From the Library

[Bodø]

Before the iron curtain came down my cousin did some contract work in Bulgaria.  She couldn't get color film for her camera or fluid for her contact lenses.  The letters she sent me from Norway after she got back arrived before the post cards she sent me from Bulgaria months earlier.

[Biggles]

In 2011, the Isle of Mann TT was celebrating its hundredth year using a mountain course. Back in 1911, the mountain road had only been a dirt road with gates on it, and the racers had to open and close the gates as they went through them. So I thought 2011 was a bit of a special year, and we shouldn't miss it. So while we were at the Isle of Mann IT in 2011, we let everyone know that we were going to ride to Bulgaria and back in place of going to the 2012 races and that anyone with any interest at all in joining up with us were welcome. All they had to do was let me know while we were at the TT or email me some time during the remainder of 2011. We wouldn't need definite numbers until we were getting close to the end of 2011, when we would want to start booking things.
Bulgaria and Back  Keith Handley  p4

[Biggles]

We all joined in a conversation about what we'd done during the day and how we thought our second full day had gone. Sir Bob was pleased to point out that we'd had our breakfast in France, with our midday meal in Belgium and dinner in Germany; he thought that was really very cool. I agreed, but as four of us had done that before when we'd nade the trip in the van, I was getting used to doing things like that. So I said nothing. This was the first time Sir Bob has made a trip like this with any sort of transport, and by the time he'd finished the trip, crossing borders would be second nature.
Plus, I thought that the fact that Sir Bob was the oldest rider and riding the oldest bike with the smallest engine among us meant that, when the trip was finished, he would have the biggest bragging rights of all of us by a long, long way.
Bulgaria and Back  Keith Handley  pp46-7

[Biggles]

We were about to leave Romania and intended to get on the bikes but stopped when a guy pulled in on a 1970s Puch Maxi with a race exhaust on it that was in very good condition.
It turned out that this was the moped's first run out after a full rebuild; a number of us had our photos taken with it or even on it. I think the guy was a bit overwhelmed and not at all sure what to make of a group of Englishmen falling over each other to look at his moped and have their photographs taken with it. When he left, he waved good bye to us all and set off with a big smile on his face. I wasn't sure if he was pleased we'd made such a fuss over his moped or just relived to get away from those mad Englishmen!
Bulgaria and Back  Keith Handley  p87

[Biggles]

We started to unlock the bikes and start them up. This was where I brought everything to a sudden standstill, when my disc lock wouldn't unlock. It was the type with a wire rope attached to it, and I'd locked my bike together with Berk's. So unless I could get them unlocked, he wouldn't be going anywhere either.
I tried WD-40, but it made no difference whatsoever. After a few minutes, I decided the situation called for desperate measures. I went off to retrieve the hacksaw I had ln the van. First, I cut the wire rope from my lock, which was wrapped around Berk's rear wheel. So at least now he would be able to ride his bike for the day.
Next, I tried to cut the disc lock off using the hacksaw. I asked Berk to get a small tyre lever from the back of the van. That way, he could stick it through the disc lock to hold it steady while I cut it off. But the hacksaw didn't so much as touch the lock. All that happened was that the teeth on the hacksaw blade were disappearing at a rapid rate. That was no good whatsoever!
Then my saviour came in the shape of the caretaker/ handyman for this hotel. He arrived with an electrical extension lead and a very large electrical Stihl grinder.
Bulgaria and Back  Keith Handley  pp144-5

[Biggles]

All the bikes burst into life except mine; I got nothing, not a  murmur, just a little click if you listened carefully. So everyone else hopped off their bikes again and came over to take a look and see what's happening. It was decided that we should have a go at bump-starting it.
So after we'd pushed the bike up and back down the lay-by a few times and with no luck, I said, "Forget it." The thing could go in the back of the van. I wasn't the happiest person on this planet at this point in time, which wasn't helped by the fact that people were pointing out that this was the newest bike here and that it had had a full service by an Aprilia dealer.
Bulgaria and Back  Keith Handley  p167

[Biggles]

