Book Review: The Man Who Cycled the World - Mark Beaumont

I just read the Australia chapters of this book to find out about his experience of it. Mark Beaumont rode - as a small part of his race around the world for the Guinness World Record - from Perth across the Nullarbor to Melbourne and then an inland route to Brisbane.

Book Review: Headwinds by Andrew Bain

Headwinds by Andrew Bain documents his and his partners clock-wise circumnavigation of the Australian continent from Cairns down the east coast, around Tasmania, across the Nullarbor, up the west coast, across the top (including the Gibb River road) and back to Cairns.

It's a story of self-described non-cyclists tackling harsh country, rough terrain, trucks, mean wildlife, spectacular as well as boring scenery, the occassional dirt road, a barrage of the same questions over and over from motor tourists - and headwinds. Lots of headwinds.

This book brings stories of triumph over hard conditions and reaching the limits of your endurance for what cycle touring can through at you, as well as for hearing bad news.

Well worth a read, even if just to ensure you never make the same mistakes along the way.

Kilometre freak-out

I just spent half an hour estimating distances involved in this mammoth (perhaps just as hairy) journey. Looking at the parts of the tour that are time constrained (Melbourne to Brisbane isn't)...