Leo D.M.J. Aurini - ＂Pushing Rubber Downhill＂ by Adam Piggot： Chapter 1 Audiobook Teaser

00:00:00.000 To Push Rubber Downhill, intransitive verb.

00:00:06.360 1. To transport paying customers down a treacherous passage of inland water in a rubber raft.

00:00:12.440 2. An activity that is done with a bigger reward in mind.

00:00:17.640 Pushing Rubber Downhill is written by Adam Piggott, and the audiobook is recorded by Davis M. J. Arrini.

00:00:24.180 1. Perth, Western Australia, 1995

00:00:32.920 Sex is power. That's all there is to it. Particularly if you're a 23-year-old male.

00:00:41.660 As in, you have no power and it runs roughshod over you.

00:00:45.300 You spend most of your time thinking about how to get it, any way you can, and preferably with the most beautiful girl possible.

00:00:50.840 So when you actually do stumble across a stunningly beautiful woman a few years your senior who thinks you're God's gift to women, well, you're in serious trouble.

00:01:01.020 I should know. When I met Jody and we hooked up, I was elevated to another plane on the social scale.

00:01:06.700 I was that guy who went out with her. The two of us arrived at parties and people stared at her with open mouths. 0.98

00:01:12.840 Then they looked at me and tried to work out what the fuck was going on. 0.99

00:01:16.220 Hell, I didn't know what the fuck was going on. All I knew was that I was in love with the most beautiful woman in the world. 0.99

00:01:22.360 But a few weeks into our intense relationship, she dropped a bombshell on me.

00:01:26.320 She was moving to Sydney to become a model, and nothing could change her mind.

00:01:30.520 She had purchased her plane ticket and given notice at her job before the two of us had even met.

00:01:34.620 I tried to reason with her. I tried to make her see that something as special as what we had was so rare that it couldn't be tossed aside.

00:01:40.260 At least, it was rare for me. Thinking back, maybe it hadn't been that rare for her at all.

00:01:46.640 And then she blew my mind with the suggestion that I move to Sydney as well.

00:01:50.520 This was a pretty big deal, and something which I had never considered before.

00:01:53.740 My entire life was in Perth, an oversized town perched in complete isolation on the left side of Australia.

00:01:59.400 I had a job in a chic bar. I rented a groovy inner-city apartment.

00:02:03.240 But the most important thing in my life was my band.

00:02:05.600 And we had worked hard to get to a point where we stood a chance of actually making it.

00:02:09.880 And now this girl just blithely suggested that I chuck all of this and head on across to the other side of the continent.

00:02:15.280 Like I said, sex is power. 1.00

00:02:17.620 It took me about a day to make the decision to go.

00:02:20.000 I told my bandmates on the night of what turned out to be both our most successful and final gig.

00:02:25.860 They promptly quit in disgust.

00:02:27.820 I couldn't believe it. I thought they could keep going with someone else,

00:02:30.760 but apparently I was the glue that bound everything together.

00:02:33.000 But I didn't want to be glue. I wanted to be with Jody.

00:02:37.380 And so I sat on my overloaded bike at the top of the low, scraggy hills above Perth.

00:02:42.060 Jody had already left over a month ago after the most obscene make-out session ever seen at a boarding gate. 1.00

00:02:47.040 I'd divided the rest of the time between phone sex with her and packing up my entire life.

00:02:51.460 And today was the day of my departure.

00:02:53.980 I should have felt excited to be finally on my way.

00:02:56.440 But the truth was that I was nervous and scared.

00:02:58.940 Not just because I was about to ride my motorbike all the way across Australia.

00:03:02.020 I had no idea what my reception in Sydney would be like.

00:03:05.380 Jody had hung up on me on our last phone conversation 0.91

00:03:07.800 after I made the dreadful mistake of drunk-dialing her to confess my undying love.

00:03:12.700 And she hadn't answered the phone since.

00:03:15.100 But I was still going because, hey, love conquers all, right?

00:03:18.200 The thing is, when you're young and clueless,

00:03:20.260 you really need to find these things out for yourself.

00:03:23.120 And the only way to do that is to make terrible decisions like I was about to do.

00:03:26.480 So I kick-started the bike's old engine and, after waiting for a break in the traffic,

00:03:31.260 pulled out and headed east.

00:03:34.340 There's probably an optimal way to ride a 20-year-old motorbike alone across Australia,

00:03:38.740 but I didn't do it that way.

