Reading Matters

Charley Boorman's latest adventure

It looks like Charley Boorman has hit the road again. And this time he didn't take Ewan McGregor with him.

The veteran of Long Way Round, Long Way Down and Race to Dakar, has just completed a new expedition in which he travelled from his home in Wicklow, Ireland, to Sydney, Australia overland by any means possible. According to his official website, Charley used "more than 110 modes of transport to traverse  land and water, exploring 25 countries and three continents on the way".

A six-part television series of his trip screens on BBC2 next month. A book and DVD will follow -- just in time for the Christmas market.

You can find out more here.

'Long Way Down' by Ewan McGregor & Charley Boorman

Non-fiction - hardcover; Sphere; 352 pages; 2007.

Three years ago fellow actors and biking buddies Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman set off on a voyage from London to New York the long way round. The resultant 10-part TV series following their 20,000 mile road trip across Europe and Asia proved a huge hit, as did the book that accompanied it. I came to the whole Long Way Round phenomenon quite late, having stumbled upon a repeat screening of the series on Sky TV about 18 months after it had been made. But I was immediately enraptured and thought it was one of the most entertaining travel documentaries I'd ever seen. I promptly went out and bought the DVD and the book.

Fast forward a year and the double-act were back on board their motorbikes, this time traversing the globe from top to bottom -- from John O'Groats at the northernmost tip of Scotland to Cape Agulhas on the southernmost tip of South Africa -- in a new 15,000-mile adventure being billed as the Long Way Down. The popularity of the first series had obviously paid off for them: this time the trip was being documented on a live website and the resultant TV series was being screened on BBC 2 during prime time Sunday night viewing.

I watched the series, although I didn't think it was as good as the first. It didn't seem quite as magical or as fresh as the original. In fact, in places, it just seemed too knowing, too calculated -- and there were far too many participants involved. It wasn't so much as two men and their motorbikes, but two men, their motorbikes, one wife, a dozen various "fixers" and a five-member support crew. Hmmm.

The book doesn't really add to much to the TV series, other than you get a chance to find out a bit more about some of the UNICEF projects they visited and you get a better sense of the African people they met along the way. Like the original book, it fills in some useful gaps that weren't explained or were simply skimmed through on TV.

At times it does read a bit like a stuck record, with both of them complaining over and over about the too-fast schedule and their inability to spend time in all the places they wanted. Coupled with Charley missing his wife and children all the time, and Ewan banging on about how privileged he is to do the trip, it began to wear thin in places.

Nonetheless it's a light, entertaining read, funny in places, moving in others -- a bit like the TV series. But it's lack of intellectual insight or deep thinking about African history means this is really only a book for the fans. If you loved Long Way Down, chances are you'll enjoy this one too, but if you'd rather just watch the TV series you're not going to miss out on anything if you don't bother with the book. And you could perhaps save yourself a lot of time by simply reading the tongue-in-cheek condensed version on The Guardian's Digested Read, which isn't so much a piss take but a crystallised version of the truth.

Three cheers for Ewan and Charlie!

Excuse me while I issue a small cheer! Mad motorcyclists/actors/authors Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman finally finished their latest trek, Long Way Down, earlier this month.

This is how Publishing News reported it:

Having motorcycled through 20 countries and survived numerous spills, Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman arrived in Cape Town on 4 August where they were greeted by Sphere Publishing Director Antonia Hodgson, Little Brown Joint Chief Operating Officer David Kent and agent Robert Kirby of pfd, all of whom rode the last miles with them on bikes provided by BMW South Africa. Sphere publishes Long Way Down, the pair's account of their journey from John O'Groats to Cape Agulhas, South Africa's most southerly point, in October, tying-in with a six-part series on BBC2.

I can't wait to watch the series and read the book. If they are anything like  Race to Dakar and Long Way Round we are all in for a treat!

Long Way Down

Anyone who has read  Long Way Round by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman or Race to Dakar by Charley Boorman may be interested to know that the two intrepid actors have embarked on a new motorbike journey. This time they are riding 15,000 miles from John O'Groats, in the north of Scotland, to Cape Town, in South Africa. It is being billed as the "long way down".

You can follow the adventure via the interactive BBC website. A documentary TV series and book will follow.

Guess who I saw today...

Yes, that's Charley Boorman of Long Way Round and Race to Dakar fame.

He was signing autographs on the BMW stand at the London Motorcycle Show. Unfortunately, there was a very long queue, so I didn't bother lining up to 'meet' him.

Apparently, he and Ewan (McGregor) are preparing for their next trip, from John O'Groats (the northern-most tip of the UK mainland) to Cape Town in South Africa, which is being billed as Long Way Down. Interestingly enough, Amazon.co.uk have already listed the book -- and the trip hasn't even happened yet!

'Race to Dakar' by Charley Boorman

Non-fiction - hardcover; Little, Brown Book Group; 320 pages; 2006.

As I write, the 2007 Dakar Rally is in full swing. It is the world's most gruelling and challenging off-road endurance race for motorised vehicles. One motorcyclist, South African Elmer Symons, has already died in this year's race and last year's claimed the life of Australian Andy Caldecott.