Some of the homework would actually be about the people with whom I'd be making the trip. The following are some of the research questions I would ask:
1. What is the longest time you can spend riding your bike without a break?
2. How long a break will you require between riding your bike and then getting back on and going again?
3. How many hours would you be prepared to spend on your bike, including rest stops, in one day?
4. How many days are you prepared to do riding your bike without a day off?
5. What speed can you comfortably cruise at on your bike (not what speed can your bike do)?
6. What is the maximum distance you can travel on your bike with a full tank of fuel before you have to fuel up again?
7. What type of roads do you prefer to ride on?
Bulgaria and Back  Keith Handley  pp213-4

[Biggles]

The next day, our planning took a serious turn, and the trip began to seem more and more likely. We decided on the motorbike as our mode of transportation, and we thank our lucky stars to this day that we did. The motorbike seemed like the best choice from the start. We considered both the bike and automobile as possibilities, but while the former promised to be slow and uncomfortable, the latter gas-guzzler was going to be too expensive. But it wasn't until after the trip that we realized just how fortunate our choice had been. In choosing the bike, we would have had to leave a significant amount of supplies behind, and we would not be able to carry all the food and water we desperately needed on the long stretches of our journey far from civilization. But the automobile would simply not have gotten us everywhere we needed to go. You couldn't take a car apart and carry it across a river, the way we did our motorcycle on numerous occasions. And then, the sheer sport value of circumnavigating the globe on a motorbike was far more enticing than simply driving. 
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  p18

[Biggles]

A great advantage of country life was all the fresh milk. Cows, or in poorer families, goats, were driven home along the street every evening. Whoever needed milk simply stood at the side of the road, and the animals were milked as they passed by. The cow that ran out of milk was then taken home.
We fell in love with the Italian people. They were good-hearted and altogether lovable. We marveled at the cleanliness and order in larger towns and admired their beautiful castles and churches. Bibitas, sparkling in the various colors of the rainbow, quenched our thirst, and we were delighted by the magnificent fruits. Whenever we had worked up our appetite for sweet grapes or golden oranges, we simply stopped at the side of the road, and my friend, Gyuszi, cried in his deep bass voice, "Un poco de frutta, Signore o Signora!". Locals bearing the choicest fruits soon surrounded us, and only upon repeated urging would they agree to accept any money in return. After a while, we stopped being so adamant about paying for our fruit.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  p22

[Biggles]

Fortunately, our motorcycle bore the heat exceptionally well. We sped along at a very satisfying pace, disregarding the few lengths of road where the going was sandy and tough. Things were going so well that we hardly noticed the hot desert wind picking up and beginning to thrust us with great force from the side. It was a while before we realized we were in the middle of a rising sandstorm. Since we had no relevant experience to work from, we decided to wet our handkerchiefs and tie them in front of our mouths and noses. With this slim protection, we started frantically looking for the nearest house or, at the very least, natural shelter of some kind. The wind had swept up the fine sand surrounding the road, and the air was filled with the tiny, flourlike grains, which whipped and stung our faces. The horizon grew dark as if night had descended, or as if we had been wading through a thick fog. The wind grew so powerful that it kept pushing our packed vehicle, sidecar and all, off the road. Wet handkerchiefs, as we found out, weren't much use. Our eyes, ears, and mouths filled with sand, but there was sand under our clothing, in our shoes, and in the tiniest compartments and crevices of our motorcycle. Standing in one place didn't help either; we couldn't see further than our noses.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936 Zoltan Sulkowsky  pp52-3

[Biggles]

Even before reaching Seyhan, Turkey, we were forced to cross the Gyaur Mountains, which towered above us at 2,200 meters, as well as the monumental Taurus Range. It took us fourteen hours to travel forty-five kilometers, and after passing the village of Osmaniye, our pace slowed to a total of sixty kilometers in three days as we crossed the Taurus Range.
For the most part, we stayed on the old military road, especially in the mountainous regions, where the road proved absolutely indispensable. Only the foundations of the road remained; most of the actual road was covered with earth or giant rocks. We were forced to stop a number of times to clear the road of the layers of earth and large rocks; on other occasions, we took it upon ourselves to build up a stretch of the road that had slid into the depths to avoid the same fate ourselves. Gullies and mountain creeks further obstructed our way. Each time we encountered water, we faced having to build a small bridge and carrying, pulling, and pushing our motorcycle along and what seemed like a snail's pace, hoping with each step that we were that much closer to the "good" roads.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936 Zoltan Sulkowsky  pp84-5