00:03:40.760 First of all, you don't ride a bike that's almost as old as you are.

00:03:44.260 In the desert, if you break down, you can die waiting for someone to turn up.

00:03:48.860 Tourists check out like this all the time.

00:03:50.820 So do Australians, though you think we'd know better. 1.00

00:03:53.000 They'll be driving their vehicle down a lonely desert road and something will go wrong.

00:03:57.280 Then they'll sit there for an hour or so, wondering what to do,

00:03:59.840 until finally they make the deadly mistake that is common to all of these unfortunate deaths.

00:04:04.420 They'll leave their vehicle and walk off looking for help.

00:04:07.620 15 kilometers is usually about as far as they get, depending on the time of year.

00:04:11.800 And then they find a little tree, and they sit down, and they die.

00:04:15.420 So if you're riding across Australia, you need to have some sort of backup plan.

00:04:20.080 I didn't have one of those.

00:04:21.820 And you need to carry a lot of water, assuming you don't want to die.

00:04:25.840 Call in points at prearranged intervals to someone back home is also a very good idea,

00:04:29.960 but neither myself or any of my friends or family thought about this one.

00:04:34.220 A first aid kit in case you get bitten by a scorpion that was sleeping in your boot,

00:04:37.740 or a snake crawls into your tent and snuggles up for warmth is also highly desirable.

00:04:42.760 I did none of these things.

00:04:44.800 I had a vague idea to travel 800 kilometers a day,

00:04:47.160 I had a map, and my dad had given me a contact from one of his childhood buddies who now lived in Adelaide.

00:04:52.260 I figured I would be okay because I was staying on the main highway.

00:04:55.940 Well, after I loaded my tent, sleeping bag, inflatable mat, cooking stove, and a bag of clothes,

00:05:01.220 I didn't really have that much room for things like water.

00:05:04.100 I took a few liters, but that was it.

00:05:05.940 Some tools would be good in case my bike broke down,

00:05:08.360 but I was mechanically illiterate, so what was the point?

00:05:11.200 On the evening of the second day, when I was well into the desert section of the trip,

00:05:16.500 I began to worry about camping on the main road.

00:05:18.780 I was concerned about being run over by swerving road trains,

00:05:21.440 driven by speed-addicted drivers, their eyes popping from lack of sleep.

00:05:25.200 I also wanted to avoid the chance of an unwelcome visit

00:05:27.380 from any of the potential lunatics who roamed this sparse land,

00:05:30.260 bored out of their minds and hoping to stumble across a lone traveler 0.77

00:05:33.060 whom they could debase with unspeakable acts of savagery. 0.99

00:05:36.640 In other words, I wanted to keep my white honky ass in pristine condition. 0.99

00:05:40.260 So I decided to camp off the main road. 0.99

00:05:42.920 I spotted a track, and I followed it slowly for a few hundred meters

00:05:45.560 as it wound its way through the desert scrub and became a small, sheltered clearing.

00:05:49.260 I figured this was nice.

00:05:50.440 It was out of sight from the highway, and there was a flat area to pitch my tent.

00:05:54.280 There was no sign of snake tracks.

00:05:56.740 All good news.

00:05:58.600 Then I waited for the sound of a passing vehicle.

00:06:00.920 This spot was only good if they couldn't see me,

00:06:02.980 and that meant a fire at night, which would stand out like... 0.99

00:06:05.780 Well, like a fire at night in the middle of the fucking desert. 0.98

00:06:08.080 After a time, I caught a faint, dull sound from a far distance. 0.99

00:06:11.980 It gained intensity as it approached,

00:06:13.680 and then it was a loud roar as it hurtled away on the flat desert road,

00:06:16.940 its body reflecting in the evening light.

00:06:19.280 I watched it for a while,

00:06:20.740 and then I stepped back down into the little hollow and began to set up my camp.

00:06:24.800 I didn't need an alarm clock, as, the following morning,

00:06:27.700 the tent became a furnace as soon as the sun hit.

00:06:30.560 After making a coffee and packing up my little camp,

00:06:32.740 I sat on my bike and pressed the starter button.

00:06:34.860 And the bike started beautifully.

00:06:36.640 Let's stop here for just a moment.

00:06:40.340 What if it hadn't started?

00:06:41.700 What on earth would I have done then?

