Category: Podcast

Would you ride with me? Should I ride with you? What does it take to be a great riding companion, or even know one when we meet one? Meet Bubba Eisenhauer, a former US Army Ranger officer who knows a thing or two about rolling with people you can trust. On the road as in combat, skill and reliability turn out to be mere table stakes. An inspiring conversation that reveals what being a great riding buddy really means, and the rewards that can only come from sharing what Bubba calls “one of the most beautiful things in the world.”

Show Notes

Had I not already done an episode or two on this subject, this one could just as easily have been about family. Here’s Bruce “Bubba” Eisenhauer in his own words: “I am blessed to have a wonderful family and have lived an adventure-filled life. I was a collegiate football player, high school teacher and athletic director, Army special operations officer, public speaker, and more. I also have a slight obsession with motorcycles. Despite that, the most important part of my life and the most extraordinary adventure yet is being a father to the world’s most incredible little boy.” When someone has such clarity about what matters and still makes so much room for motorcycles in their lives, you know we’re all onto something. If you want to connect with Bubba, you can find him on both Instagram and TikTok as @ironfam5. He wanted me to let you know that he’d love to hear from you, and promises a swift reply.

The title of this episode was, of course, a reference to the legendary Honda ad campaign of the 1960s. Maybe I’m overthinking it – it happens – but I thought it was perfect for a couple of reasons. One is the obvious tribute to great riding companions everywhere. The other is that Honda’s campaign is widely considered to have single-handedly reframed motorcycling as a social activity, effectively counterbalancing the darkly antisocial reputation it had at the time. Motorcyclists may still pantomime being antisocial (because it’s cool and fun), but I think we have become one of the most community-oriented pastimes in modern life. If you’re interested in the history of that Honda ad campaign, here‘s a short primer.

This episode really was almost about motorcycling’s introverts. It’s a thing, it turns out, in case – like me – you are one and worry that you’re weird… and the word ‘introvert’ probably describes more of us than is true of the general population. Maybe by a lot. You’ll find tons of discussion of this subject online, but this SlideShare presentation caught my eye. It’s from a talk that Griff Allen gave at AMA Vintage Days in 2016 and, although it is inevitably dry in that PowerPoint way, it makes a strong case for why introverts are drawn to motorcycles and what they can do for us. Check it out here.

Early in our conversation, I wanted to make clear that I would never literally compare riding motorcycles with the professionalism and sacrifice it takes to be a soldier. That said, I thought it was pretty fortunate to learn not just from a soldier, but from someone who served in a unit that has so famously codified the military values of loyalty and personal responsibility. You can learn more about the Army Rangers here, and about their history here.

Like so many of this podcast’s guests, Bubba Eisenhauer found me rather than the other way around. As a listener, his two favourite episodes were “Episode 46 – The Best Medicine” and “Episode 32 – The Skillful Monk“. Both are worth a re-listen, if you ask me. Joe Leondike continues his work on the therapeutic benefits of motorcycling, and recently spoke at a conference for the International Journal of Motorcycle Studies. As for Ven. Kusula Bhikshu, his podcasts were a regular companion for me during the Covid years, but I had kind of forgotten how insightful and kind (and quoteable!) he was in our interview until I dug up my notes. I still get emails about that one. If you’re new to the podcast, it’s worth going back for.

Bubba shared a few more photos with me, which you’ll see below. They paint a picture of someone for whom people really matter, which squares with the man we met in this episode. It was this more than the ‘how to’ part of this conversation that really stuck with me. A few days after this interview, someone came by to look at a bike I was selling (Steve, the person whose Movember donation I mentioned in my opening comments), and to my utter dismay he recognized me from the podcast. Painfully shy, I didn’t really know how to handle the attention, until I remembered Bubba’s sage advice: “Be the person you’d want to meet.” I was probably still a bit stiff, but I tried. It was great to meet you, Steve.

As always, the theme music for this episode was arranged and performed by Harry Bartlett. Harry released a new album back in December, I believe his first. You should give it a listen.

