Mid-Life Rider

Robert Pirsig famously opined, or perhaps it was whined, in his landmark “Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance” about the importance/beauty/honor/rightness of deep involvement with the mechanics of the motorcycle. I remember nodding along in righteous agreement. I was 23 at the time and then made my living (sort of) as a carpenter/plumber/electrician/dry [...]

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I met Carl (virtually) on a motorcycle forum. Think of him as your average, every day, mid-life motorcycle crazy. He agreed to answer my various questions. Lots of great thoughts about riding. He also has assembled one of the most impressive personal motorcycle sites you’ll ever find: loads of ride reports, maps, pictures, and more. [...]

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A story involving a Mercedes, a Shovelhead, and an SU Carb
“What’s with all the Harleys?”
Probably Steve was at the wheel at the time, but it could have been me. We’d left Rochester, New York three days before on a road trip that would end up in Honolulu, Hawaii. No, we weren’t planning on driving all [...]

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This is a story about building a custom saddle for a motorcycle. And more.
I’ve had the opportunity to talk with and interview a fair number of people about why they ride motorcycles. Many of these stories inevitably wander back to the story of a first bike.
For me, that first bike came when I left Rochester, [...]

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