Overview

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.

Full Product Details

9780316027113

Table of Contents

Reviews

The history of the rally and Boorman's own personal experience of this great endurance test makes for an exhilarating read. Waterstone's Books Quarterly

'Boorman is well on his way to becoming the Michael Palin of motorbikes' TIMES2 'The history of the rally and Boorman's own personal experience of this great endurance test makes for an exhilarating read' WATERSTONE'S BOOKS QUARTERLY

A struggling actor enters one of the most dangerous motorcycle races in the world and kicks up a lot of dust.The Dakar Rally is an insane 15,000-kilometer chase across the desert to Dakar, Senegal, that involves dirt, death and a voracious African weed called camel grass. Professional riders and venturesome journeymen from all over the world enter the event every year, hoping to prove their mettle, and some of them never make it home alive. Boorman, a part-time British actor and motorcycle enthusiast, had a brief moment in the limelight with a reality-TV show and later a book (Long Way Round, 2005) that chronicled his adventures with pal Ewan McGregor as they circumnavigated the globe on their bikes. For his next move, he decided to make good on an offhand comment about entering the Dakar Rally. He solicited the help of several seasoned riders and began an intensive training process to prepare for the race. The resulting adventure is replete with colorful characters, hair-raising action and enough raw machismo to knock over an elephant. Boorman writes with simplicity and grace, although his first-person narrative ultimately sputters out. He certainly underwent some hardships in order to compete in the Rally, but he doesn't quite seem to understand why he did it. The book hits its climax as the excited competitors line up at the starting line, then slowly loses momentum from there. This would have been a much more interesting story if the author had focused on some of the top riders and left his own ambitions out of it.Gets off to a fast start, but flags before the finish line. (Kirkus Reviews)

Author Information

Charley Boorman was born in 1966 and grew up in Ireland. He has appeared in films including Excalibur, The Emerald Forest, Karaoke and The Bunker. From 1998 to 2002, he ran a British motorcycle team with Ewan McGregor, winning the Superstock Series with David Jeffries.

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