If you’d like to help keep This Motorcycle Life podcasting, be sure to visit the ‘Support’ page on this site. My heartfelt thanks to the few but generous folks who have already done so. And finally, a nudge to scrounge up a few bucks from the couch cushions and make a contribution to the Movember Foundation in the name of this podcast… just click on the moustache below. They could use all the help you can give, and you’ll be letting me know how much you value this content. Thank you!

Do women experience motorcycling in their own way? Meet lori lozinski, a Canadian filmmaker and feminist whose own motorcycle life answers that question with a passionate ‘yes’. Using her personal journey as a template, lori has explored on film the particular magic that brings women and motorcycles together, and the special freedom that comes with that union. Two films into a trilogy on this theme, she’s just getting started. A provocative conversation about her work, motorcycling’s joyful sisterhoods, and how the reason women choose this life shines a light on one thing no rider should ever take for granted. (Warning: This interview includes discussion of suicidal feelings)

Show Notes

I hope you found my breathless endorsement of What3words as interesting as discovering it was for me. It really is a brilliant way to navigate people to any unaddressed location for any reason, but I was especially struck by the difference it could make in an emergency situation. The app is free in all the usual places, and you can learn more about the organization and what it does here and here. Without implying any sort of endorsement of the Triumph brand, I thought they did a very good job of explaining how it works, and you can see that article here. What3words also welcomes community advocates. If you’re so inspired, find out how you can help spread the word here.

Although the tone and message of this conversation are positive, there is a brief discussion about suicidal thoughts which may upset some listeners. If you are in crisis or need mental health support of any kind, this global index of services is a good place to find what you need.

There might be those who wonder what a man – me, in this case – is doing even having a conversation like the one in this episode, much less how I could ever hope to understand what I was hearing. Fair enough. For me, though, and I hope for you, there was immeasurable hope and joy in the fact that motorcycles provided more than enough common ground to be a basis for trust between us. I wish the whole world worked this way.

lori’s (the missing capital L isn’t a typo) bona fides as a filmmaker are impeccable. You can read more about her work and impressive accomplishments in her bio, which you’ll find on Violator Films‘ web site. If you want to say hi on Instagram, she’s @elle_dee_elle

To get the most out of this episode, it’s worth your time to watch lori’s recent short film, ‘A Motorcycle Saved My Life’. It’s available on Canada’s National Film Board web site, right here. And our dear old CBC distributes her earlier film, ‘The Pilgrimmage’, from their site here (international viewers may have to watch it here).

And, of course, the wonderful Gloria Steinem anecdote that gave this episode its name is not to be missed. I have not read ‘My Life on the Road‘, but a motorcycle story might just be the bait I needed to add it to my list.

The best place to learn about The Litas is from the organization itself, whose web site is here. As women have become a bigger and more transformative force in motorcycle culture, I think one of The Litas’ greatest contributions to that culture has been to claim their narrative… along with being a fascinating experiment in how to be a collective without being a club. Much respect to Jessica Wise and her team for remaining on mission as the idea has grown beyond all borders and imagining.

Many thanks to MacKenzie Porter and the keen folks at Big Loud Records for being so helpful and enthusiastic about sharing this track. You can learn more about MacKenzie at her web site, which is here, and that’s also how you can find out where to see her performing live. ‘Chasing Tornadoes’ is available for purchase on Apple Music, which is where I bought it, and you can of course stream it on Spotify, Apple Music, or wherever else you like to get your riding jams. You’ll find all her social feeds on her web site, too.

As always, the theme music for this episode was arranged and performed by Harry Bartlett. Harry released a new album back in December, I believe his first. You should give it a listen.

If you’d like to help keep This Motorcycle Life podcasting, be sure to visit the ‘Support’ page on this site. My heartfelt thanks to the few but generous folks who have already done so. And finally, a nudge to scrounge up a few bucks from the couch cushions and make a contribution to the Movember Foundation in the name of this podcast… just click on the moustache below. They could use all the help you can give, and you’ll be letting me know how much you value this content. Thank you!

