Brian Benson: Going somewhere, 9780142180648, Plume, Penguin Random House USA, paperback

Brian Benson’s “Going somewhere” had been sitting on my proof reading pile for over a year. I guess the reason I picked it up originally was that it always amazes me how people survive riding a bike, and I do not mean a motor bike,  for almost 2500 miles in 2 months because this is what Brian did with his girlfriend Rachel, from Wisconsin to Portland/Oregon, USA. 

I myself have been on many bike trips and am about to embark on another one but these were mostly organized with a good meal, a shower and a bed the end of a sometimes hard biking day. My longest ride was 100 miles some time ago, so when Brian describes his many 100 plus miles rides battling crosswinds, hilly climbs with luggage, horrible weather conditions,  broken down bike, I can imagine what this felt like. He and Rachel have my true admiration. Their meager meals and pitching up a tent wherever they happen to be at the end of a day spells freedom.  When they are lucky, they can enjoy the comforts of a free bed provided by the many hosts they encounter during their rides, usually friends of friends.  The kindness of strangers, the hospitality they experience, people offering them a free meal and a bed for one night or sometimes more is one of the very positive experiences of this trip  and reminded me a little of the encounters John Steinbeck describes in “Travels with Charlie", one of my all-time favorite books. Benson is terribly honest in describing his own internal frustrations with his slower riding girlfriend - I could have slapped him a few times when he describes this, grow up kid, I wanted to tell him.  Anyone having been on a week’s bike trip or more with their beloved can easily relate to the squabbling that goes on during bike rides. The battle with the elements, exhaustion, taking wrong turns and different levels of fitness can really provide a perfect ground for getting pissed off at each other. He is candid, reflective and funny at times. Rachel is by far the more mature, self-assured person and the more likable one to me, but towards the end of the trip Brian has matured and is more self- critical. He is no longer as indecisive as he was at the beginning of the ride, the experience has changed him and I actually really started to like him.  

Really enjoyed biking with them across America in spirit and even recognized some stretches I have biked myself in Montana.  A travel book of a special kind.