Wildcat Road is a three-volume autobiography chronicling the life of William C. Ade, one of Asia's most successful independent petroleum wildcatters. Volume I describes Ade's immigrant ancestors and childhood on an Indiana farm. Sharing homespun lessons and lore passed down from his elders-stories that shaped his work ethic, outlook and humor-Ade tells not only of the typical farm labor of the 50s and 60s but also the gentler side of rural life. He recounts discovering, accidentally, a fascination with geology ... a fascination that would lead him far from his roots. From his brush with the Manson family to his early tenure at Phillips Petroleum to starting a family, this volume details the first leg of Ade's profound scientific, personal, historical and political journey from his Newton County farm beginnings to global triumph as one of the most successful independent geologists of our age.