Who on earth would ride a motorcycle in a city like New York? Meet Brian Lau, a gifted young photographer who set out to document Gotham’s vibrant motorcycle scene in search of an answer. Despite not being a rider himself, he found a welcoming community among that city’s ‘rowdy’ motorcyclists and, through his lens, a fierce sense of family that’s deeply familiar to everyone who rides. But Lau’s gritty heroes also reveal the passion, humour and defiance it takes to do what we love in a sometimes hostile world… and eloquently proves how resilient the spirit of motorcycling really is.

Show Notes

If you are a fan of photography as an art, you’ll enjoy perusing Brian Lau’s web site, which is here. Many of the photographs we talked about in this interview can be found there, too, of course. Here’s a shortcut to that portfolio. Hong Kong-born Brian was trained in Toronto and, notwithstanding his modesty, I think it’s a remarkable achievement and an amazing opportunity to work with a legend like Arthur Elgort. Treat yourself to a visit to Elgort’s site, too. This Wiki article will give you a pretty good sense of his significance in that world.

If you want to say hi to Brian on Instagram, he’s @bryphl.

Brian mentioned a podcast about motorcycle safety that originates in New York. It’s called Arrive Alive. You’ll find it on the usual platforms, and more about it on its home page, which is here. I found it interesting that Brian saw this podcast as evidence of how the motorcycle community cares for its own. I think that might be true of most motorcycle podcasters, in fact, and maybe even this one.

I tried to find a single article that would explain New York’s currently fraught relationship with motorcyclists to those not familiar, but there is just too much out there… it’s a thing. The root causes are probably impossible to parse if you don’t live there, but two things seem to come up over and over as contributors: One is ‘stunting’, aggressively antisocial riding behavior, often by unlicensed riders on unlicensed machines that does nothing for our reputation. The other is something you’ll often see referred to online as ‘The West Side Highway Incident‘, which provided tabloid fodder of the kind not seen since the aftermath of the Hollister ‘riot’. The result has been a lot of motorist antipathy and law enforcement that sometimes verges on “draconian”, to use Brian’s word. It’s unfortunate, but beyond this podcast’s purview to analyze. What’s inarguable, though, is that it takes a special kind of determination to live your motorcycle life in the Big Apple and, apparently, a special kind of person.

Speaking of motorcyclists with a reputation problem, Doug Thompson’s reference to Hunter S. Thompson comes from Thompson’s famous book, ‘Hell’s Angels: A Strange and Terrible Saga’. The comparison is more apt that it seems at first, a point I hope we were able to make in our conversation. Regardless, the book itself is an amazing read for Thompson’s proto-gonzo style, its moment-in-timeness, and its perhaps timeless lesson that reputations and the media have a way of feeding on each other. Highly recommended.

With Brian’s kind permission, here are a few random selections from his portfolio to get you in the urban moto-groove…

  

I wouldn’t presume to tell anyone what to see in these photos, so I’ll just say this: I felt an overwhelming sense of kinship with Brian Lau’s subjects, despite on the surface having next to nothing in common with them. Call me a romantic – it won’t be the first time – but that is one of my favourite things about riding motorcycles. And why I thought Brian’s remarkable story was worth sharing.

As a closing thought, you might enjoy a column I wrote about this for Toronto’s Spring Motorcycle Show magazine on the importance of seeing each other. You can find it here, on page 20 of the online edition.

For this episode’s playlist recommendation, jazz seemed like just the thing (he said, doubling down on his own nerdery). As it happens, the tenor sax legend Illinois Jacquet was the subject of a film by Brian’s boss, Arthur Elgort. And Illinois Jacquet just happens to have recorded a wonderful performance of the New York-inspired classic Harlem Nocturne. What could be more perfect.

As always, the theme music for this episode was arranged and performed by Harry Bartlett. Harry released a new album back in December, I believe his first. You should give it a listen.

If you’d like to help keep This Motorcycle Life podcasting, be sure to visit the ‘Support’ page on this site. And finally, a nudge to scrounge up a few bucks from the couch cushions and make a contribution to the Movember Foundation in the name of this podcast… just click on the moustache below. They could use all the help you can give, and you’ll be letting me know how much you value this content. Thank you!