[Biggles]

We set up our tent, completely covered with mosquito nets, in a nearby clearing and had soon prepared a tasty canned meal. By the time we lay down to sleep, the night was black as ink. After a few moments of silence, Hadji started barking and kept at it so long that I loaded our revolver and started scanning the surrounding area with a flashlight. Sure enough, a wolf was scurrying through a nearby clump of trees. It disappeared. Then we saw two more, and the shivers commenced running up and down our spines.
"One of us had better keep watch," suggested Bartha.
"Tie up the dog before one of these beasts gets it," I warned my companion, as Hadji seemed inclined to throw himself at the entire pack.
As time passed, our eyes remained open and watchful. By midnight, we were encircled by numerous pairs of eyes reflecting the rays of our flashlight.
The wolves howled and Hadji howled back.
It didn't take us long to realize the dangers of the situation we had gotten ourselves into. We fired a few shots, hoping to kill some wolves and scare the rest away, but our stock of bullets was running low, and each time we successfully hit a wolf, three more seemed to take its place and edge closer and closer to our tent. It felt like only moments separated us from the general attack, which would surely end our lives, unless we managed to shimmy up the nearby trees before it was too late.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  p127

[Biggles]

In Brazil we were riding our motorcycle one day, marveling at the beauties of the landscape not far from Colombo, when a fine specimen of a snake suddenly appeared next to one of our wheels. We hadn't noticed it before, as it had been lying coiled up on the road, but by the time we did see the snake, it had flattened its head and taken up the position indicative of imminent attack. It must have been about four meters long, with a neck at least ten centimeters wide. Its head, approximately a meter above the ground, flashed towards my knee at lightning speed, but it missed, as we were traveling too fast. As the snake was a cobra, I asked Gyuszi to stop a littie ways down the road, because I was eager to take a photograph. The snake sped towards us with such uncanny velocity, that I was forced to shoot at it, and the shooting having produced no result, we hopped back on the motorcycle and headed for safer ground.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  p152

[Biggles]

Despite the large number of automobiles and bicycles whizzing along Javanese roads, we still managed to attract quite a bit of the natives' attention. Whenever we stopped, it didn't take long for a large crowd of curious spectators to encircle us completely. Poor Hadji was no longer with us, and we were not able to leave our motorcycle unattended, as Malaysians had a predilection for the goods of others and didn't find us forbidding enough to give up all hopes of taking our Harley. Occasionally, cars left unattended overnight were found the next morning missing all four tires. As our shouting wasn't enough to keep the skirt-wearing crowds, men and women alike, away from our motorcycle, we were obliged to cover the vehicle with a large white tarp to dampen the curiosity of the onlookers.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  p190

[Biggles]

On our way to Medan, however, we encountered an entirely new phenomenon. Not only would natives refuse to let us pass, they would actually place themselves squarely in the way of the motorcycle and refuse to budge despite our honking and shouting. Not knowing what to do next and suspecting a ruse of some kind, we drove right at the resolute man and would have hit him had he not jumped to the side at the very last moment. As this nearly-hit-and-run scene repeated itself a number of times, we were sure there was a reasonable explanation of the strange behavior of the natives. In Medan, we found out that the men standing in way had simply been attempting to drive demons from them. These people believed that their bodies were inhabited by evil spirits, which must be purged, and so they would stand in the middle of the road and wait for any fast vehicle, be it an automobile or a motorcycle, to approach at full speed, waiting for the very last moment to jump to the side and thereby save their lives. The demons living inside them, however, were believed to be slower, and so they were hit and run over by passing vehicles as the people they had inhabited lived on.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  pp204-5

[Brock]

There were taxis in Penang that believed something similar. They thought that the evil spirits road on the head light beams, so every now and then they would turn them off.. The idea was, that the evil spirits would fall down when the light went out and get run over..

