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Three Men on a Bike: A Journey Through Africa
In 1989, prompted by a cocktail of cheap red wine and headstrong naivety, Rory Spowers and three friends set off on one of the most bizarre bicycle rides of the century. One year and two 278 punctures later, they had traversed the length of Africa on the Goodies's 1930s tandem and a mountain bike, retaining their sanity (barely), but minus one testicle and their preconceptions. Experiences ranged from starring as extras in a Clint Eastwood movie, being attacked by machete-wielding men and poisonous snakes, surviving regular bouts of malaria and travelling through some of the most beautiful lands in the world.
- GenresCycling
176 pages, Paperback
First published October 31, 1995
17 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 20, 2021
'Swimming in the lake that afternoon was curtailed by the appearance of four-foot aquatic lizards.' This sentence appears on p.54 as a stand-alone paragraph! In a book less packed with incident, this tale would have been spun into a whole chapter.
You could say that *too much* happens; what started as a student adventure became a life-changing experience, especially for Rory. There are many startling, entertaining and hairy happenings and the beauty of the continent and its people are well-conveyed. Because the fundraising journey took place in the late 80s, technology and communications were nothing like today, causing the riders real dangers (and lack of record) that modern readers will find jaw-dropping. All the cyclists were of course brave, in that naive way of strong yet inexperienced people, yet I found the author's character the most interesting - particularly the memories of his childhood and his adventurous father. He is now pursuing various ecological and social justice projects that are well worth a look.
As a Goodies fan it was nice to fill in a bit of 'Buttercup's later life - although where she is now, I'm not sure. She was modified and strengthened for her African voyage, and painted in the sponsor's colours. NB: the trandem in the Return of The Goodies programme was the LWT one, repainted from blue to red. (And that 'target' was a poor imitation - what happened to the original, I wonder?) Tim and Bill appear in this book near the start, and Bill's written a great foreword.
Apparently Rory made a film in 1993 about pollution in the Ganges, in which Bill and the trandem appeared, but this hasn't ever been released - unless you know differently? During this trip, Bill revisited the spot where a friend of his had been killed by a tiger - this is mentioned in one of his own books, 'Follow That Bird'.
In summary: you won't be bored. You will laugh, dream and wince. Try a trip to paradise.
You could say that *too much* happens; what started as a student adventure became a life-changing experience, especially for Rory. There are many startling, entertaining and hairy happenings and the beauty of the continent and its people are well-conveyed. Because the fundraising journey took place in the late 80s, technology and communications were nothing like today, causing the riders real dangers (and lack of record) that modern readers will find jaw-dropping. All the cyclists were of course brave, in that naive way of strong yet inexperienced people, yet I found the author's character the most interesting - particularly the memories of his childhood and his adventurous father. He is now pursuing various ecological and social justice projects that are well worth a look.
As a Goodies fan it was nice to fill in a bit of 'Buttercup's later life - although where she is now, I'm not sure. She was modified and strengthened for her African voyage, and painted in the sponsor's colours. NB: the trandem in the Return of The Goodies programme was the LWT one, repainted from blue to red. (And that 'target' was a poor imitation - what happened to the original, I wonder?) Tim and Bill appear in this book near the start, and Bill's written a great foreword.
Apparently Rory made a film in 1993 about pollution in the Ganges, in which Bill and the trandem appeared, but this hasn't ever been released - unless you know differently? During this trip, Bill revisited the spot where a friend of his had been killed by a tiger - this is mentioned in one of his own books, 'Follow That Bird'.
In summary: you won't be bored. You will laugh, dream and wince. Try a trip to paradise.
June 27, 2020
Its a great book! A word for word account about an Adventure of a lifetime... comedic at some points and scary at others.
It shows how the poorest most simple people in the world are sometimes there more welcoming and giving people.
If you are a cyclist you will also have a few laughs at how incredible these 4 characters and then some others later, traveled in a 3 seater bike a "trandem", a bike made in 1930.. no wonder they had so many technical issues!
This reveals their amazing will to preserve, push forward and finish their trip against all odds.
the book also describes the beauty of Africa, a full colorful description of everything African related, the landscapes, the politics, the streets and the food.
You will also discover something very strange... that in one "north" African country, children throw rocks at cyclists ? I wonder who started this tradition and why?, its very disturbing!
A good read!
thanks
It shows how the poorest most simple people in the world are sometimes there more welcoming and giving people.
If you are a cyclist you will also have a few laughs at how incredible these 4 characters and then some others later, traveled in a 3 seater bike a "trandem", a bike made in 1930.. no wonder they had so many technical issues!
This reveals their amazing will to preserve, push forward and finish their trip against all odds.
the book also describes the beauty of Africa, a full colorful description of everything African related, the landscapes, the politics, the streets and the food.
You will also discover something very strange... that in one "north" African country, children throw rocks at cyclists ? I wonder who started this tradition and why?, its very disturbing!
A good read!
thanks
December 4, 2024
Wow just finished now at 2:51 am ! Had to come on here to say what a brilliant book .
An adventure from start to finish, young men with no real experience going with the flow and keeping humourous and inspiring the reader to do the same !
Beautiful ending aswell ,Rory has a brilliant conclusion that made me think a lot about human consciousness and how we need nature connection to change the system. I have no become very interested in his work and will read some more of his books .Rory if your reading this you beautiful soul , thank you .when I finish university I would too like to cycle a part of Africa ! Life changing book I neeeeeded this
An adventure from start to finish, young men with no real experience going with the flow and keeping humourous and inspiring the reader to do the same !
Beautiful ending aswell ,Rory has a brilliant conclusion that made me think a lot about human consciousness and how we need nature connection to change the system. I have no become very interested in his work and will read some more of his books .Rory if your reading this you beautiful soul , thank you .when I finish university I would too like to cycle a part of Africa ! Life changing book I neeeeeded this
October 31, 2011
Surprisingly good read for a book about guys riding a bike through Africa
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews