T A B L E_T A L K Learning Spanish in South America: Weigh in on the best places to study in the Wanderlust area of Table Talk R E C E N T L Y How Europe changed my life By Hank Hyena A summer odyssey affects a young Republican in the most unexpected way (10/21/98) Rights of passion By Leah Kohlenberg Contrary to popular lore, sometimes casual sex is just what a woman traveler wants (10/20/98) Going native in Mongolia By Julie Vallone A horseback journey across the Mongolian steppes becomes an odyssey through time (10/18/98) Señor Gringo By Maxine Schur An innocent encounter turns crazy for two travelers and a heartbroken, gun-toting Mexican sheriff (10/16/98) This week in travel Wanderlust's selective guide to travel-related news (10/16/98) Browse the Wanderlust Passages archives S A L O N E M P O R I U M FREE! 12-ounce bag of Salon Blend with a purchase of $30 or more. While supplies last.		CHASING RICKSHAWS | PAGE 1, 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Cycle-rickshaws do not have a bicycle's natural stability. Taking a corner on a bicycle is a simple matter of leaning slightly into the curve; when you straighten up, the bicycle does as well. That certainly isn't the case with a cycle-rickshaw, which has to be wrestled into the corner and hauled back out of it. My first rickshaw experience, on a Yogyakarta becak, included a brush with a wall because I did not use enough brute force to straighten the beast out as we exited a corner. Riding a rickshaw in Agra, I had quite the opposite experience. The subcontinent's rickshaws use a normal bicycle front fork and wheel, and as a result the front half of the rickshaw wants to act like a bicycle and veer off to one side when a sideways force is applied. I was cruising along a quiet road in the Agra cantonment district when a minor bump in the road suddenly sent my rickshaw diving off the road, skittering across the grass and plunging into the bushes! Even without steering problems, the lack of rigidity which many cycle-rickshaws suffer from makes riding a less than straightforward activity. Most cycle-rickshaws are a mix of bicycle and rickshaw parts, joined together with a distinct deficiency of engineering precision. The front and back halves often feel as if they are squirming around and intent on disappearing in totally different directions. The Agra and Rangoon versions were particularly lacking in rigidity and disconcerting to ride. Having got your rickshaw moving and round the odd corner, the final problem is bringing it to a halt. Cycle-rickshaws have lousy brakes. In most cases the problem of designing brakes for both ends seems to have been too much for the rickshaw's designer, who's opted to make do with braking at one end only. As a result, a weighty rickshaw with three people aboard has less braking power than a bicycle. The passengers-to-the-rear cycle-rickshaws of Agra and Dhaka have a regular bicycle front brake, although it is operated by both front brake levers in tandem so at least you can squeeze it twice as hard. The passengers-to-the-front cycle-rickshaws of Hanoi, Penang and Yogyakarta have different forms of brakes on the rear wheel only. The Penang and Hanoi versions are operated by a foot pedal which allows the rider to stand his weight on the brakes but requires an awkward motion when taking his feet off the pedals. All three are remarkably crude in their operation, and the Hanoi rickshaw not only provides minimal braking but makes horrible noises into the bargain. None of them stops very well. Rickshaws have appeared in books and films -- the becaks of Jakarta featured centrally in "The Year of Living Dangerously," while Calcutta's hard-working rickshaw-wallahs were the stars of "The City of Joy" -- and the machines, their riders and their customers have been studied by engineers, evaluated by transport economists and analyzed by sociologists. We set out to create this book for a variety of reasons -- partly to record a fascinating means of transport and human activity before it disappeared, partly because rickshaws are wonderfully varied examples of technical ingenuity, partly because they're often beautiful examples of folk art and partly because it looked like a fun thing to do. In fact the last part of that equation proved to be the biggest surprise of all. Putting this book together has been enormous fun -- in very large part because of the people we've met: the rickshaw pullers and riders, the rickshaw owners and operators, the rickshaw makers and repairers. They've all had a tale to tell and they've all been remarkably enthusiastic about telling those tales. They're celebrated in this book. SALON | Oct. 22, 1998 Tony Wheeler is the founder and head of Lonely Planet Publications. Richard I' Anson is a photographer based in Melbourne; his images have been published in more than 80 editions of Lonely Planet books. Excerpted with permission from "Chasing Rickshaws," published by Lonely Planet Publications; text and photos © 1998 by Lonely Planet, photos © 1998 by Richard I' Anson.