So when actor Charley Boorman finished the 20,000 mile road trip from London to New York (the long way round via Russia) with his best mate Ewan McGregor in 2004, the Dakar Rally seemed like the next logical challenge. But, as Charley was soon to realise, there's a big difference between riding a route you've organised yourself to racing along one that has been designed to test your off-road navigational skills, your physical capabilities and your mental strength to their absolute limits. It has often been compared to climbing Everest or sailing around the world it is such a difficult feat to achieve.

This book charts Charley's attempt to tackle the Lisbon to Dakar route, via the deserts of Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Mali, Guinea and Senegal, with mixed -- and often heart-breaking -- results. It is accompanied by a seven-part TV series, now on DVD, which looks at Charley's pre-trip preparation and planning through to the actual two-week 10,000km race.

But this is no solo attempt. Charley is clever enough to form a race team comprising two accomplished enduro motorcyclists, the unflappable cool-headed Australian Simon Pavey and determined first-time Dakar Rally racer Englishman Matt Hall. He also has a brilliant race support crew headed by producer Russ Malkin (who also managed the Long Way Round ride).

I loved the book. It's easy to read and highly entertaining and gives you a slightly different perspective to the TV series. It's written in a very chatty style and conveys Charley's fears and doubts quite clearly -- there is little room for ego here!

However, as with Long Way Round, I'm not sure the book would make the grade as a stand alone read without the TV series -- you really need to SEE the terrain and the riding conditions (all that dust, all those dunes and cars barrelling out of nowhere) to fully appreciate the difficulty of the challenge.

All in all, this is a wonderfully inspiring read about pushing the human mind and body to its limits. And you don't have to be a bike nut to appreciate it.

A book about the Dakar Rally

My self-imposed book buying ban is proving very testing, especially when I wandered into my local Books Etc this afternoon and spied Charley Boorman's Race to Dakar on the new release shelf. If ever a book had my name on it, this is it!

Some of you may remember that I loved Long Way Round, both the book and DVD, which documented Charley's motorbike trip round the world with Ewan McGregor.

Only a couple of weeks ago I saw Charley Boorman and the producer of Long Way Round, Russ Malkin, entering a building near my office and jumped to the conclusion that they must be working on a project together. Sherlock Holmes eat your heart out, right?! Hehe.

Anyway, here's the synopsis published on Amazon.co.uk:

In January 2006, 230 people raced in trucks, cars and motorbikes from Lisbon to Dakar in the 28th annual Dakar rally -- the most dangerous race in the world. Taking part was a team of three bikers: Matt Hall, Simon Pavey ...and actor and bike nut Charley Boorman.

After his celebrated trip round the world with Ewan McGregor, documented in the No.1 bestselling book Long Way Round, Charley was keen for another challenge. Racing in the Dakar had always been a dream of his, and so it was the obvious choice for a new adventure.

Supported by Australian champion biker Simon Pavey and experienced British biker Matt Hall, Charley attempted to do what many professional bikers have failed to do -- to compete in the Dakar rally, the most challenging race in existence.

His book details his extraordinary adventures, and those of his fellow bikers, and also explores the history of this most dramatic and romantic of races. From Portugal through Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Mali, Guinea and Senegal, it also provides a unique look at the countries hosting the rally. It is an exhilarating and fitting sequel to Long Way Round.

Needless to say, this book, which features an introduction by Ewan McGregor, has been promptly added to my wish list. I believe Charley broke both hands (ouch!) during the race, so it will be interesting to read about how that happened and what the repercussions were for the rest of the BMW 'Race to Dakar' team.

Apparently a TV documentary series will be screened on Sky One (unfortunately a channel I don't subscribe to) in the UK this month and a DVD will be released in due course (yay!).

There's also an official website.

'Long Way Round' by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman

Non-fiction - hardcover; Time Warner Books; 320 pages; 2004.

I'm often not very quick off the mark at the best of times, but when it came to discovering the wonder that is the 20,000 mile road trip from London to New York (the long way round) undertaken by actors Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman I am positively turtle-like.

This book, published in late 2004, accompanies the 10-part television documentary of the motorbiking adventure, now available here in the UK on DVD. I recently watched the DVD and fell immediately in love with it, so much so I promptly tracked down a secondhand copy of the book to immerse myself in.

The book, narrated in turn by McGregor and Boorman, is delightful. Easy to read. Funny. Sad. Full of adventure. It fills in a lot of the gaps not evident when watching the TV series - you get a more rounded view of what makes these men tick and how their relationship was tried and tested during the journey. You also get a good insight into the tensions between the two riders and their support crew, who generally followed a few days behind and got into their own difficulties along the way.

As a stand alone read, I'm not sure whether Long Way Round would have been as enjoyable. For instance, there are constant gripes, moans and whinges scattered on every page that might be off-putting if you have not experienced the joy of the documentary.

Still, it's a great read about a courageous adventure and if you've ever wondered what it must be like to pursue a dream and then turn it into reality, then you'll enjoy this book. And you don't even have to love motorbikes to appreciate it!