00:06:43.880 I'm half a mile from the highway.

00:06:45.560 Do you think I'm going to be able to push my bike on a sandy track all the way to the main road?

00:06:49.380 It's not happening.

00:06:50.840 I would have to walk back to the road and hail a passing car.

00:06:53.600 And it's probably over 500 kilometers to the nearest mechanic.

00:06:56.420 How much do you think that would cost me?

00:06:58.380 They would lick their lips and take me for everything I had.

00:07:01.780 That's if the bike was still there when we got back to it.

00:07:04.860 But the bike started the first time.

00:07:07.440 And I motorcycled slowly back to the harsh asphalt strip.

00:07:10.420 And then I rode off into the new day in a state of blissful ignorance to how lucky I was.

00:07:16.200 It took me five days to reach Adelaide.

00:07:18.740 By the time I arrived, I desperately needed a wash and a decent bowel movement.

00:07:22.460 More than that, I needed my head red.

00:07:24.800 Five days alone in the desert.

00:07:26.680 Alone on roads that stretched for 146 kilometers at a time without curve or undulation.

00:07:31.280 Alone at night in front of a fire that struggled in the evening wind.

00:07:35.380 Alone when I woke in the morning, not knowing where I was or even why.

00:07:39.300 Alone with my thoughts and with my doubts and insecurities.

00:07:42.480 I'd realized early on that I'd put myself in this paradox.

00:07:45.340 The closer I got to Jody, the further we were actually apart.

00:07:48.980 But there was still a small chance it would work out.

00:07:51.440 So I kept going.

00:07:53.100 Hope and sex are a gloriously self-deceiving combination.

00:07:56.080 And nothing seems to make much sense when you're in the middle of doing it.

00:08:00.260 So I arrived in Adelaide and I negotiated the streets and found the address of my father's friend.

00:08:04.860 The couple and their three young children came out to greet me.

00:08:07.580 The kids looked at me as if I were an astronaut.

00:08:09.900 I shooed them away from the hot exhaust pipes as I didn't think giving them third degree burns would make me very popular.

00:08:15.520 My host gave me a wash and a beer and for that I was truly grateful.

00:08:19.780 After dinner, I answered questions about the trip.

00:08:22.000 It was good to take my mind off my immediate problems.

00:08:24.320 Did you meet any pirates? One of the little boys asked.

00:08:27.800 Thousands, I told him.

00:08:28.980 But luckily my bike was too fast for them.

00:08:31.260 The kids oohed and aahed.

00:08:33.000 I stayed for a couple of days and explored the city,

00:08:35.100 but I was eager to be on my way and aware that every guest is intriguing for only a very short time.

00:08:40.420 The morning of my departure, the kids helped me bring out my gear.

00:08:43.560 I explained to them how to load a bike and then they each posed for photos,

00:08:46.600 sitting on the seat and straining forward over the gas tank to reach the handlebars.

00:08:50.500 Then I shook hands with my hosts, thanked them for their kindness,

00:08:53.240 and climbed on my bike.

00:08:55.040 With a final wave to the kids, I gave it a dramatic kickstart.

00:08:59.120 Nothing happened.

00:09:01.160 I looked at the controls and saw that none of the lights were on.

00:09:03.920 The bike refused to respond to my increasingly desperate attempts to start it.

00:09:07.740 My hostess had a look of distress on her face and...

00:09:10.700 I didn't think it was concern for me.

00:09:13.080 The kids ran around, excited that I could stay longer.

00:09:15.140 My bike had decided to die in the middle of a large city while I was a guest at someone's home,

00:09:21.740 which in the possible circumstances was very fortunate indeed.

00:09:25.560 As usual, I didn't realize at the time how lucky I was.

00:09:29.440 I asked if I could use their phone and they rushed me into the house.

00:09:32.200 I didn't know who I was going to call until I picked up the receiver and dialed my father's number.

00:09:36.420 The old fallback for tough bikers everywhere. 1.00

00:09:39.160 When you get in the shit, call dad. 0.99

00:09:41.320 Between the two of us, we worked out that my uncle knew a bike mechanic in Adelaide. 1.00

00:09:46.040 Uncle Billy was a bit of a live wire and accepting his help was fraught with unknown risks,

00:09:50.500 but I didn't appear to have any other options.

00:09:52.900 I called his Perth number and explained the situation.