[Biggles]

[In remote China- effectively lawless.] We showed them our things, including the photographs, which they passed around with great interest. It was at this point that I was divinely inspired to show them the article that had appeared about us in the Saigon Chinese paper. The leader took the article and read it aloud. We crossed our fingers that the journalist had written nothing negative. Next, we started passing out photographs and postcards; almost everyone got a small memento. When we had won our "hosts" over, explaining that we were headed for Canton, where we hoped to earn money to continue our journey. Our explanations were followed by a long caucus, during which both Gyuszi and I began sweating profusely. No wonder; we felt our lives might very well be at stake.
"Money, money," the leader shouted, suddenly turning to us. His request did not take us by surprise. We quickly took out our wallets, which held only a few piasters each, explaining that the "money" was in Canton, and these coins were all we had. Placing all of our coins in the leader's hands, we stood and waited. He was evidently perplexed as to what to do next. Fortunately, the rest of our money was safe in the form of British traveler's checks.
The encounter ended as the members of the band unpacked and searched all our belongings. They divided our clothes among themselves, and the leader laid hold of our shotguns and ammunition, but they didn't touch what was most important: our checks, writings, passports, and books. We also got to keep our camera, film, and gasoline stores. The last thing they took was a few cans of food, but they left most of our supplies intact. Finally, the leader gestured that we were free to go.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  pp242-3

[Biggles]

The helpful ways of the people of Korea were astounding. They did their best to aid our progress and never haggled over their wages. Sometimes, they refused to accept a single penny in payment. Entire villages of forty to fifty capable men would set their work aside and push, shove, and carry our motorbike into the next town or village. Occasionally, we took the motorbike apart and hung the pieces from poles, which groups of men shouldered and carried forward. Our biggest difficulty lay in making ourselves understood. The simple people had no idea how to handle such a large machine; Gyuszi and I had to show each and every one where to place his hands, how to lift the machine and place it back on the ground, how to move ahead. Occasionally, one of the men would slip, cry out, and let go of the vehicle. If one let go, they all let go, and the motorbike tumbled to the ground.
By the time we had reached our destination of Pusan, we were all of ten kilograms lighter. That was how much weight we had lost since Shanghai. Nevertheless, we had the satisfaction of knowing that we had crossed Korea on a motorcycle.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  p269

[Biggles]

[in Hollywood] The big stars had gorgeous cars, but our trusty old motorbike always attracted the most attention. There was no feeling of distance or hierarchy within the closed world of the studios. World-famous movie stars walked in and out of the cafeteria where we were stationed, stopping for a friendly chat when they saw us with our motorcycle. They were very interested in our travels and happy to oblige us with autographs, even private tours of studios, provided we gave them a ride on our bike. We even received a few lunch invitations and spent many pleasant hours in the spacious studio restaurant. The various motorcycle companies went wild with the commercial possibilities of it all. They were constantly asking the stars to perch on our old machine for the space of a photograph. These were proud moments, and we made the acquaintance of Greta Garbo, Harold Lloyd, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, Richard Dix, Edward Robinson, Joan Crawford, Clara Bow, Rosita Moreno and many other celebrities. We were often invited to visit the actors themselves in their homes and familiarized ourselves with the Hungarian film colony. Cecil de Mille, the famous director, and the actor John Barrymore showed special interest in our travels.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  p303

[Biggles]

[In Mexico] After passing through Valles, we reached the town of Comoca, where we made a rest stop of a few days, traveling ahead on horseback to size up the condition of the roads awaiting us. The muddy, flooded roads weren't an especially encouraging sight, but by the fourth day, we were on our way, armed with a number of wooden planks and four hired Indian guides. Our rate of progress was a hundred meters every few hours, but even that was much better than a large Buick we passed had done. We smiled to ourselves as we passed the envious American driver and passengers, who had been struggling in the same place for two days.
Our radio worked marvelously well. The people of Comoca spent several evenings listening to the "talking box", which often spoke in Spanish to their great delight. They enjoyed our radio so much that they gave us food and drinks and insisted we stay a few more nights and not deprive them of their newfound hobby. The radio had a few surprises in store even for us.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  p332

[Biggles]

