BOOK REVIEWS
Títle: Nearly 40 On The 37
Writer: Trevor Marc Hughes
Year: 2013
R
Títle: High Road Rider
Writer: Mike Hannan
Year: 2014
Riding around your home state /
province many would suggest is not
an adventure with very little to dis-
cover, they couldn’t be more wrong,
and Trevor March Hughes is proof of
that.
In Nearly 40 On The 37 Trevor
grapples with the notion that this is
his first real long-distance motorcy-
cle journey and on his own. He soon
finds he’s not only discovering his
home but also himself.
Chance meetings with other trav-
ellers and locals challenges his anx-
iety, his trepidations, his fears and
rides to parts of British Columbia
that are beautifully described en-
couraging the reader to want more.
Trevor is honest about his experi-
ence; it’s his first time on such a jour-
ney and this comes through. He’s
E
Mike Hannan takes the reader on
a journey through history and envi-
ronment as he discovers what has
shaped Europe's highest mountains,
the Alps.
While ticking off numerous high
mountain passes, some regarded as
the best riding roads in the world,
Mike discovers there's more to the
1200km long mountain range than
just the environmental forces which
has shaped them. Geopolitical forces
have also played a huge part as many
empires fought for control of the Alps
and with it control of Europe.
This is not a book about adventure
travel in the purest sense however, as
Mike discovers, there's more to ad-
venture than just being challenged
by the roads; politics, environment,
TRAVERSE 84
fearful of riding on gravel, of wild
camping, and yet he overcomes this
and through doing so seems to open
his mind and take in where he is,
learning the history, the culture.
Nearly 40 On The 37 is short but
that doesn’t matter as it was a short,
two-week journey, yet we learn that
adventure can be anywhere, if you
seek it. Often it is a state of mind.
Through Trevor we also learn of the
environmental and cultural issues
being faced in British Colombia, is-
sues that need to be addressed.
It seems Trevor has achieved what
he perhaps intended, to show how
he was nudged into taking the first
step and throwing his leg over his
KLR650, and by doing so tells the
reader to do likewise.
V
personal and historical situations are
all important.
High Road Rider does take you
to the dizzying heights of the Alps
however, it's the historical and geo-
logical facts and tales that keeps you
enthralled. It would be remiss to say
that this book won't teach you any-
thing, it does, it clearly does ... the
forces that have shaped the Alps.