00:09:55.720 He called me back half an hour later.

00:09:58.320 Adam, it's Bill. I've fixed it up.

00:10:01.380 Oh, that's great, Uncle Bill. How'd you manage to do that?

00:10:04.340 There's a guy there. He owes me a favor.

00:10:06.740 You can't trust him on your own.

00:10:08.200 Like, if you went to see him, he'd probably do you over, but...

00:10:12.000 Cause you're associated with me, it'll be righty.

00:10:14.880 He's got a bike shop over that way.

00:10:16.740 You call him up and he'll be able to get you sorted, but remember...

00:10:20.400 Remember?

00:10:21.840 He's not to be trusted.

00:10:24.500 The words hung like danger in the phone line between us.

00:10:27.800 You got that?

00:10:30.580 I rang the mechanic with no little trepidation.

00:10:33.800 Uncle Billy had briefed him, but I still needed to explain the specific details.

00:10:36.940 I followed his instructions and the bike coughed and sputtered.

00:10:40.240 I coaxed the throttle with careful desperation.

00:10:42.760 It caught, almost died, caught again, and then it finally roared into life.

00:10:47.480 I saw my hostess catch herself as she clapped her hands. 1.00

00:10:50.840 I took the bike to the mechanic.

00:10:52.420 The shop was in a battered structure of corrugated iron on the other side of the city.

00:10:56.380 A cheap radio struggled to be heard above the sounds of a young apprentice bashing a hammer

00:11:00.140 on an unidentifiable piece of metal.

00:11:02.780 I parked my bike and located the small office.

00:11:04.840 The man behind the desk had greasy hair that matched the stains on his overalls.

00:11:09.100 I caught sight of faded tattoos on his hands and knuckles.

00:11:11.980 I had visions of him asking me if I wanted to go out with him to rob a bank.

00:11:16.140 He spent half an hour looking over the bike while I kept a respectful distance.

00:11:20.540 It's fine, he eventually said.

00:11:22.660 Really?

00:11:23.500 I hadn't seen him doing very much to it.

00:11:26.180 Yep, he looked at me.

00:11:27.640 It's fine.

00:11:29.300 Great, I managed to say.

00:11:30.560 How much do I owe you?

00:11:31.460 I saw a shadow of pain settle over his eyes.

00:11:35.040 Nothing.

00:11:35.860 You tell Bill that I did me part, okay?

00:11:39.180 I'd lost some time, but I was on my way.

00:11:41.300 From that point, I was confident that the trip would be much easier than the nightmarish

00:11:44.740 country I'd already traveled across.

00:11:46.640 There were even parts of countryside that looked vaguely green, as opposed to the death-rattle

00:11:50.460 brown which had been the hallmark of the journey to date.

00:11:53.320 I pulled into a clean-looking truck stop for lunch, where I spotted an old bike loaded up

00:11:57.140 similar to my own.

00:11:57.940 I gave it a quick look over.

00:11:59.940 What interested me was that it was old.

00:12:02.060 A new bike, even loaded to the gunwales, meant the rider was older than me, wealthier than

00:12:06.380 me, and wouldn't even want to talk to me.

00:12:08.660 But this old piece of scrap metal signified that the owner was a fellow member in the

00:12:12.020 traveling without a penny and a clue brigade.

00:12:14.440 I pushed open the door with a little ding-a-ling from the bell and walked inside.

00:12:18.240 There was a young guy standing at the counter, dressed in riding leathers.

00:12:21.220 He had long straight hair that almost reached down to his waist.

00:12:24.160 I reckoned that he was my guy.

00:12:25.940 The lady behind the counter wrote my order with a laugh. 1.00

00:12:29.620 You two are a pair, she said as she walked back to the kitchen.

00:12:32.860 The other biker grinned at me.

00:12:34.280 He had a friendly face and was about my own age.

00:12:36.680 We stood in silence for a little longer, and then I decided to take a chance.

00:12:40.420 Is that your Yamaha outside?

00:12:41.820 I asked him.

00:12:42.880 Yes, yes.

00:12:43.700 Are you a rider, too?

00:12:45.180 He had a French accent and a broad smile.

00:12:47.700 Yeah, I've come from Perth.

00:12:49.440 I'm heading to Sydney, planning on taking the Great Ocean Road.

00:12:51.880 I flew into Darwin a few weeks ago.

