Adventure Motorcycling Handbook, 5th: Worldwide Motorcycling Route & Planning Guide (Trailblazer) [Paperback]

Chris Scott (Author)

Book Description

Series: Trailblazer | Publication Date: August 1, 2005

Every red-blooded motorcyclist dreams of making the Big Trip--the Adventure Motorcycling Handbook is the comprehensive manual to make that idea a reality. Timbuktu to Kathmandu or Patagonia to Mongolia--it's all here. This expanded and re-designed new edition is packed with essential advice and practical know-how on the vital preparation for undertaking a long journey off the beaten track, be it in a nearby wilderness area or on the other side of the globe. So whether motorcyclists are planning their own Big Trip across Africa, Alaska, or Asia, or just enjoy reading about other people's adventures, this handbook is guaranteed to illuminate, entertain, and above all, inspire.

This book covers:
>Documentation--what travelers need and how to get it
>Choosing a destination
>Preparing a bike for long-range touring
>Off-road riding techniques
>Shipping or airfreighting a bike
>Transcontinental route outlines across Africa, Asia, and Latin Americas, plus backcountry riding in Southwest USA, Northwest Canada, and the Australian Outback.
>Navigation and Survival--what to do when things go wrong
>A dozen first hand accounts of biking adventures from the Sahara, Central Asia, East Africa, Colombia and Bolivia, the Yukon, and even Idaho!

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Does for adventure riding books what "Saving Private Ryan" does for war movies."
--Motorcycle Consumer News

"An absolute must for those who are thinking about seeing the world on their bike."
--Inside Motorcycles (Canada)

"Whether you're just dreaming of an adventure, or you've already started planning, you must read this book... Chris Scott's a veteran of serious travel."
--Bike magazine (UK)

From the Back Cover

Every red-blooded motorcyclist dreams of making the Big Trip; Chris Scott's Adventure Motorcycling Handbook is the comprehensive manual to make that dream a reality.

· Trans-continental route outlines - across Africa, Asia and Latin America, plus backcountry riding in South-West USA, Northwest Canada and the Australian Outback.

· Practical information - documentation, preparing your bike for touring off the beaten track, shipping and air-freighting, navigation and survival, off-road riding techniques in deserts, mountains and even rivers!

· Tales from the Saddle - a dozen first-hand accounts of spoke-bending biking adventures worldwide; battling against the elements on epic journeys: the Yukon, the Sahara, Afghanistan, Colombia and many more.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Trailblazer Publications; 5th edition (August 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1873756801
• ISBN-13: 978-1873756805
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #128,196 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #9 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Individual Sports > Cycling > Excursion Guides
  • #17 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Miscellaneous > Motorcycle Racing
  • #65 in Books > Professional & Technical > Automotive > Racing

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must have, November 28, 2001

By 

Johan Rodskog (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adventure Motorcycling Handbook, 4th: Worldwide Motorcycling Route & Planning Guide (Paperback)

If you are even thinking about taking an extended trip by motorcycle, you MUST have this book. It will become your Bible. Great tips, details on bikes, equipment, trip planning, paperwork, do's and dont's, etc. + good travel stories.

This book is geared toward offroad travel and travel trough continents. If you are riding from LA to Chicago than forget about this book. If you are planning/dreaming of a trip to South America, Asia or other foreign place then buy it right now.

If you were not planning a trip before, you will after reading this.

29 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good guidebook but ..., November 28, 2004

By 

Estanislao "El Patiperro" E - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adventure Motorcycling Handbook, 4th: Worldwide Motorcycling Route & Planning Guide (Paperback)

The author has wisely involved a number of other very experienced adventure travel riders in what has come to be regarded as perhaps the best of the very few books on the subject of international/adventure riding. There are some faults, though, to which many similar travel guides are heir. One is that circumstances change, and that what may have been correct or useful 3 or 4 years ago when the research or experience was current, are no longer valid. To address this, there is mention of websites which tend to stay more current than the once-written-now-obsolete paper books. In general there is a good technical comparison of the relative values and utility of certain features and brand models, but there is also a detactable bias against some models which ironically are among the most commonly and successfully employed in international adventure riding. If your interests lie in the territory covered by this book, then by all means obtain a copy, bearing in mind that a great deal of independent research and thought is also in order. Think of this guide, and many others like it, as simply a point of departure for further study. If I had relied upon it as my principal data source before departing the US for Argentina on a motorcycle, I would have been woefully underprepared and misinformed.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great starter book, July 20, 2007

By 

B.H. (San Jose, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Adventure Motorcycling Handbook, 5th: Worldwide Motorcycling Route & Planning Guide (Trailblazer) (Paperback)

I have to say, I read this book cover to cover. I was surprised how up to date it was. I've been motorcycling for a few years for general transportation and fun. I started getting interested in adventure motorcycling this past year. I like to get off the normal tourist routes when I travel and adventure motorcycling looked like a great way to to see some parts of the world.

The book does a good job of covering all the major topics - picking a bike (it reviews 10-15 of them), what to wear, items to bring, how to pack, gear, typical mechanical issues to expect, safety, border crossings, etc. It also covers popular routes in different regions of the world. These sections are okay, but they really didn't have enough depth for me to decide where I might want to go. It only acts as a stating point. Then again, I'm sure there's TONs of routes to take per country, so I can't imagine it would be easy to add more detail to any level of comprehensivness. If the author reads this - a set of top 10 routes might be nice, especially if it included a rating system for different attributes. The second half of the book is made up of 2-5 pages short stories or diaries from riders. These stories were the best part of the whole book. I wish there were more because they're very interesting and you learn from those as well. They really leave you wanting to go out and hit the road.