“Joe Kurmaskie’s stories are full of optimism, zaniness, and depth; a winning combination.”The Seattle Times
“The Metal Cowboy is crazy, wise, funny, and living the dream all cyclists haveriding off to see the world on a bike. Don’t miss this ride with him.”Bill Strickland, Bicycling
It’s as if Dave Barry and Charles Kuralt squeezed together onto a bicycle to pedal across America and around the world, filing outrageous dispatches along the way. Insightful, humane, sublimely amusing—Metal Cowboy finds nobility in the common man, explains true bicycle-love, celebrates the beauty of the country, and charmingly relates encounters with malcontents and misfits.
Most of all, Metal Cowboy is a quest. It is the record of a young man seeking meaning in the world, trying to find what is good in the people he meets, what is good in himself, and a route off the prescribed roadways of life. The forty stories in this book describe the highlights and low moments of Metal Cowboy’s cycling life, including his hallowed beginnings at age five—absconding with his sister’s bike—through five cross-country tours: sleeping in cemeteries, cycling through an Elvis-impersonator convention, being attacked by geese, meeting madmen (and enjoying their company), being run off the road by rednecks, and meeting his future wife (while cycling).
Joe Kurmaskie is an unforgettable, ebullient, inspiring, bighearted storyteller. His love for bicycles, and for humanity, is infectious. Metal Cowboy will bring a smile to the face (and adrenaline to the bloodstream) of anyone who has ever ridden a bicycle.