00:12:55.060 I got the bike there, and I, too, am going to Sydney.

00:12:58.380 I thought for a moment.

00:13:00.000 Perhaps we could ride together.

00:13:01.840 It would be good to have some company, he said.

00:13:04.200 I think this idea is good.

00:13:06.840 So now I had a traveling companion, and I'd found one in the best way possible.

00:13:11.020 It's usually not a good idea to begin a long journey with someone you know,

00:13:13.920 the reason being that you'll probably be at each other's throats in a matter of days. 0.96

00:13:17.680 You're thinking that's probably a rare case for best friends not to travel well together.

00:13:21.040 Well, you're wrong. 0.96

00:13:23.580 It's a rare case if things don't turn into a giant clusterfuck.

00:13:27.520 When you travel with someone, you have to agree on everything.

00:13:30.660 Where to go, where to stop, what to do, where to stay, what to eat, what time to start, what time to finish.

00:13:36.740 The list goes on and on.

00:13:38.760 Pick the wrong traveling partner, and not only do you risk ruining the trip,

00:13:42.240 you risk ruining a friendship.

00:13:44.200 And you won't be able to fix your mistake during the trip.

00:13:46.380 How do you say to your best friend that you don't want to travel with them anymore because they're making your life miserable?

00:13:52.580 But someone you find on the way, like I had just done?

00:13:55.460 This is the perfect situation because it's easy to ditch them if they turn out to be a flake.

00:13:59.840 You want to go there?

00:14:01.040 Oh, what a pity because I have to go to this other place.

00:14:03.880 Gee, it's been great.

00:14:05.740 Thanks for all the memories.

00:14:07.900 Of course, you must be judicious.

00:14:09.500 You can't just pick up any old potential freak that stumbles across your path.

00:14:12.880 But this guy seemed cool.

00:14:15.100 I got a good vibe from him.

00:14:16.620 And most importantly, we shared the same travel budget.

00:14:19.740 Spend as little as possible.

00:14:23.720 Towards the end of the day, we stopped at a town for supplies.

00:14:26.640 And after a bit of searching, we found a good camp on the edge of some fields shaded by large river gums.

00:14:32.040 The road curved away behind the trees, and we were out of sight of a small farmhouse sitting in the distance.

00:14:36.740 I went into the trees and found some dead branches while the Frenchman picked out some large stones from a weedy area.

00:14:42.880 We cracked open some beers, and I sat down by the fire and smoked a cigarette.

00:14:47.600 Then we prepared some hot food and opened a bottle of red wine.

00:14:50.840 Afterwards, the Frenchman rolled a joint.

00:14:53.820 I'm impressed, I said.

00:14:55.660 You must have found that pretty quick.

00:14:58.520 It's not so hard to find dope in a backpacker hostel in Darwin.

00:15:02.680 He thought for a moment, and then he frowned.

00:15:05.060 I do not even know your name.

00:15:06.760 I stuck out my hand in an awkward manner.

00:15:10.300 Adam.

00:15:11.400 Eve.

00:15:12.240 He shook my hand.

00:15:13.960 I looked at him.

00:15:15.420 Is that a joke?

00:15:17.500 No, it is my name.

00:15:19.560 He seemed surprised.

00:15:21.960 Adam and Eve?

00:15:23.140 Come on, you can do better than that. 1.00

00:15:25.720 His poor attempt at humor made me suspect that I could be traveling with a moron. 1.00

00:15:30.200 He laughed. 1.00

00:15:31.900 Not Eve.

00:15:33.360 I understand the joke.

00:15:35.160 No, but I am French-Canadian.

00:15:37.140 My name is Eve.

00:15:38.800 Y-V-E. 0.97

00:15:40.620 It is a common name where I come from.

00:15:43.580 Well, this is a little hard to believe, I said.

00:15:46.520 Adam and Eve traveling around Australia together?

00:15:49.000 Who would have thought of it?

00:15:49.980 The world is always strange, or, we are the strange ones, and it is the world who is normal.

00:15:56.840 We laughed, and he refilled the glasses, and we smoked some more weed as the night grew

00:16:00.680 dark at our little camp beneath the stand of river gums.

00:16:04.480 So why are you riding all the way across Australia?

00:16:07.480 He asked me.

00:16:08.760 Is it a holiday adventure?

00:16:11.180 I considered my options before replying.

00:16:14.220 I'm moving to Sydney.