Every new rider is somebody’s kid, but what if that new rider is your kid? There’s no more emotionally complicated moment in a motorcyclist’s life than the day their offspring gets a motorbike of their own. Meet Wes Stephenson, who has been both that excited kid and that terrified parent in the course of his long motorcycle life. If you ask him, the recipe for being a great motorcycle mentor is much the same as the recipe for being a great parent: share your joy along with your wisdom, collect stories together… and know when it’s time to let go.

Show Notes

Wes Stephenson’s book ‘Molded on a Motorcycle’ is a fun read, and a warm-hearted meditation on what it means to inherit a love of motorcycles. You can find it here in both text and audible forms. Wes also has his own web site where you can get to know him better, and you’ll find that right here.

It turns out that the conflicted experience of parenting a motorcyclist (it seems silly to use that word when you’re talking about a fully independent adult, but indulge me) is a hot topic about which much has been written. Researching for this episode, I wouldn’t say that I found a definitive text on the subject, but I was charmed by this short piece from the mother of an aspiring motocrosser. The writer is reminded that the job of a parent is to prepare their child for life, and that this is ultimately the only way you can ever ‘protect’ them. To believe you can do more, it argues moreover, is selfish.  There’s some solid advice in here if your particular child happens to be of the small and young variety.

Here’s some background on the Iron Butt Association’s 48 State Challenge. You’ll recall that I touched on the IBA and endurance riding with Rick Muhr in Episode 39. That episode garnered a lot of interest from other IBA riders, who wanted me to know there is much more to the story of what they do than Rick’s saga alone could possibly tell. Look for a future episode on that.

Many thanks to The Rural Alberta Advantage for sharing ‘Late September Snow’ with us. You can get to know this Toronto band better by visiting their web site, which is here. But the best way to do that, of course, is to see them live. Ahead of the release of a new album (check out the sample track ‘Plague Dogs’ below), they’re on tour, and here are some upcoming dates and venues… if the new track is any indication, it’ll be a killer show:

The Rural Alberta Advantage	March 28, 2023	Richmond, VA	Richmond Music Hall
The Rural Alberta Advantage	March 29, 2023	Durham, NC	Motorco Music Hall
The Rural Alberta Advantage	March 31, 2023	Cleveland, OH	Beachland Ballroom
The Rural Alberta Advantage	April 1, 2023	Detroit, MI	El Club
The Rural Alberta Advantage	April 2, 2023	London, ON	Rum Runners
The Rural Alberta Advantage	May 22, 2023	Fredericton, NB	The Capital
The Rural Alberta Advantage	May 23, 2023	Fredericton, NB	The Capital
The Rural Alberta Advantage	May 24,2023	Charlottetown, PEI	PEI Brewing Co.
The Rural Alberta Advantage	May 25, 2023	Halifax, NS	Lighthouse Arts Centre
The Rural Alberta Advantage	May 26, 2023	Moncton, NB	Tide & Boar
The Rural Alberta Advantage	May 28, 2023	St.John’s, NL	Rock House
The Rural Alberta Advantage	June 3, 2023	Fergus, ON	Meadows Music Fest
The Rural Alberta Advantage	June 16, 2023	Beaumont, AB	Four Seasons Park
The Rural Alberta Advantage	July 6, 2023	Calgary, AB	Wildhorse Saloon
The Rural Alberta Advantage	July 7, 2023	Orillia, ON	Tudhope Park

As always, the theme music for this episode was arranged and performed by Harry Bartlett. Harry just released a new album in December, I believe his first. You should give it a listen.

If you’d like to help keep This Motorcycle Life podcasting, be sure to visit the ‘Support’ page on this site. And finally, a nudge to scrounge up a few bucks from the couch cushions and make a contribution to the Movember Foundation in the name of this podcast… just click on the moustache below. They could use all the help you can give, and you’ll be letting me know how much you value this content. Thank you!

Why does motorcycling inspire so much creativity in the people who do it? From true artists to passionate amateurs, something ineffable about these machines compels many of us, including this podcaster, to share the ride with the rest of the world… or at least with each other. For its fiftieth episode, TML turns the mic on its host in a conversation with fellow podcaster, Chasing The Horizon’s Wes Fleming. A frank confessional about why motorcycling’s creators do what they do, how podcasts like this happen, and why it might be time to let your own creative muse out to play.

