presentations by cycling authors Willie Weir and JoeKurmaskie

Wed Mar 22 11:59:59 CST 2000

I didn't see a note from WABA about this yet, so I'm passing on to you-

Subject:  Information on presentations by cycling authors Willie Weir
and
>JoeKurmaskie
>This is probably much more than you need, but I?m heading out of town
>tomorrow so I?d rather give you too much than not enough.
>Below are the dates and times we will be in the DC/Baltimore area,
followed
>by an  article from the Sacramento Bee (the travel editor attended
one of
>our performances) and a press release from our publisher.
>If you have any questions, I?ll be back Saturday afternoon and will
be in
>all next week.
>Thanks so much for taking the time to give this a look.
>Sincerely,
>Willie Weir
>
>4/18
>7:30pm
>Borders
>5871 Crossroads Center Way
>Bailey?s Crossroads VA
>contact:Colleen Holt    703-998-0404
>
>4/19
>7pm
>Bibelot
>2080 York Rd
>Timonium    MD
>Contact:Catherine Bereson   410-308-2040
>
>
>Much-traveled bicyclists spin their tires and true tales in books,
talks
>By Janet Fullwood
>Bee Travel Editor
>(Published Oct. 17, 1999)
>
>Pedal a bicycle across a continent or two, and what do you get? Killer
>thighs, of course. But beyond that, anyone who spends months on the
road
>with their face in the elements and their worldly goods in a pair of
>panniers has got to come away with stories. Lots of stories. Stories
that if
>told well can make a book-and provide material for one heck of an
author?s
>tour.
>Willie Weir and Joe Kurmaskie are adventure cyclists, journalists,
authors
>and kindred spirits who have teamed up on a ?Take it Outside? tour that
>blasted through Sacramento last Monday and will hit Davis on Friday.
Each
>has a book on pedaling to peddle (Weir?s is ?Spokesongs: Bicycle
Adventurers
>on Three Continents,? Kurmaskie?s is ?Metal Cowboy: Tales From the
Road Less
>Pedaled?). But just as those volumes are, in Weir?s words, ?about
cycling .
>.  . and not about cycling,? so is their presentation about the
books . . .
>and not about the books.
>The ?Willie and Joe Show? is, instead, a captivating hour of
storytelling,
>theater and back-and-forth banter in the style of National Public
Radio?s
>?Car Talk? brothers Click and Clack-except that the ?brothers,? in this
>case, are more like young Charles Kuralts.
>Weir, 38, a regular commentator for public radio station KUOW in
Seattle,
>grew up in Sacramento, graduated from California State University,
>Sacramento with a degree in theater arts and for years earned his
living as
>an actor.  It?s that professional confidence that lets him sing
?Daisy? to
>his book tour audiences without a shred of self-consciousness, and
follow up
>with a vigorous rendition of ?Take Me Out to the Ballgame?-sung
backward.
>Newly married, Weir has put more than 40,000 miles under his wheels
(most
>recent destination: Cuba) and been exposed to every facet of the human
>condition. Through Africa, India, South America, the Balkans and the
United
>States, he?s come away an optimist.
>?I tell people, ?If you want to be pessimistic about this country,
watch TV
>news for one hour a night. If you want to be optimistic, to see how
>wonderful
>this country really is, ride a bicycle across it,??
>The travel tales that Weir tells, in person and in his book, aren?t
so much
>about grease and gears as they are lessons in life, cleverly related.
>Sometimes touching and often hilarious, his stories are always
>insightful-and blessedly free of the egotistical musings that mar so
many
>travel narratives. No matter how foreign the culture, how great the
language
>barrier, how difficult the conditions of his travels, Weir manages
to find a
>silver lining, and to revel in it.
>Kurmaskie is the slightly younger (32), much huskier and equally witty
>member of the tag team. Tall, blond (?It?s the aging surfer look?)
and the
>father of a toddler, he is, like Weir, outgoing and possessed of an
astute
>ability to channel his life experiences into stories with a universal
>element.  An avid cyclist since age 5 and an experienced journalist,
>Kurmaskie has pedaled across the United States, Australia and New
Zealand,
>finding humor and pathos wherever he goes.
>?When I discovered bicycle touring, I was like a noisy drunk at a
Quaker
>meeting-you couldn?t shut me up,? he says of the pastime that opened
up not
>only new roads to adventure, but new roads for his writing.
>Kurmaskie?s tales describe stranger-than-fiction encounters with the
sharply
>sketched characters he meets along his way. There are the hard-drinking
>Aussies who call his bluff in the Outback, and the cycling companion
who,
>after a long, difficult day, sits down in a restaurant and, much to
>Kurmaskie?s shock, removes not one, but two prosthetic legs.
>Kurmaskie?s book title, ?Metal Cowboy,? was bestowed by another
memorable
>character-a blind rancher who materialized at a traffic light on a
rainy
>morning in Pocatello, Idaho, to explore Kurmaskie?s touring bike