00:16:15.720 My girlfriend's there.

00:16:16.720 She moved across to become a model.

00:16:18.260 There are no models in Perth.

00:16:22.240 Apparently Sydney is where you go if you want to make it big.

00:16:25.600 He drank from his glass.

00:16:27.880 Have you been there before?

00:16:30.120 Once, when I was a kid, to see my grandmother.

00:16:32.940 She lives a few hours up the coast, but I suppose that doesn't count.

00:16:37.420 Do you have plans for your work?

00:16:40.560 I have no idea what to expect.

00:16:43.160 I poked a stick in the fire.

00:16:44.400 To tell the truth, I'm not even sure about my girlfriend.

00:16:47.780 We had a bad phone conversation before I left. 0.78

00:16:50.360 I was drunk, so I suppose it was stupid to call her and express my undying love at the time.

00:16:55.620 My companion winced as I went into more detail, and I told him how I hadn't spoken to her since then. 0.57

00:17:01.180 We spoke all the time when she first left.

00:17:03.680 Quite graphic phone sex, if you want to know.

00:17:06.300 Eve held up his hand. 0.99

00:17:07.360 I believe you.

00:17:09.440 I smiled.

00:17:10.740 Yeah, fair enough.

00:17:12.020 The really bad thing is that now, riding across Australia, the closer I get to her in a physical sense, the more I feel we're getting further apart.

00:17:20.380 I ride all day, and then I sit at night and try not to think about it.

00:17:24.000 About that moment when I get to Sydney, and either way, I'll know for sure.

00:17:28.620 We sat in silence and sipped at our wine.

00:17:31.460 I lit a cigarette and savored the harsh smoke in my lungs.

00:17:34.340 All you can do is ride, Eve suddenly said.

00:17:38.840 You must enjoy the ride.

00:17:40.440 Then you are in Sydney, and then you must look at your problem.

00:17:44.280 But here we have the wine, and the smoke, and the company, and tomorrow we can ride again to new places.

00:17:50.520 It is good to ride.

00:17:51.640 You must have concentration.

00:17:53.300 No thinking of problems, otherwise you cannot see.

00:17:57.540 Yeah, I suppose you're right.

00:17:59.980 After a time he said,

00:18:01.360 How long have you been with this girl?

00:18:03.100 Well, I sighed.

00:18:05.000 About two months?

00:18:06.760 Eve whistled.

00:18:08.040 We should have got two bottles of the red.

00:18:12.440 The next morning, my bike was dead.

00:18:15.340 It wouldn't start.

00:18:16.980 I didn't know what to do, and I was monumentally annoyed.

00:18:20.520 I figured I had to do something, so lacking any better ideas,

00:18:23.620 I walked off towards the distant farmhouse with a vague idea of asking for help,

00:18:27.300 but halfway there my courage failed me and I turned back towards our little camp behind the stand of trees.

00:18:31.560 Eve had my bike up and running.

00:18:34.600 He nodded his head at me while he fiddled around with his own bike.

00:18:38.180 What did you do?

00:18:39.560 I felt stupid asking the question, but sometimes curiosity gets the best of you.

00:18:44.320 It was not so hard.

00:18:45.880 I put the battery from my bike in yours.

00:18:48.080 Now I put it back in mine.

00:18:49.960 You don't need the battery once it is going.

00:18:51.820 I stood there, wondering what to say. 0.99

00:18:55.100 No shit. 0.99

00:18:56.500 I should have been able to work that out. 1.00

00:18:58.680 One of us was enough.

00:19:01.180 Lucky I bumped into you yesterday or I would have been stuck out here on my own.

00:19:05.100 He gave me a Gaelic shrug and then we finished loading our bikes and headed back to the main road.

00:19:09.360 We were close to Mount Gambier, a large town located just before the next state border.

00:19:13.500 The plan was to get a real mechanic to find out what was wrong with my bike.

00:19:16.720 We found a small motorbike garage.

00:19:19.580 There were two mechanics working out the front in the early morning sun.

00:19:22.480 They stopped work as we arrived and came over to look at our bikes.

00:19:25.760 Honda 750, the taller one said to me.

00:19:28.060 Is that the 76 version?

00:19:29.920 Yeah, I said.

00:19:30.720 It's a tough old beast.

00:19:32.280 Where have you come from?

00:19:33.080 The other mechanic asked.

