Bike shop by Randi Jo Fabrications
These wonderful people make lovely cycling caps and other soft goods for touring and bike packing in this cabin. Ace.
I just stole this screen shot from my friend Graham’s Facebook wall.
He is off on a cycle tour. Along the way he is going to climb the three tallest mountains in the United Kingdom. In a week. He is raising money for the North West Air Ambulance.
A great challenge. A great cause.
Bike Check. Random old mountain bike. (this one is a garry fisher).
I have been chatting with a friend of a friend on Facebook as he is off on his first tour - from Toulouse back to the UK. He needs a bike and his budget is tight - my answer? a second hand mountain bike - a ready to roll go anywhere, do anything touring bike.
I love this ethic, I want to go touring, so ill go with what i have!
There Are Other Rivers. Alastair Humphreys.
It was Alastair’s two excellent books about cycling around the world that got me so interested in travel writing, and my near unhealthy obsession with reading vicariously about peoples adventures.
There Are Other Rivers is an odd one.
Its a book about walking across India.
Its not a book about walking across India.
I enjoyed its departure from the typical chronological description of a journey, instead condensing the entire journey into a single “typical” day on foot across India.
More so though, I enjoyed Alastair’s reflections on the “why?” question that people in his profession get asked so much. “if its so difficult, why don’t you stop and stay home?”
This book felt more like an autobiography. A good one too.
Buy the book directly from Al’s website here (in many forms - the map looks lovely): http://www.alastairhumphreys.com/books/thereareotherrivers/
I work in a book shop and was recently asked to make a “staff pick” and write a very short snap-shot review, here it is:
A mysterious man named “Caballo Blanco” dreamed of a running race. An epic 50 mile test. The world’s greatest ultra runner Scott Jurek, versus the Tarahumara, a band of super human barefoot tribesmen.
Born to Run the thrilling narrative of the “greatest race the world has never seen” set deep in the Copper Canyons of Mexico, its only witnesses, the local villagers.
It will inspire you to run. One question…trainers or barefoot?
