rick@rochester.UUCP (Rick Floyd) (03/25/84)
>From "Bicycle Camping" by Diana Armstrong:
"On the first day of a long trip, at the bottom of the first big
hill, stood a bull. His horns spanned both lanes from his firm
position in the middle of the road. Enormous, black, wide-eyed,
he stared while I wrestled with the surprising and suddenly
unwieldy bulk of me and my bike with its load. It was also the
first day that I had ever carried panniers. My back wheel began
to skid. I eased up on the brakes, deciding that being close to
the possibly peaceful bull was better than a sure dump on the
asphalt. By the time I stopped, I coiuld see the whites of his
eyes. Straddling the bike, I stared back. What else to do?
Tap him with my tire pump? Both of us were wondering who would
make the next move and what it would be. He flicked his tail and
magnanimously trotted off the right-of-way, staring over his
shoulder as I pedaled by, as fast as I considered to be polite."
And I thought that the two 130lb St. Bernards that once ambushed me were
bad...
Anyway, this is a great book. I've never read anything that transmitted the
flavor of long distance bike touring quite as well as "Bicycle Camping"
does. It's intended primarily for the beginning tourist, who is trying to
decide what what kind of bike to buy and what to carry on a trip, but it's
also fun for the experienced tourista to read. Along with the text are lots
of pictures that will make you wish you were on the road instead of sitting
at a terminal reading this review.
rick floyd
uucp: (seismo | allegra)!rochester!rick
arpa: rick@rochester
[note: The above quote used without permission of the publisher, but for
review purposes only.]