00:19:34.660 I pointed to my companion.

00:19:36.440 He came from Darwin and I came from Perth.

00:19:38.920 They both looked at me.

00:19:40.860 You came from Perth on that?

00:19:43.040 I assured them that I had and then I explained the problem.

00:19:45.580 They told me to leave it with them for an hour so we walked down the main street until

00:19:49.120 we found a nice place for breakfast where we leafed through the morning papers and watched

00:19:52.760 the locals walk by.

00:19:54.380 An hour later, my bike was ready.

00:19:56.800 The mechanics explained that the alternator had burned out, ruining my battery on the

00:20:00.160 long run across the desert.

00:20:01.800 I thanked them and asked how much I had to pay.

00:20:04.140 The older mechanic shook his head.

00:20:06.140 There's no charge, mate.

00:20:07.640 I must have had a confused expression on my face.

00:20:10.220 Bikers look after bikers. 0.95

00:20:11.640 You get a lot of respect for this trip on that bike.

00:20:13.720 Just a little bit we can do for you.

00:20:16.440 I was blown away by this unexpected generosity, but I was careful not to make a fuss, as I

00:20:20.800 didn't want to embarrass them.

00:20:22.340 We all shook hands, and then Eve and I rode on.

00:20:25.980 Over the next two days, Eve proved to be a boon-traveling companion.

00:20:29.820 He rode his bike well.

00:20:30.940 He was quick to come to an agreement.

00:20:32.460 He was a good conversationalist.

00:20:34.060 He held his drink admirably.

00:20:35.740 He said he liked my cooking.

00:20:37.140 And he didn't crawl into my tent in the middle of the night and murder me.

00:20:39.940 But I had a dilemma that needed to be resolved.

00:20:44.000 On our third night together, we stopped on the Omeo Highway in the Alpine National Park

00:20:47.940 after a nightmare few hours spent negotiating rutted gravel roads that was made even more

00:20:52.740 frightening by the frequent invasion of large groups of suicidal rabbits that sprang from

00:20:57.120 the forest and darted between the wheels of our bikes.

00:21:00.480 We found a campsite sitting in a lush meadow.

00:21:02.980 A small river thundered over smooth boulders, and the mountains formed a protective bowl around

00:21:07.040 the clearing.

00:21:08.040 We placed some beer in the cold-running water, set up camp, and prepared a meal.

00:21:12.020 The light began to fade, and the clear water reflected the purple sky.

00:21:15.740 You could kayak that, I said to Eve, and he nodded and handed me a beer.

00:21:19.820 We drank sitting at a rough picnic table, but my thoughts strayed back to the mountain stream,

00:21:23.620 and I imagined the line I would take if I had a kayak handy.

00:21:27.500 Tomorrow we arrive in Sydney, Eve said.

00:21:30.180 I took a sip of my beer and peered at the rapids, growing fainter in the evening light.

00:21:34.000 What time do you think we can arrive there, he said.

00:21:38.160 I'm thinking of taking a detour for a day or so, I said.

00:21:41.280 I have an aunt who lives up in Mugee.

00:21:43.400 She'd probably be upset if I didn't stop in to say hello, and it's a sure bet that my mother

00:21:47.620 would have called her to say I'm coming.

00:21:49.540 I stared out across the meadow.

00:21:51.600 It would be great if you could come, but I don't know if it'd be cool, me turning up

00:21:55.820 with some other biker.

00:21:56.980 And I haven't seen them in a long time.

00:21:58.800 I've only ever met them twice myself.

00:22:00.420 It's no problem, he said.

00:22:03.200 It's probably best that I arrive in Sydney soon.

00:22:05.540 I have to find a job, make some money.

00:22:08.160 I don't want you to think that I'm ditching you.

00:22:09.820 I just really don't know how they'd react.

00:22:12.480 Don't worry about it.

00:22:13.900 It's been a great trip, Eve said.

00:22:16.520 The ride today was crazy with all those little rabbits.

00:22:19.740 And we still have a good day's riding together tomorrow.

00:22:21.900 We can track through Tumut and up towards Gundagai.

00:22:24.120 It's an historical town.

00:22:26.260 Let's have a look, he said.

00:22:27.520 I got out the map and we plotted the route of our last day together.

00:22:31.360 And all the while, I was aware that these last few days with Eve for company had been

00:22:35.340 a great distraction from the unwelcome reality that I was about to face in Sydney.

