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by Elspeth Beard
In 1982 when Elspeth was 23 years old she rode her 1974 BMW R60/6 around the world.
Elspeth wrote to magazines to see if they might be interested in her travel but they brushed her off or blatantly laughed at her so she set off unsupported without sufficient funds for the trip in a time when there was no internet, GPS or mobile phones.
A voyage of self discovery as much as a motorcycle adventure. Elspeth wants to prove herself to family and friends and along the way discovers who she was all along.
Written some years after her amazing journey it doesn’t go too deep into scenery or politics of the countries which makes it an easier more flowing read than rider travel books that spend too much time talking about things long since disappeared.
Elspeth is one tough amazing woman. Her indomitable spirit draws you in. Whilst I’ve read similar challenges on overland rides many times before I enjoyed how Elspeth writes about her interactions with people, her difficult times and accidents before eventually ending in self triumph and poignancy. I could not put this down, reading the entire book on my kindle while flying Australia to Thailand (on my way to my own next motorcycle adventure).
I can’t find anything to fault in this book. I was little taken back at first to read that Elspeth, like other adventure riders Noraly Schoenmaker and Michelle Harrison seemed to be motivated to go off on huge rides from a failed relationship. I mean I was dumped when younger but just went to the pub. However Elspeth’s relationships are written about with empathy (not spite like some authors…) and form an interesting part of her journey as well the aftermath.
This is an absolutely fantastic read, one of the best motorcycle travel books I have read. Highly recommended.