Show Notes

Humble thanks to the listeners who suggested doing this episode, both for thinking the 50th was worth celebrating and for thinking the show’s host would be a good subject. I couldn’t quite make myself take center stage like that, but this seemed like a fair compromise. And it opened the door to meeting a pretty great person in Wes Fleming. Funny how that get-outside-your-comfort-zone thing works…

And thanks to Wes for enthusiastically agreeing to do it, and for saying all those nice things. I recommend adding Chasing the Horizon to your podcast menu almost no matter what you ride. Wes’ show is a two-fer, as they say around here: nobody I know puts the effort into following and reporting on developments in the motorcycle industry that Wes does, and that’s just the appetizer. He has had some great guests, one or two of whom have also been on this show, and I envy – that’s the honest word for it – his natural and easy interviewing style. A recent favourite episode of mine was his interview with Melissa Holbrook Pierson, which adds a ton of colour to what she shared a couple of years back on my show. His recent look at the impact European motorcycle regulation has on the sport worldwide is great, and shines a light on a force in this sport that isn’t widely enough acknowledged. Here‘s a link to Mark Barnes’ podcast on Apple Podcasts, and here‘s another to the BMWMOA’s YouTube channel.

You may recall that I attempted to acknowledge a generous serial donor to the Movember Foundation at the beginning of this episode. Let me do that properly here: he is Urspeter “Upe” Flueckiger. Upe has an Instagram account that features some soul-nourishing photos of his Beemers… he’s @moto_zen_upe.

When I spoke about the variety of creativity that motorcycling inspires, you may have caught mention of haikus. Well, you need to know that I didn’t just pull that out of my hat. I am the proud owner of a copy of Moto Haiku, by the passionate and prolific Marc Teatum. Marc’s meditations are haikus more in spirit than technical form, and riders will find that spirit comfortingly familiar. Check the book out here, get to know Marc, and treat yourself to a copy.

Below is a photo of the Yamaha Twin Jet 100, my earliest memory of a motorcycle. I’ve borrowed it here from Bike-urious , who I hope won’t mind. After this machine, my father would take a long break from riding for the usual career and parenting reasons, and return to the sport with his affection for vintage Japanese iron undimmed. The Twin Jet is a pretty interesting bike, technically speaking, but it’s the design that impresses me. Never has this style of bike looked so badass, and Yamaha’s tradition of sexy fuel tanks clearly has deep roots.

I mentioned in passing a book called Riding With Rilke, by fellow Canadian Ted Bishop. After our conversation, I got to thinking about the way motorcycling had been screaming at me all my adult life before I finally paid attention… this book was an example of that. I read it at least ten years before I finally did anything about it. It’s lovely and meditative, and just a little off the beaten path of motorcycling reads. Recommended. And yeah, Ducati Monsters still turn my head.

Wes mentioned a well known motorcycle writer named Clement Salvadori. Well known to everyone but me, apparently… here‘s a bit more about him and his work. He seems like one of the sport’s true characters.

We talked for a couple of minutes about Omar Petralis, my guest for Episode 40: The Worst That Could Happen. If you’re inclined to cherry pick your TML episodes for the ones that seem most relevant to you, I strongly recommend investing the time in that one. So much inspiration from so much tragedy, and surely the last word in how much riding motorcycles means to the people who do it. You can say hi to Omar on the socials: he’s @oomis on ADVRider, GTAM and Instagram.

When I introduced this episode’s playlist recommendation, I mentioned that four guests had ended up providing their own music for the episodes in which they were featured. Respect if you could name them from memory… you probably deserve a prize. They are Erik Buell, Redlight King’s Mark Kasprzyk, Chris Mara (who did not perform but produced the track), and of course Wes Fleming.

