The most absurd, hilarious, and ridiculous travelogue ever told, by two hit-TV comedy writers who raced each other around the world—for bragging rights and a very expensive bottle of Scotch
It started as a friendly wager: two old friends from The Harvard Lampoon, now hotshot Hollywood scribes, challenged each other to a race around the globe in opposite directions. There was only one rule: no airplanes. The first man to cross every line of longitude and arrive back in L.A. would win Scotch and infamy. But little did one racer know that the other planned to cheat him out of the big prize by way of a ride on a quarter-million-dollar jet pack.
What follows is a pair of hilarious, hazardous, and eye-opening journeys into the farthest corners of the world. From the West Bank to the Aleutian Islands, the slums of Rio to the steppes of Mongolia, traveling by ocean freighter and the Trans-Siberian Railway (pranking each other mercilessly along the way), Vali and Steve plunge eagerly and ill-prepared into global adventure.
The Ridiculous Race is a comic travelogue unlike any other, an outrageous tale of two gentlemen travelers who can’t wait to don baggy cardigan sweaters, clench corncob pipes between their teeth, and yell at their sons, “You lazy bums! When we were your age, we raced around the world without airplanes!”
Immature, Yes. Hilarious, Yes. Heart in the right place, I think so. This book is not a classic travel memoir, but it is quite funny. I particularly enjoyed the vastly different perspectives of the authors. In order to have a good time reading this book, I believe it's important to recognize that it's really a contest about two things. One is the linear concept of going around the world, and the other is a little more difficult to define: the awesomeness quotient.
The authors are immature at times and not the paragons of good taste. But they are comedy writers. And it's rare to find a book that truly makes you laugh so hard that others are looking at you as if to say, "What are you reading?"
It also makes you truly want to travel, and that is the most important thing about a travel book in my opinion.
Why didn't I write this one?!? I was torn between laughing my arse off throughout this book, and envy over not having thought of it first. These two have a great dynamic & knack for shenanigans. Far better than an epic description of the usual tourist spots!
The Ridiculously Flawed Race The concept of this book had unlimited potential, only to be botched by two ridiculous participants who had no intention of making this a legitimate contest of racing around the world and back in opposite directions without flying. Vali's effort can even be considered as defrauding the publisher, Henry Holt and Company, who funded the race. Mr. Vali broke the cardinal rule of "no use of airplanes" repeatedly -- ten times by his own admission -- and most of his stops were in popular tourist destinations with little to no value to the reader. Vali's participation in this race was completely irrelevant.
Steve could have carried the book on his own, but even his effort was not genuine. He took twenty five days to travel from Moscow to London when he could have completed the trip in three days. Between Moscow and London, Steve spent three weeks in Western Europe in hardly "uncharted territory".
It's certainly understandable that some of the authors' actions were in the spirit of adding comedic-entertaining value to the race, but these two gifted writers could have just as easily written a five star book by adhering to the rules of the game and making a valiant effort to circle the globe as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, Vali's maturity level and Steve's tendency to veer off course ruined a perfectly entertaining concept.
Great premise, wish they'd written a better book This book started off with a bang. It follows the story of two young men, Vali and Steve as they first make a wager to travel the world without airplanes, and then commence their journey.
But as the book labors on, I got the feeling not only did Vali give up on the integrity of the race, but also gave up trying to write a book. Which is a shame, as he is the more gifted of the two writers.
This book had some very funny moments, some that made me laugh out loud, but honestly it felt like homework reading this book at times.
Funny Travelogue For Those Who Appreciate Silly Humor I haven't laughed while reading a book as much as I did reading this one in a while. It is exactly what you would expect from a couple of television comedy writers (My Name is Earl and Family Guy!) who decide to race around the world without using airplanes. If you're not a fan of those shows/that type of humor, then you may want to stay away.
While their comedic talents really shine through in the book, the book is also fascinating from a travel and cultural perspective. For example, this is personally the most I've ever read about Mongolia. Of course, based on the descriptions in the book, it may also be the most I WILL EVER read about Mongolia, but it made for several very funny stories.
The book is a light, easy read, with no real chapters, but instead with short sections, alternating between the two authors. Easy to get through, very funny, very entertaining and very recommended for anyone who likes a little bit of humor thrown in with their travelogues.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Trevor
