Adventure Motorcycling Handbook (8th Edition) Review

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Adventure Motorcycling Handbook

A Route & Planning Guide to Asia, Africa, Latin America (8^th Edition) - by Chris Scott

For those unfamiliar with Chris Scott, he’s attributed with having coined the term “Adventure Motorcycling.” Chris is a U.K. icon in our community but not as well known here in North America. His Adventure Motorcycling Handbook is a must-have for any existing or budding adventurer’s library. Since the original edition back in 1991 (this is the 8^th), many consider Chris’s handbook the “bible” of the industry. I agree.

As a handbook, it’s not something you’d necessarily sit down to read cover-to-cover. Instead, as an encyclopedic reference guide for picking and choosing the topics you are researching or interested in. Cracking open a copy is like (pardon the over-used metaphor) walking into a candy store; Chris has done an extraordinary job of covering pretty much all the basics of what you need to know, more often than not also filling in gaps you didn’t know you had, in a style that cuts straight to the chase.

Looking for inspiration? This is it. The entire 456 pages are jammed with thousands of color photos, tables, maps, diagrams, and other reference material. And it’s all indexed for ease in locating subjects. Sections include, but are not limited to:

• Planning and Preparation
• Motorcycle Choice
• Modifications and Equipment
• Life on the Road
• Latin America Route Outlines
• Asia Route Outlines
• Africa Route Outlines

And, each section bores down into subsections that detail almost anything you’d want to know.

Over the years, I’ve both read straight through and used this handbook for researching specific topics. Some subjects are more detailed than others, but typically when the information is outside of the book’s scope, Chris has included references to aid in further research. To compile this more than a highly-useful guide, the author solicited contributions from many other experienced adventurers, often adding narratives to help flesh out the details of this lifestyle or “sport,” as some insist upon calling it.

It’s also worth noting that the handbook is at least reasonably up to date. Which means you won’t be dealing with ten-year-old information. And I haven’t found examples of “filler,” either. Every paragraph, section, and boxed-out text has use to someone, or may prove to be enlightening to others.

If there’s a downside, there’s absolutely no way a book this complex and detailed would work on Kindle. Perhaps a massive PDF, but even that may be impractical for the road. So it’s paperback or nothing. But the handbook isn’t likely to be something to carry on a journey, anyway. Rather, it’s better suited as a pre-trip referenced guide. To be sure, this is a wise investment and easily THE most useful book in the industry.

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Adventure Motorcycling Handbook (8^th Ed.)

Rating:  ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ of 5

Author: Chris Scott

Publisher: Trailblazer Publications

Kindle: N/A | Paperback: $24.49

ISBN-10: 1912716186

ISBN-13: 978-1912716180

Adventure-Motorcycling.com | Trailblazer-Guides.com

Where to Buy: 

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