Leanings: Best of Peter Egan from Cycle World [Hardcover]

Peter Egan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2002

Since his work first graced Cycle World magazine in 1977, Peter Egan has graciously taken his readers along on his adventures. The range of motorcycle riding reports cover runs along the Mississippi River to New Orleans for a tin of chicory coffee or flying to Japan to test-ride new Yamahas. In Leanings, Egan's favorite feature articles and columns have been reprinted for the first time, including his trip cross-country on a British twin with his wife and a journey on the abandoned Route 66, plus many more stories about the open road.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Since his work first graced the pages of Cycle World magazine in 1977, Peter Egan has taken his readers on one unforgettable adventure after another. Whether riding along the Mississippi River to New Orleans for a tin of chicory coffee or flying to Japan to test-ride new Yamahas, Egan’s insight and gift with words makes every journey a unique and fascinating experience.

            Available in paperback for the first time, Leanings is a collection of Egan’s favorite feature articles and columns from Cycle World magazine. Included among the twenty-one feature articles are Egan’s first feature for the magazine, a story about his and his wife’s cross-country trip on a British twin, his journey on abandoned Route 66, a history of the motorcycle jacket, and his visit to the fabled Tourist Trophy race on the Isle of Man. A selection of twenty-seven columns are also reproduced here, covering a wide range of subjects, from the nearly lost art of the kick-start, how to survive not being able to ride for an entire Wisconsin winter, and a look back at the motorcycle crash that nearly killed the great Bob Dylan. For added perspective, each feature article is preceded by commentary from the author. This is an unforgettable collection of the works of a master writer whose simple adventures of life remind us all why we love to ride.

 

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Peter Egan is one of the most readable writers in the motorcycle enthusiast world. His writing first appeared in Cycle World magazine in 1977, and he has been a regular fixture there ever since. He also writes features and a regular column, Side Glances, for Road & Track magazine. Peter lives near Madison, Wisconsin with his wife, Barb, a houseful of dogs and cats, and a garage filled with motorcycles, cars, and the sound set for his garage blues band.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Motorbooks; 1st edition (July 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0760311587
• ISBN-13: 978-0760311585
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #673,736 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #61 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Individual Sports > Cycling > Bike Repair

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Peter Egan is way cool, November 27, 2002

By 

W. H. Jamison, Jr. (Burien, Washington United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Leanings: Best of Peter Egan from Cycle World (Hardcover)

After reading this book I wanted to quit my job and become a motorcycle journalist, and I don't even own a motorcycle yet. Touching, funny and informative Leanings is a collection of the columns and features that Egan has written over the years, including travel pieces on motorcycle trips to the Isle of Man, Mexico and New Zealand that will make you want to pack up and go and informative and humorous articles that answer questions such as "How many motorcycles do you need" and "should you buy a British motorcycle". Now more than ever I want to buy a motorcycle.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Peter Egan: Man's Man, May 22, 2003

By 

Brian Glass (Zanesville, OH United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Leanings: Best of Peter Egan from Cycle World (Hardcover)

If you are the least bit familiar with Cycle World Magazine you'll instantly recognize Pete Egan's name. His column has always been the first thing I turn to every month. Some times it's just so so but more often than not it's an outstanding piece of literary art. The same can be said for this book. Every page is a joy but towards the end it starts to be a little repetitive. But when the stories are this good repetitiveness isn't that big a problem.

Pete is a rare individual, he's a gifted writer with a background made for storytelling. He's a true motorcycle enthusiast that finds the same beauty in a Honda Benly 150 Touring as a Harley Ultra Classic with a deep love of British bikes (especially old ones). Where the gift comes in is that while his subject is motorcycles he's really writing about passion and life. The story of his adventure with his friend across Canada is surprisingly moving even for this great collection. In the sixties Pete and a college pal went on an investigation into Canada as they considered dodging the draft. The terrible time they had and the warm welcome by family and friends when they returned convinced Peter not to throw that all away. As a result he did a tour in Vietnam. As with most of his experiences it was his love of a motorcycle (a Triumph) that helped him make it through Vietnam.

This guy has done it all and writes about it with great detail. It's great to read articles dating from the seventies and early eighties. Pete was riding Route 66 before it was turned into an historical tourist attraction, all but gone. He was drinking Guiness before most people had heard of it. He's been married for 30 years or more. Several readers of Cycle World have accused him of making up the perfect wife, if you read this book you'll understand why. And he has been riding bikes through the ups and downs in ridings popularity.

Peter Egan is to motorcycle journalism what Ernie Pyle was to war reporting. This guy has done it all and writes about it so well it's never a chore to read his stories. I don't want to sound like I'm trying to oversell this book but if you are the least bit interested in motorcycles and travelling this is a must read. It's a shame he hasn't expanded to a wider audience. He is in the top five on my list of fantasy dinner party guests and this is a heck of a collection.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My most often read motorcyling book, April 4, 2004

By 

John Doh! "connell10" (South Bend, IN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Leanings: Best of Peter Egan from Cycle World (Hardcover)

I own a lot of books about motorcycles, from Hell's Angels to Proficient Motorcycling. But more often than not, I pull Egan's Leanings off the shelf when I'm in the mood for a quick fix. Egan writes well and with insight, but without the pseudo-philosophical B.S. of Persig et al. This is a collection of aricles with the earliest dating back to the 70s, so some observations are a mite dated, but Egan captures the experience of riding (and buying, and fixing, and being stranded) so wonderfully, that I enjoy reading every word in this book. Egan has a good sense of humor that runs as an undercurrent through most of his writing. Leanings is like having a tray of your favorite appetizers at hand any time you fancy a snack. When I set this book down after reading for a spell, I don't feel as if I just finished Atlas Shrugged, but it always puts me in a better mood and makes me want to pick out a bike and go for a ride. Plus I give any writer that knows how to properly kick-start a large displacement single a bonus star, and I bet Ayn Rand couldn't do that. Without this book, I also never would have bought V Four Victory on DVD, so I owe Peter Egan for that as well.