with his
>cane.
>?He told me two things,? the author relates: ?Keep the wind at your
back. .
>.  . And find where the innocent sleep. I interpreted that to mean
that if
>you go out and look for the best in people, the best is what you?ll
find.?
>For an hour of delightful storytelling, catch Weir and Kurmaskie in
person
>at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Avid Reader, 617 Second St. in Davis. For
more
>information: 530-758-4040.
>_______________________________________________________________
>
>A few quotes from bookstores:
>?The Willie and Joe Show was the most entertaining & inspiring live
>theatrical performance that I have seen in a long time.  We had so many
>excited people show up we almost, quite literally, had to take it
outside!?
>David Neal, events coordinator, REI-Sacramento
>
>
>?One of our best shows ever. These guys put on a great show! We had a
>capacity crowd and sold all our books.?
>Alzada Forbes, Owner, The Avid Reader, Davis, California
>
>
>?Everyone should experience the wild ride of the Willie & Joe Show.
You?ll
>never look at a bicycle (or travel adventure) the same way again!?
>Fred Hornbruch, Owner, Phileas Fogg?s Books, Palo Alto, CA
>
>?They are as good as it gets in the author presentation business.?
>Judith Chandler, Third Place Books, Seattle
>
>?Hands down the best performance of the year. Lively, thoughtful.
People
>laughed to the point of tears. I?d like to have ?the boys? back as
soon as
>possible.?
>Tom Gerald, University of Oregon Bookstore
>
>
>B R E A K A W A Y   B O O K S
>Box 24       Halcottsville, NY 12438           www.breakawaybooks.com
>607-326-4805 phone     w    800-548-4348  voicemail   w
212-898-0408 fax
>w   E-mail: Garth at breakawaybooks.com
>
>For Immediate Release
>
>The ?Willie and Joe Show? hits the road
>
>Two of the bicycling world?s most  entertaining authors team up for
>a national book tour
>
>
>If you have ever dreamed of taking a bicycle adventure-if you have ever
>ridden a bicycle-if you have a pulse-you?ve got to see these guys.
>
>Bicycling magazine?s Joe Kurmaskie and Adventure Cycling Association?s
>Willie?s Weir, Everyman travelers everyone will relate to are
teaming up for
>a 30+ city national tour.
>
>Sacramento Bee travel editor Janet Fullwood called their performance ?a
>captivating hour of storytelling, theater and back-and-forth banter
in the
>style of National Public Radio?s ?Car Talk? brothers Click and
Clack-except
>that the ?brothers,? in this case, are more like young Charles
Kuralts.?
>
>The national tour comes on the heels of the hardcover releases of their
>books
>Spokesongs and Metal Cowboy by Breakaway Books.
>
>Weir?s tales from journeys throughout India, South Africa and the
Balkans
>are
>spun in Spokesongs: Bicycle Adventures on Three Continents. Rick
Steves,
>internationally renowned travel guide and writer says, ?Reading
Willie Weir
>is like bouncing along on the back of his bike, hanging tight to this
>poet/guide who knows just which potholes offer the most travel
thrills and
>hits them expertly.?
>
>Metal Cowboy: Tales From the Road Less Pedaled, Kurmaskie?s critically
>praised collection of stories, captures adventures, trials and
triumphs far
>off the prescribed roadways of life. It?s been called ?a delightful
>excursion? by Booklist, and compared to the writings of Bill Bryson.
>
>Sponsored by Bicycling magazine, Ortlieb, and the Adventure Cycling
>Association their six-week book tour, beginning on April 3, 2000 in
>Minneapolis, will span the country (in a van, not via bicycle) with
over
>thirty stops from San Diego to Boston.
>At each event they?ll be giving away an Ortlieb ZIP City courier bag
and at
>the end of the tour one lucky audience member will win a total
Ortlieb bike
>touring package (all bags and racks) valued at over one thousand
dollars.
>
>Kurmaskie and Weir first met at Seattle?s Bicycle Expo last year and
soon
>discovered they had everything in common except birth parents. Long,
lonely
>book tours can take their toll on authors, so the two decided to
team up for
>a west coast tour in the fall of ?99. They packed book stores from
>Washington
>to California, traveling with the motto, ?Are we still having fun??
>
>After hearing this funny, wise and completely original duo perform
(and we
>do
>mean perform) stories from their books Metal Cowboy & Spokesongs,
you?ll
>realize that adventure and off-the-beaten path experiences are not
that far
>out of reach for anyone.
>
>Spend a memorable evening with them and you will come to the
conclusion,
>?Yes. They are most definitely still having fun.?
>
>For locations and times see attached schedule and check out
>www.metalcowboy.com or www.willieweir.com for updates.
>
>Sponsored by:  Bicycling magazine, Ortlieb and the Adventure Cycling
>Association
>
>
>

_____________________________
randy at helmets.org
Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute
Arlington, VA  USA
http://www.helmets.org