00:22:40.620 We made the town of Bathurst by midday.

00:22:43.220 From there, Eve's route was a direct run to Sydney, while mine was a confusing weave of

00:22:47.200 back roads.

00:22:48.260 I gave Eve Jody's address and we made plans to meet up in the next few weeks.

00:22:51.600 Thank you for taking the chance to ask me to ride with you, he said.

00:22:55.760 I smiled and shook my head.

00:22:57.560 Thanks for everything.

00:22:59.300 I will see you in Sydney.

00:23:00.680 Then I can learn how things turned out.

00:23:02.880 I held my hand in the air as he rode away, and I wondered if I had made the right decision.

00:23:08.480 After numerous stops to consult my map, I reached the farmhouse at Cherry Tree Hill Farm

00:23:12.700 before dark.

00:23:13.820 My aunt and cousins welcomed me with open arms.

00:23:16.020 I enjoyed the luxury of a shower, and then we sat in deep lounge chairs and I told them of

00:23:19.900 my trip.

00:23:21.120 My aunt was incredulous at my decision not to bring Eve, and I felt a deep regret at

00:23:26.180 making the wrong decision.

00:23:27.900 With my arrival in Sydney due the following day, I knew I could no longer avoid calling

00:23:31.860 Jody.

00:23:32.460 I asked my aunt if I could use her phone.

00:23:34.900 I had a cold feeling in the pit of my stomach as I dialed the number.

00:23:38.980 Jody answered and my breath grew short at the sound of her voice.

00:23:42.400 I tried to keep myself calm as I gave her the news that I was due to arrive the next day.

00:23:46.040 Her reaction was noncommittal, and her voice was cold.

00:23:51.100 I asked her what time she would be home.

00:23:52.880 She replied that she didn't know.

00:23:54.760 In my head, I began to scream into the phone, demanding and pleading with her to tell me

00:23:58.520 what was going on, but my voice stayed casual.

00:24:01.360 As I said, I would see her tomorrow, and then I replaced the phone on the empty line.

00:24:05.240 The weather was foul, and the long run into Sydney unpleasant.

00:24:10.200 It took me hours to find her address in the convoluted streets and steep hills of Paddington.

00:24:14.960 Finally, I lucked upon it, and I pulled up outside a stylish terrace house.

00:24:18.960 I had completed the physical journey all the way across Australia, and now I was going to

00:24:22.880 know the result of my emotional odyssey one way or another.

00:24:27.580 Nobody was home.

00:24:28.860 It was mid-afternoon, about the time I told her to expect me.

00:24:33.440 At this point, you would have thought that I might have gotten the message, but there

00:24:36.100 was still a sliver of hope.

00:24:37.500 I had to know for sure.

00:24:39.280 My clothes were still damp, and a chill wind was blowing.

00:24:42.020 I walked back to my bike and sat on the wet seat.

00:24:44.420 I didn't have the energy to feel angry.

00:24:46.600 Some people came out of the house next door and cautiously asked if they could help.

00:24:49.860 I told them I had just arrived from Perth, and one of them walked inside and emerged

00:24:53.440 a few minutes later with a large mug of hot tea.

00:24:55.660 I wrapped my hands around the cup and spoke with them about my trip as I kept an eye out

00:24:59.880 for anyone walking down the street.

00:25:02.060 I think this is your group now, one of them said.

00:25:04.900 I turned to look, and one member of the group broke and ran unseeing me, and she launched 1.00

00:25:08.880 herself into my arms, and I gave her a big hug.

00:25:11.620 Hello, Susie, I said.

00:25:13.760 It was Jody's best friend.

00:25:16.200 I'm so glad you made it safely.

00:25:17.960 I got here a few days ago.

00:25:19.360 I tried to look for you from the plane.

00:25:21.440 I smiled at her joke, but my attention was fixed on the rest of the group.

00:25:24.380 as Jody detached herself and walked over and touched me lightly on the arm. 0.99

00:25:28.860 Hi, she mumbled.

00:25:30.480 And then she turned and walked to the door, and Susie looked at me and bit her lip, and 0.99

00:25:34.460 I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I was well and truly fucked. 0.99

Leo D.M.J. Aurini - April 11, 2016

＂Pushing Rubber Downhill＂ by Adam Piggot： Chapter 1 Audiobook Teaser

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