Twenty adventurous travellers, 20 stories of adventure.

The Moment Collectors Asia is the second compilation book put together by Sam Manicom with stories written about motorcycle riders’ experiences of faraway places. As the name suggests, these tales of adventure are all set in various parts of Asia: Cambodia, Siberia, Iran, India, Pakistan, Indochina, Tajikistan — the list goes on.

Elspeth Beard’s Foreward sets the stage for what to expect in the book, as does world traveller Manicom’s introduction. What follows are 20 exciting stories from a variety of overland motorcycle travellers who come from all walks of life with varied travel experience. 

These stories include a tale of riding solo and being swept away by a raging, ice-cold river in a vast Mongolian valley and rescued by a family of nomads living on the Mongolian plains. There’s also a tale from a woman with virtually no long-distance travel experience wishing to fulfil her desire to ride around the world. Her research took place before there was much information online, so she began asking questions of other travellers. Her story tells of her travels through Japan and eventually across Russia on the Road of Bones — a road she knew nothing about beforehand.

There are so many exciting and interesting tales, one after another. Not all are edge-of-your-seat, nail-biting stories. Some are born from more of a spiritual nature as these riders experience the people and the cultures of various countries. But one thing is for sure: there is kindness all over the world, where people will offer you whatever they have; they just want to help.

The Moment Collectors Asia is an entertaining book of ups and downs, excitement and drama, and a number of life stories that only come from the curiosity and the experience of travelling into an unknown territory.

The Moment Collectors ASIA is available directly from Manicom’s website at sam-manicom.com for £14.99, as are all of Manicom’s other books.