If you’d like to see 7th Grade Girl Fight live, the place to go is their web site, which is here. You can find their music on all the usual platforms, though not all of it in any one place… it’s worth looking around to get the full picture. And here‘s their YouTube channel. They look like a blast live. I don’t want to sound like a pretentious rock critic, but I get great 90s alt rock vibes from this band. High praise, since that’s my favourite decade, musically.

As always, the theme music for this episode was arranged and performed by Harry Bartlett. Harry just released a new album in December, I believe his first. You should give it a listen.

If you’d like to help keep This Motorcycle Life podcasting, be sure to visit the ‘Support’ page on this site. And finally, a nudge to scrounge up a few bucks from the couch cushions and make a contribution to the Movember Foundation in the name of this podcast… just click on the moustache below. They could use all the help you can give, and you’ll be letting me know how much you value this content. Thank you!

What drives motorcycling’s late bloomers? Are mid-life bikers trying to turn back the clock, or is there some wisdom in putting on that helmet just when life is getting comfortable? Meet Catherine Meade, who jumped into motorcycling with both feet at the age of 46. From the grumpy streets of Toronto to the cavernous potholes of Botswana, Catherine chose motorcycles as her next chapter in a lifetime of adventure… and they’ve repaid her with fresh eyes for the world and excitement for the road ahead. An inspiring conversation about how it’s never too late for a motorbike to transform us.

Show Notes

Definitely treat yourself to a visit to Catherine Meade’s blog, which was an invaluable resource to me. What started out as a homework assignment for the perpetual student became a record of her amazing first few years as a rider, and there are lots of photos. She absolutely wasn’t exaggerating about those potholes. See a sample below…

Here’s a link to the page on WomenRidersNow.com where I first got a sense of Catherine’s story, and where she shares her experience in Colorado. When I first read and watched this content, I kind of glossed over her profile’s title, “Overcoming Obstacles Through Training,” but WRN got it – and Catherine – right. As you heard in this conversation, it’s something she believes in strongly. So do I. For everyone, but maybe especially for those of us not born on a motorcycle. At this writing, WRN’s video player wasn’t working for me, but I’ll update these notes with a viewer once it is. In the meantime, here are a few photos to whet your appetite.

We spoke recently about Catherine’s latest trip, earlier in the fall, to Nepal. Here are a couple of photos from that adventure, and I think the confident smile pretty much tells the tale… and makes a strong case for the benefits of continuous learning.

Here’s a link to Renedian, the outfit that organized Catherine’s life-altering trip to Africa. I had never heard of them, and they’re a great find… and even Canadian. Catherine also wanted me to mention the folks who organized the Nepal trip. They are Two Wheeled Expeditions, and you can learn more about them by clicking on the link. Likewise ADVWoman, who were behind her sink-or-swim Colorado training adventure. Although I have to say, I would not personally dismiss one of those fancy tours she referred to…

This lovely newsletter provided that Anaïs Nin quote in my closing comments. The issue from which it comes happens to be a meditation on living fully, and it probably helped me with this episode more than I realize.

Many thanks to Barbra Lica for being so generously into sharing her music for this episode. Barbra is almost universally described as a jazz singer, which she most certainly is. But her wonderful voice and personality demand a broader definition of that genre, even if we did choose a classic from the Great American Songbook for this episode. You can learn more about Barbra here, and get to know her and her music better on her YouTube channel. She’s also on Instagram… @barbralica. Say hi, and wish her luck with that mint green Vespa.

 

How can we find goodness in a world gone mad? Obviously, the answer is on a motorcycle…  just maybe not the way you think. Meet Harold Serrano, a kid from New Jersey who’s begun a global odyssey not to escape reality, but to reimagine it. In a lively conversation that careens from Plato’s Cave to facing bandits on a lonely Columbian highway, Harold’s unconventional take on moto-touring reveals yet another trick a bike has up its sleeve: the power to reconnect us. Get ready for a long solo ride story like you’ve never heard… along with just a dash of magic.

Show Notes

This interview features a bit of colourful language, most of which I have left intact because I really want you to get to know Harold Serrano the way I did. It would be easy to see Harold as a scrappy “kid” on a bike (he’s not a kid, of course) who we might think from the comfort of our living rooms is doing something a little reckless. Only with time do we get to see his big heart and the passionate inner life that drives him. That’s clearly what his hosts have seen. And by the time I was finished editing this episode, I realized that the openness to see things like that in each other was maybe its most important theme.

