Greasy Rider: Two Dudes, One Fry-Oil-Powered Car, and a Cross-Country Search for a Greener Future [Paperback]

Greg Melville (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 21, 2008

Is it possible to drive coast-to-coast without stopping at a single gas pump? Journalist Greg Melville is determined to try. With his college buddy Iggy riding shotgun, this green-thinking guy—who's in love with the idea of free fuel—sets out on an enlightening road trip. The quest: to be the first people to drive cross-country in a french-fry car. Will they make it from Vermont to California in a beat-up 1985 Mercedes diesel station wagon powered on vegetable oil collected from restaurant grease Dumpsters along the way? More important, can two guys survive 192 consecutive hours together?

Their expedition on and off the road includes visits to the solar-powered Google headquarters; the National Ethanol Council; the wind turbines of southwestern Minnesota; the National Renewable Energy Lab; a visit to one of the first houses to receive platinum certification for leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED); an "eco-friendly" Wal-Mart; and the world's largest geothermal heating system.

Part adventure and part investigation of what we're doing (or not doing) to preserve the planet, Greasy Rider is upbeat, funny, and full of surprising information about sustainable measures that are within our reach.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Early on in this eco-travelogue, mechanically-disinclined magazine writer Melville notes, "I simply needed to look at my reflection in the rearview mirror to realize that nearly anyone can operate and maintain a french-fry car." Indeed, it turns out Melville is easily able to convert a diesel-engine Mercedes into a vehicle powered entirely on fryer oil, collected (usually for free) from restaurant grease dumpsters. Joined by his college friend, Iggy, Melville embarks on the first oil-powered cross-country road trip. There isn't really much suspense to the quest, especially once it's clear that they can use oil purchased at the supermarket. Unfortunately, greasy restaurant backlots don't make for great anecdotes, and the duo's banter isn't as funny or insightful as Melville seems to think. What keeps it from reading like a padded magazine article are Melville's side trips: he learns how Fort Knox has converted to geo-thermal heating and cooling, investigates just how eco-friendly Al Gore's mansion really is, and talks to representatives of various "green" U.S. Government agencies. These insights, and the simplicity of his grease-powered transport, propel an otherwise slight read into a thought-, and perhaps action-provoking lesson in alternative fuel.
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From Booklist

*Starred Review* From its punny title, to its unique premise (a man decides to drive from coast to coast in a car powered by used french-fry oil), to its serious message (you, too, can be more environmentally conscious), to its easygoing writing style, this is just a splendid book. The author blames his wife for the genesis of his cross-country quest: it was her idea to buy a diesel vehicle and convert it to run on vegetable oil—Rudolf Diesel demonstrated his original engine in 1900 by running it on peanut oil, part of his plan to encourage drivers to generate their own fuel sources. Anyway, Melville took his wife’s idea and ran with it or, more precisely, drove with it, teaming up with an old college buddy and setting out to drive a converted 1980s Mercedes from Vermont to California. It’s an exciting and occasionally nail-biting adventure, but the author keeps the book from being a simple road trip by delving fairly deeply into the whole ecological, pro-environmental, self-sufficiency theme, taking the reader along on visits to such interesting places as Google headquarters, a wind farm, a renewable energy lab, and a green home. Melville, a freelance journalist who has written his share of travel pieces, is a lively stylist, and the book is both entertaining and educational. --David Pitt

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Product Details

• Paperback: 257 pages
• Publisher: Algonquin Books; First Edition edition (October 21, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565125959
• ISBN-13: 978-1565125957
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #187,331 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #69 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Nature Travel > Ecotourism

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Hilarious Cross-Country Search for Used Fry Oil, September 21, 2008

By 

Madam Pince "Madam Pince" (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greasy Rider: Two Dudes, One Fry-Oil-Powered Car, and a Cross-Country Search for a Greener Future (Paperback)

Take an Eastern liberal with no mechanical aptitude, pair him with a down-to-earth college friend who knows his way around an engine, and put them in a retooled Mercedes for an eight-day trip across the country while begging restaurants for fry-oil fuel -- and you'll have a laugh-aloud read that leaves you longing for French fries. Greg Melville & his pal Iggy travel from Burlington, Vermont to Berkeley, CA in the footsteps of cross-country driving pioneer H. Nelson Jackson, while searching for greener alternatives to everyday life. Not only do they glimpse Al Gore's Tennessee mansion and visit Fort Knox's geothermally-powered complex, they also encounter Hank in Nebraska (and his self-published Jesus screed), endure teeth-chattering cold as they climb the Rockies (the Mercedes' heat stops working when the car exceeds 50 mph), and discover another college pal is gay (his computer log-in is "Two Gay Guys"). Combined with side trips to Google, Dartmouth, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, a wind-turbine farm, and the world's first green Wal-Mart, Melville delivers a funny and thought-provoking tale that not only splits your sides, but makes you ponder reducing your carbon footprint.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Reduce, Reuse, Refuel, October 20, 2008

By 

CMBohn "cmb" (Orem, UT USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Greasy Rider: Two Dudes, One Fry-Oil-Powered Car, and a Cross-Country Search for a Greener Future (Paperback)

This book was great! First of all, it was free, so that's always a bonus. But even if I had to pay for it, it would have been worth it.

Greg Melville wants a new truck. His wife wants something greener. Way greener. So he decides to get an old Mercedes with a diesel engine and convert it to run on old cooking oil. Then he gets inspired to take a road trip, using nothing but free recycled oil in his car. He calls up his old buddy Iggy and the two hit the road.

The title alone is a hint that this is bound to have some funny moments. The two friends get on each others nerves and kid each other like teenagers. The car breaks down with alarming regularity. Greg gets peed on by a dog. Stuff happens, and it's pretty funny stuff.

I also enjoyed the 'errands' - side trips that Greg takes to discover what else is being done in the Green Movement to make life on earth a little more sustainable. I felt cheered to see that there are a lot of people dedicated to making a difference, and some of these ideas are practical and affordable.

This was just a fun book and a good read. Way to go, Greg! Here's hoping that everyone who read this is inspired to make a few changes in their own lives.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Some Chapters Are Worth The Price Of The Whole Book!, February 5, 2011

By 

Ernest A. Mizell "Alan Mizell" (Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Greasy Rider: Two Dudes, One Fry-Oil-Powered Car, and a Cross-Country Search for a Greener Future (Paperback)

Interesting story and I did appreciate the author's balanced thoughts. Being a more liberal East coast writer I thought the book might be a bit slanted but in the chapter where he has a look at Al Gore and the man's lifestyle he really rolls with some honest punches.
Good story, good trip cross the old USA!