Is That Bike Diesel, Mate?: One Man, One Bike and the First Lap Around Australia on Used Cooking Oil

Used
Paperback
2011
$3.50

At forty years old, a successful writer, husband and father, no longer toiling on offshore drilling rigs, was Paul Carter happily nestled in the cotton wool of suburban life enjoying the fruits of his labour? Was he f**k! With his manic life left far behind and the perfect opportunity to take it easy stretched before him what else would a middle-aged, bike obsessed, man want? Yes, that's right, he'd want to be the first guy to ride around Australia on an underpowered experimental motorcycle that runs on used chip fat, wouldn't he? (Preferably without getting hit by an articulated lorry full of bridge parts along the way - ) Is he out of his mind? Quite possibly - Embark on a rollickingly funny, downright dangerous and often unhinged quest that starts on an environmentally friendly motorcycle built on a shoestring budget by students, and ends with a plan to land speed record for biofuel-powered motorcycle. Carter is at his balls-to-the-wall best: prepare to laugh out loud.

Synopsis

At forty years old, a successful writer, husband and father, no longer toiling on offshore drilling rigs, was Paul Carter happily nestled in the cotton wool of suburban life enjoying the fruits of his labour? Was he f**k! With his manic life left far behind and the perfect opportunity to take it easy stretched before him what else would a middle-aged, bike obsessed, man want? Yes, that's right, he'd want to be the first guy to ride around Australia on an underpowered experimental motorcycle that runs on used chip fat, wouldn't he? (Preferably without getting hit by an articulated lorry full of bridge parts along the way - ) Is he out of his mind? Quite possibly - Embark on a rollickingly funny, downright dangerous and often unhinged quest that starts on an environmentally friendly motorcycle built on a shoestring budget by students, and ends with a plan to land speed record for biofuel-powered motorcycle. Carter is at his balls-to-the-wall best: prepare to laugh out loud.

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More Information

Format: Paperback
Pages: 288
Publisher: Nicholas Brealey Publishing
Published: 22 Sep 2011
ISBN 10: 1857885627
ISBN 13: 9781857885620

Media Reviews

When Carter eases off on the profanity and throttles up on the wit, he gets the chequered flag every time. The book is funny, entertaining and - for rev heads - informative. * Sunday Herald Sun *
There is so much more to his stories than simply getting from A to B. If Carter can have a crazy adventure on the way, he will. If he can make things difficult, he will without even trying. Add to this a few whiskies and a great bunch of mates, and you get the idea of what to expect from this trip... a fascinating story... what will Carter do next? * Bookseller and Publisher *
Some people cure boredom by going shopping; Carter does it by taking a bio-diesel motorbike around Australia... don't buy this book if you're offended by seriously bad language: we're talking direct quotes from hardened oil riggers. * Sun Herald *
I laughed so hard I cried - but there is also poignancy here... Carter captures the moment with pithy observations that achieve an almost transcendent lucidity at times, and is funny enough to frame. * Western Australian *

Author Bio

Paul Carter was born in England in 1969. His father's military career had the family moving all over the world, relocating every few years. Paul has worked in the oil industry now for fifteen years, relocating every few years (old habits). Paul has lived, worked, gotten into trouble and been given a serious talking to in England, Scotland, Germany, France, Holland, Norway, Portugal, Tunisia, Australia, Nigeria, Russia, Singapore, Malaysia, Borneo, Columbia, Vietnam, Thailand, Papua New Guinea, Sumatra, the Philippines, Korea, Japan, China, USA and Saudi Arabia. Today he lives in Perth with his wife, baby daughter and two motorbikes. But who knows where he'll be tomorrow . . .