Metal Cowboy : Tales from the Road Less Pedaled

Rating:
Summary: These 40 stories take the reader on a delightful ride.
Review: Joe Kurmaskie's first book, "Metal Cowboy," is fashioned from loos, flowing prose, the kind that invites adjectives like "witty" and "insightful." But heart-warming, feel-good travel narratives are easy to find. It is more unusual to read one that fosters a deeper understanding of the overall experience and transcends mere outrageousness.

These 40 "Tales From the Road Less Pedaled" do not follow chronological order. Instead they jump around - from childhood sailing trips to crossing the Rocky mountainsto spending a season on the isalnd of Aruba - and focus more on developing a conversational yet intimate manner with the reader.

Most of the stories feature a quirky man or woman, somehoe alienated by society, who is living life on their own terms, determined to follow their heart. Either they live ina small town and share an experience with Kurmaskie, or they spend a few hours or days cycling with him. Elvis impersonators, a double lower leg amputee, a flamboyant Italian barber, overprotective geese, and a bomb-builder turned zealous rockhound are merely a sampling of the characters Kumaskie meets on the road.

However, Kurmaskie doesn't rely on extremes to keep his book engaging. He deftly tackles difficult subjects, too, and displays a remarkable aptitude for compassion and contemplation. For example, in "Doing the Hokey-Pokey," Ranada O'Ryan, a high-school drop-out turned factory worker takes Kurmaskie to her senior prom and he graciously plays the part of adoring boyfriend. He connects with parents who have lost their children to accidents or disease, assists a man suffering from AIDS, and struggles to make peace with both loggers and environmentalists.

Overall, he understands many readers crave a vicarious experience, one that satidfies their sense of adventure and enhances their understanding of people. His stories are full of optimism, zaniness and insight, a winning combination that will take readers on a delightful ride.

Rating:
Summary: These 40 stories take the reader on a delightful ride.
Review: Joe Kurmaskie's first book, "Metal Cowboy," is fashioned from loos, flowing prose, the kind that invites adjectives like "witty" and "insightful." But heart-warming, feel-good travel narratives are easy to find. It is more unusual to read one that fosters a deeper understanding of the overall experience and transcends mere outrageousness.

These 40 "Tales From the Road Less Pedaled" do not follow chronological order. Instead they jump around - from childhood sailing trips to crossing the Rocky mountainsto spending a season on the isalnd of Aruba - and focus more on developing a conversational yet intimate manner with the reader.

Most of the stories feature a quirky man or woman, somehoe alienated by society, who is living life on their own terms, determined to follow their heart. Either they live ina small town and share an experience with Kurmaskie, or they spend a few hours or days cycling with him. Elvis impersonators, a double lower leg amputee, a flamboyant Italian barber, overprotective geese, and a bomb-builder turned zealous rockhound are merely a sampling of the characters Kumaskie meets on the road.

However, Kurmaskie doesn't rely on extremes to keep his book engaging. He deftly tackles difficult subjects, too, and displays a remarkable aptitude for compassion and contemplation. For example, in "Doing the Hokey-Pokey," Ranada O'Ryan, a high-school drop-out turned factory worker takes Kurmaskie to her senior prom and he graciously plays the part of adoring boyfriend. He connects with parents who have lost their children to accidents or disease, assists a man suffering from AIDS, and struggles to make peace with both loggers and environmentalists.

Overall, he understands many readers crave a vicarious experience, one that satidfies their sense of adventure and enhances their understanding of people. His stories are full of optimism, zaniness and insight, a winning combination that will take readers on a delightful ride.

Rating:
Summary: I couldn't stop laughing
Review: The best way to reach me is to make me laugh. Metal Cowboy delivered time and again. It makes the tearjerkng parts in these stories better because the tension is released. You feel like you are riding into these places and meeting the people in vivid detail. Good on ya, Mate as they say downunder... the outback story about the friendly game of darts was my favorite piece... get this book for that one alone.

Rating:
Summary: Spectacular Read. Even for the non cyclist
Review: This book will have you on the floor laughing. It will have so lost in thought that you won't realize that it is 1 am and you have to be to work by 6am.

I recomend this for anyone with interest in the things that make us human.

Rating:
Summary: A book for everyone
Review: This is a book not just for cyclists, but for anyone with an adventurous spirit. Cyclists will ache from laughter, travelers will recognize a part of themselves on every page, and everyone will long to experience life with the same exuberance as the Metal Cowboy.

Rating:
Summary: I would like to shake Mr. Kurmaskie's hand
Review: This is one of my absolute favorite books. I first heard about it from a friend after telling him that I was considering touring the country on my bicycle. He refered me to the website and from there, I knew I had to own the book. The selected tales at the website are only a sample of the ingenius stories told in the book. The only complaint I had about the book is that I wish it could have been longer. Don't get me wrong, it's not a small book, but I just wish that I could read a little bit of it everyday. Mr. Kurmaskie writes in such a descriptive manner that you really feel as though you are riding along with him. He can truly capture every emotion of a situation. I can't wait for another book to be released by him. I will be the first in line. I also hope that someday I will get the chance to meet the metal cowboy and shake his hand. I will only tell him one thing..... Ride on, Ride on. ([e-mail])

Rating:
Summary: an excellent book...
Review: This is the book that I reccomended to family members who just didnt "get" why I wanted to ride my bike across the country. He is witty and inciteful, with lots of great stories that only years of riding around on a bike could bring.
The only thing that I didnt like about the book is the "how I learned to love bikes" part. It seems that any book about cycling (around the world by bike, spokesongs, ... ...) has an intro like this and they are all pretty much the same. But I guess the give perspective to people who dont live for riding.

Rating:
Summary: Spectacular Read. Even for the non cyclist
Review: Travel adventure of the highest order. Author Kurmaskie frames a picturesque perspective of being on the road with wit and well written wisdom. Great story telling. Very entertaining reading. I read it twice in succession and then went on to "Riding Outside The Lines" his second and equally good book!

Rating:
Summary: Metal Cowboy
Review: Travel adventure of the highest order. Author Kurmaskie frames a picturesque perspective of being on the road with wit and well written wisdom. Great story telling. Very entertaining reading. I read it twice in succession and then went on to "Riding Outside The Lines" his second and equally good book!

Rating:
Summary: A lively storyteller!
Review: We caught the metal cowboy performing some of his stories at a bookstore/coffeehouse the other evening and bought the book just on the strength of his performance. Sometimes a guy can be a wonderful storyteller but not much of a writer. This is not the case here. It's a treat to see him live but he captures the adventure quite well on paper. It's lively and fun. There's also something underneath. I finished the last essay this morning. I can hope there's more tales from the road less pedaled coming down the pike.