somewhere out in the greater world is something we have all experienced at one time or another.
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Stan Purdum
Synopsis
If you wanted to drive from Niagara Falls, New York, to El Paso, Texas, and needed to make time, you wouldn’t select U.S. Route 62. Interstate highways connect the cities in fewer miles and much less time. But if you did take 62, you’d be rewarded with a fascinating and diverse portrait of America. U.S. Route 62 takes 2271 miles to get from Niagara Falls to El Paso. On his bicycle, he got up close and personal with every one of them.
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Joe Kurmaskie
Synopsis
Forty essays describe the author's cycling experiences, including five
cross-country trips, and meeting a variety of unusual people along the
way.
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Scott Bischke
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John Hanson Mitchell
Synopsis
John Hanson Mitchell tells of his 1500 mile ride on a trusty old Peugeot bicycle from the port of Cadiz to just below the Arctic Circle. He follows the European spring up through southern Spain, the wine and oyster country near Bordeaux, to Versailles (the palace of the "Sun King"), Wordsworth's Lake District, precipitous Scottish highlands and finally to a Druid temple on the island of Lewis in the Hebrides, a place where Midsummer is celebrated in pagan majesty as the near-midnight sun dips and then quickly rises over the horizon. The journey is interspersed with myth, natural history, and ritual all revolving around the lure and lore of the sun, culturally and historically.
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Jim Willis
Synopsis
Memoir. As a bicycle ride progresses from Florida to Massachusetts, the author discovers that you can go home again. He shares insights gained and lessons learned.
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Nadine Slavinski
Synopsis
A bicycle touring guide for budget-minded, independent travelers offers
practical tips on equipment, accommodations, and planning and describes
fourteen different cycling routes through Europe.
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Tom Fremantle
Synopsis
In 1996, Tom Fremantle began an epic journey, cycling from Swanbourne,
England to Swanbourne, Australia, following in the footsteps of his
ancestor, Captain Charles, founder of Fremantle port. His route led him
through 20 countries, including Syria, Iran, Tibet, Vietnam and
Cambodia, and "Johnny Ginger's Last Ride" is Tom's account of
his extensive travels.
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Fred Agnes Birchmore
Synopsis
In 1935 25-year-old
Birchmore circled the globe via bicycle: Around the World on a Bicycle
presents a lively armchair adventure which examines his many lively
world encounters and the trials of visiting relatively primitive
environments via bicycle. A fine blend of history and cultural insights:
delightful and fun.
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Tim Moore
Synopsis
Comic writer Tim Moore trades his ailing Rolls Royce for a bicycle, a map and a water bottle in French Revolutions. This is a quest to pedal the route of the Tour de France, no mean feat for the fit, let alone a self-described suburban slouch. The resulting 2,256-haphazard-mile journey transforms Moore into an incredibly fit and passionately proud cyclist.
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