Revolutionary Ride

The interesting thing is that the author is an English woman; a tough one!

An extremely experienced traveller who would not back down in the face of difficulty.
Continue reading to discover more…

Although relations between Iran and the United Kingdom were at an historic low in 2011, a mysterious note left by a stranger on Lois’s motorbike, parked near the Iranian Embassy in London, inspired her to venture into this Islamic Republic two years later. The note stated the following:  “Dear Sir, your motorcycle looks like it has seen many countries.  I wonder if you have ever visited mine, Iran.  It is a beautiful place and the Persian people are the most welcoming on earth.  Please, do not be put off by what has occurred lately in Tehran.  Whatever the situation, it’s to do with the government, not the Iranian people.  We are no terrorists!  I hope you will visit Iran and please, pay a visit to Shiraz, too, the city of my birth. It is quite famous for its poets, gardens and wines.  Your Persian friend, Habib”.
It was such an intriguing note that it led Lois to disregard all official warnings discouraging travel to Iran and at the end of 2013, she left alone for a two-month, three-thousand mile trip.

Lois enters Iran via Turkey, passing through Tabriz, Qazvin, the mountains of Alborz and the valley of Alamut, along the Caspian coast and then down to Tehran. A visit to Kashan in Esfehan in the south and through the Zagros Mountains leads Lois to arrive in Shiraz, Persepolis and further west to the desert city of Yadz, before returning to the capital.
The motorcycle she used?  A simple and reliable Yamaha TTR250, the same model – not the same motorbike – used by Lois for her ride through Africa (see below). Amongst the many changes made to the motorbike is the 22-litre maxi tank, a support for the side stand and of course a reshaped saddle covered with sheepskin.
Lois was quite late to learn how to ride.  She first drove when she was 28 and she soon began to realise how she could experience real adventure all by herself.  The freedom to make decisions on impulse prevailed over the risk of increased vulnerability. Lois was pretty lucky. “I never felt my personal safety was threatened.  The world is less frightening than they want us to believe” she reports.
Lois always carries some camping equipment on her motorbike, even though she has literally tried everything, as she has slept in missionary houses, warehouses, bunkhouses, bizarre hotels and she has even stayed in the houses of total strangers… In order to cover all her expenses, Lois rents out her London houseboat.

More Books by Lois Pryce

Lois Pryce has published two other titles, both of which are intense and interesting:
Red Tape & White Knuckles – published in 2007, is the nail-biting, rip-roaring tale of her solo African adventure, riding from London to Cape Town, crossing the vastness of the Sahara desert, the lawless jungles of the Congo and the minefields of Angola.
Lois on the Loose – published in 2009, is the story of a 20,000 mile solo tour from Alaska to Argentina. If you’ve ever dreamed of escaping the day job for a life on the road, this book is for you.