Rating: 
Summary: Kurmaskie Does It Again!
Review: Riding Outside the Lines by Joe KurmaskieIf you liked Joe Kurmaskie's "Metal Cowboy" then you'll LOVE "Riding Outside the Lines." The rider, I mean reader, is immediately transported to destinations dear and far, fast and funny, and in a word, nay, with many of Kurmaskie's wonderful words--it's a remarkable journey. On Yere Bike, the opening chapter, is where you'll coast to a cozy pub tucked in Ireland, hob-knob with the locals, down a pint or two, and be able to kick back after a strenuous ride. All along you'll know that it's Joe's experience, but the way he tells the story, you're right there with him. Indeed, whether it's about the mad Scottish Aussie who rides a Vespa, or the Three (Unlikely) Amigos-"Riding Outside The Lines" is an armchair cyclist's dream adventure. Kurmaskie's writing style is humorous and philosophical simultaneously. Almost Naked Lunch, the chapter that he and his companions stop at a nudist colony is exactly where Kurmaskie's skillful writing brings comedy and profound thought in tandem. You'll laugh aloud at, "We stood around for a moment, like boys in a gym shower without the shower, trying to meet each other's gazes at eye level..." Then, reflect at the conclusion, "We hit the road, fully clothed, but each of us sporting an entirely new sense of freedom." Sure the writing is superb. But Kurmaskie's intuitive feel about life is what makes every story a gem. "Riding Outside the Lines" is bigger than the bike, it's about how to live. Bravo!
Gianna Bellofatto, columnist of "Life is a Bike"
January 2004
Rating:
Summary: Kurmaskie Does It Again!
Review: Riding Outside the Lines by Joe Kurmaskie If you liked Joe Kurmaskie's "Metal Cowboy" then you'll LOVE "Riding Outside the Lines." The rider, I mean reader, is immediately transported to destinations dear and far, fast and funny, and in a word, nay, with many of Kurmaskie's wonderful words--it's a remarkable journey. On Yere Bike, the opening chapter, is where you'll coast to a cozy pub tucked in Ireland, hob-knob with the locals, down a pint or two, and be able to kick back after a strenuous ride. All along you'll know that it's Joe's experience, but the way he tells the story, you're right there with him. Indeed, whether it's about the mad Scottish Aussie who rides a Vespa, or the Three (Unlikely) Amigos-"Riding Outside The Lines" is an armchair cyclist's dream adventure. Kurmaskie's writing style is humorous and philosophical simultaneously. Almost Naked Lunch, the chapter that he and his companions stop at a nudist colony is exactly where Kurmaskie's skillful writing brings comedy and profound thought in tandem. You'll laugh aloud at, "We stood around for a moment, like boys in a gym shower without the shower, trying to meet each other's gazes at eye level..." Then, reflect at the conclusion, "We hit the road, fully clothed, but each of us sporting an entirely new sense of freedom." Sure the writing is superb. But Kurmaskie's intuitive feel about life is what makes every story a gem. "Riding Outside the Lines" is bigger than the bike, it's about how to live. Bravo!
Gianna Bellofatto, columnist of "Life is a Bike"
January 2004
Rating:
Summary: Someday I'll Learn
Review: Someday I'll learn not to read Joe Kurmaskie's books. Or his magazine columns, for that matter. I enjoy them immensely, they are funny, they are thought-provoking, they are much more than just descriptions of places visited on a bicycle. They let us see through his eyes, share his thoughts on travel, people, the past and the future. I find myself putting off reading the last few pages, because I want it to last. So why should I not read any more of Kurmaskie's stuff? Because I'm jealous. I would like to be out there riding the world, and writing about it. Why is he doing it, and I'm not? Because it takes not only writing skill, but the nerve to get out there and do it. I'm glad that he does it, though, and that he writes about it so well. Someday I may follow his advice of "on yere bike". But until then, I'll be reading about Joe's adventures.
Rating:
Summary: Review form a Mountain Biker
Review: There is this thing, the human heart, that for most of us does little but pump our blood around. Too few of us have employed its power to connect us more deeply to our own unique purpose in life and further connect us to our souls and our purposeful abilities. If good- natured-ness is an attribute that might be mapped out one day as a component within the human geneo, then research scientists locked in study of Kurmaskie's DNA might discover out of proportion helpings of that and other qualities so well demonstrated here in Joe's newest offering, Riding Outside the Lines. That said, the next and best thing I can tell you about this book comes in Joe's own words.
"There's lots of talk about riding fearlessly and dominating the space, but how many people actually get on the bicycle with a sense of authenticity and gratitude each time out? Not greeting-card gratitude. An appreciation for cycling as a way of life, a meditation-a vocation, even - is a damn noble and hard-fought place to arrive at. But until you can absorb the white noise and effortlessly shed the emotional and physical turbulence that creeps in, until you ride like it's the last time you'll ever own a pair of legs, then you're destined to watch the art and beauty known as the economy of movement pass you by."
Plenty of reviewers of this book speak effortlessly about how much fun Joe's adventures are to read. To me, the reason they are so much fun and poignant at the same time is simple. It's right there in the map of his DNA.
Rating:
Summary: Review form a Mountain Biker
Review: There is this thing, the human heart, that for most of us does little but pump our blood around. Too few of us have employed its power to connect us more deeply to our own unique purpose in life and further connect us to our souls and our purposeful abilities. If good- natured-ness is an attribute that might be mapped out one day as a component within the human geneo, then research scientists locked in study of Kurmaskie's DNA might discover out of proportion helpings of that and other qualities so well demonstrated here in Joe's newest offering, Riding Outside the Lines. That said, the next and best thing I can tell you about this book comes in Joe's own words.
"There's lots of talk about riding fearlessly and dominating the space, but how many people actually get on the bicycle with a sense of authenticity and gratitude each time out? Not greeting-card gratitude. An appreciation for cycling as a way of life, a meditation-a vocation, even - is a damn noble and hard-fought place to arrive at. But until you can absorb the white noise and effortlessly shed the emotional and physical turbulence that creeps in, until you ride like it's the last time you'll ever own a pair of legs, then you're destined to watch the art and beauty known as the economy of movement pass you by."
Plenty of reviewers of this book speak effortlessly about how much fun Joe's adventures are to read. To me, the reason they are so much fun and poignant at the same time is simple. It's right there in the map of his DNA.
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