If you’d like to connect with Harold Serrano, here are a couple of social media options: On Instagram, he’s @WhereisHarold, and onTiktock, he’s Wheresharold

Harold wrote and self-published a memoir of his South and Central America adventure. I was unable to get a copy in time for this interview, but you certainly can. It’s here, and apparently also on Amazon.

There were some fun cultural references tossed into this conversation, a couple of which I have to admit I had to catch up with afterwards. You can start doing that the same way a lazy scholar like me does… with Wikipedia.

First, and most delightfully, the story of Don Quixote, which is more complex than most of us (who didn’t study literature, at least) remember from Man of La Mancha. Start here, and don’t blame me if you end up in a glorious rabbit hole.

Harold added a cultural flex by recalling the name of Don Quixote’s horse, Rocinante. Delightfully, it, too, has a Wikipedia page. Looking at you, DR650 owners…

The reference to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave was right on the money, and competed strongly as a theme for this episode. Here’s a bit about that.

The Motorcycle Diaries is well known to a lot of us in both book and movie forms, so I won’t belabour that here. Harold told me that the subject of Che Guevara is still a touchy one in parts of South America.

Harold also mentioned The Alchemist, a book that has apparently made countless questing souls feel understood. Here’s a bit about it.

And I mentioned in passing a movie called In And Of Itself. It was sort of an aside when I brought it up, but on reflection it’s a film about identity and magic, soooo… If you’re curious and love a movie that gets talked about for weeks after you see it, it’s an hour and a half you won’t regret.

Harold shared a generous album of photos with me, too many to post here, but below are a few that give you a flavour for how he travels. Although he was also understandably proud that there were indeed some ‘epic’ accomplishments during his south-to-north adventure, there is no denying from seeing the journey through his eyes that it was all about the people.

 

A million thanks to Drapht and his crew for sharing “Don Quixote” with us in this episode. Besides being so delighted with the track, I was fascinated to see what a rich and vibrant hip hop scene there is in Australia. It’s proof again of what a universal and enduring form this is, easily making room for the culture, humour and issues unique to that country. And with a pile of platinum and gold records and two Aria awards under his belt, Drapht is clearly among its greats. If you’d like to know a little more about him, start here. He’s on all the socials, of course. And he happens to have a new album, which you can find right here. As for the rest of his music, it’s in all the usual places. I purchased “Don Quixote” in the iTunes store.

 

 

 

How do you pass on your love of motorcycles to the people who matter the most?  Sometimes, the answer is a motorcycle. Meet Larry Gibson and grandson Eric Clingenpeel, two of four generations to own and ride the same 1947 Indian Chief since its discovery in a barn in 1954. After nearly 70 years, the love and adventure invested in this machine have given its motorcycle-loving family a wealth of stories, and the Chief a vibrant life of its own. A heart-warming reminder of what a motorbike is really for, and a recipe for making a great one last forever.

Show Notes

If you’re up for this year’s Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, you’ll find everything you need to know – including how to dress – here.

Thanks again to Eric Clingenpeel for reaching out to share this wonderful, personal story. And thanks to grandpa Larry Gibson for providing a treasure trove of photos that made our conversation even more so. Generosity seems to run in the family.

First things first: If you, like me, were not very familiar with this particular motorcycle, here’s a reference to catch you up. To my uneducated eye, the word ‘quintessential’ seems to fit, here… this is the American big twin rendered exuberantly as art.

Here’s a selection of photos and videos that document some of the stories you heard in our conversation, starting with three from that fateful trip to Sturgis circa 1992. Pictured are Larry and his wife, Dixie, as well as a close-up of “how we packed the horse”, as Larry put it.

A playful scene from the Gibson living room, sometime after the Chief’s temporary retirement. While life goes on, the bike hides behind the partition in the background on the left, waiting to cast its spell on the next generation. For me, this was one of the best parts of the story. