Live to Ride: The Rumbling, Roaring World of Speed, Escape, and Adventure on Two Wheels
If it involves a motorcycle, Johnson (White Heat) has it covered: the history of the two-wheeled vehicle, the inner workings of the engines, and the distinct culture of gear heads, from angry outlaw bikers to peaceful Sunday afternoon riders. He explores road racing, dirt riding, hill climbing, and the pursuit of land speed records on the Bonneville Salt Flats of Utah, as well as addressing the traits and histories of different motorcycle manufacturers from Italy, Great Britain, Japan, Germany, and America. Authentic characters ride through in droves, including everyone from Ed Free, a rider who set a 150 mph world speed record in 1948 wearing nothing more than swim trunks and shoes, to well-known names like Evel Knievel and Italian road-racing superstar Valentino Rossi. A lifelong motorcyclist who has written five novels, Johnson's passion for riding is unbridled, and his prose sometimes sings like the smooth engine of a Ducati, the expensive Italian bike that is his preference. The narrative voice alternates from second to third to first person, with personal, memoirlike anecdotes among the most engaging. While some of the information may seem excessive or even baffling to nongearheads--one bike is described as having "desmodromic, towershaft bevel driven cams"--serious motorcycle aficionados will find something to love.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.