[In Ecuador] We finally agreed to take the motorcycle apart, spend the night on the riverbank, and have our friend row us over in installments the next day. The Indian boatman seemed to like the idea as much as we did. The very next day, I floated across first, with our packages, rifles, a bit of food, and good old Hadji. The sidecar and chassis came next, then the wheels, the motorcycle frame, and miscellaneous equipment. Gyuszi rode across last, sharing his seat with the engine. The river was so wide that it was impossible to see from one bank to the next. Each transport filled us with dread. Gyuszi fired his rifle each time the boat took off, and I kept peering at my watch and the placid waters alternately until the joyful moment the would appear among the trees. Then it was my turn to fire a salvo of relief. Gyuszi took care to bind all the parts of our motorcycle to the boat; we were well aware that the tiny canoe, a mere fifty centimeters wide, was our sole hope of continuing our journey. Had a single part of our bike fallen into the water, we would have been unable to go on.
It was our desperation at the prospect of never reaching Peru that had us on to such a bold solution.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  pp353-4

[Biggles]

[In Brazil] We knew we had gone too far, but kept driving on just the same, unsure of where we had missed the road to Casino. After some time, we ran up against a small pier, which was highly suspect, seeing as no such embankments figured on our maps. Crossing the pier with the help of our boards, we drove on through a shallow river, its sandy bottom packed hard as rock. The next river was a bit more difficult to ford, but we pressed on in the hopes of finding the sandbank we were looking for. We found water instead, and lots of it. Gyuszi walked ahead with a flashlight, trying to find our way out. We could never be quite sure whether we were driving through the ocean shallows or the waters of the river delta. As the water rose higher and higher, we realized we'd have to get out as soon as possible. Spending the night in the waters of the bay would have been too great a risk. Leaving our bike on a bit of solid ground, Gyuszi and I hurried ahead. The light burning on our motorcycle was to ensure our way back.
The further we walked the deeper the water around us became. After a while, all we could see was water, whichever direction we looked. To make matters worse, the ground under our feet changed from hard sandbank to a marshy mush that could easily swallow a motorcycle.
The harsh truth dawned on us. We had passed the village, and were wading through the waters of an inland sea, a lagoon of whirlpools and squelching mud, dangerous even by day, but potentially fatal by night.
Around The World On A Motorcycle 1928-1936  Zoltan Sulkowsky  pp386-7

[Biggles]

It was around this time that I tried my hand at touring on the XR600, with a ride from Canberra to the small town of Texas, in Queensland, riding as much dirt as I could find. This was the longest off-road adventure ride I'd done, long before the terms 'adventure riding' and 'adventure bikes' had even been coined. The only problem was that the big XR had been set up for racing: it had very hard suspension, no windscreen, little in the way of luggage capacity and a rock-hard seat. There were no specialised product for the adventure touring market at this time, so people just made do with what they could build or use from the road bike sector.
I found a set of soft panniers that I threw over the seat, and bought a small biker swag with a paper-thin foam mattress and sleeping bag. I was young, keen and set! My route took me on back roads through Forbes, Parkes, Nyngan and Lightning Ridge, places that seemed so far away.
King Of The Desert  Nick Arley  p9

[Biggles]

The highlight was going to the totems that marked where the atomic bombs had been detonated. About 20 kilometres down the road from the airstrip were totems one and two. Warning signs were spread out in a line for kilometres, advising visitors not to camp or eat the wildlife due to the radiation. That got the hairs on my neck standing up. We pressed on and rode deeper into the scrub, finally seeing a large concrete monolith. The bomb had been placed on a steel scaffold 30 metres above the ground and detonated right at this spot, with the explosion monitored back at the village.
It was eerie to stand at the site of an atomic explosion, imagining the destruction that had taken place. We saw twisted metal and trinitite, which is melted particles ot sand that are still radioactive. Note to self— don't touch anything! We took a few pictures and didn't hang around too long, but it was amazing to experience something of Australia's hidden history.
King Of The Desert  Nick Arley  p29

[Biggles]

Because of my previous desert trips, I had a fair idea of what equipment and food I wanted to take. My food was to be prepared in individual daily ration packs. Each pack had to have enough calories to replace what I would be burning that day, and to provide me with the energy I'd need to keep going. I varied the contents of each ration pack for interest's sake, but here's what a typical day's food looked like:
• Breakfast:   1 porridge sachet, 1 coffee sachet
• Day snacks:    1 bag of sugar lollies and 1 bag trail mix (nuts and dried fruit)
• Lunch:    1 tuna sachet
• Day snacks:    1 Muesli bar
• Dinner:   1 dehydrated camp meal, 1 coffee sachet
King Of The Desert  Nick Arley  p56