Have you ever woken up in the sultry heat of the
morning, your hair and beard teeming with maggots? Have
you ever felt the cold barrel of a semi automatic gun
against your forehead? When Danny Bent cycled 15,000
kilometres from the UK to India to raise money for
ActionAid, it was a decision that took twenty years and
one minute. For twenty years he had wanted to do
something to raise money for charity. The one minute was
when as their teacher he was put on the spot by his
pupils and declared that the means was by bike, and he
was going to India. What he had signed up for was
slogging along roads with trucks bearing down on him,
unable to see and choking in the smog; shooting down
treacherous descents with 100 foot drops, shaking with
cold and too numb to brake; muscle burn and saddle
sores; delirium and food poisoning; thirst and
malnutrition; foul and insanitary conditions;
life-threatening crises; obstructive border guards,
crazed dogs and inquisitive passers-by. 'You've Gone Too
Far This Time, Sir!' is a real and compelling
blow-by-blow account of Danny's trip across Europe, the
former Soviet Republics, Russia, China, Pakistan and
India. And what people he met! They are the true delight
of this book, mostly charming, sometimes reckless,
occasionally threatening, always unpredictable, and
forever inviting Danny to be up for the challenge of
entertaining them, in one instance by dancing in front
of a packed stadium, in another by eating sheep's brains
in a local night market. Danny turns the wheels, you
turn the pages. The pace is relentless. The story is
both heart-stopping and heart-warming. The arrival is
breakdown-and-cry emotional. And there's loads of fun
and wonderment along the way too. What a book! What a
ride! Live your dream. Go for it, Danny. |
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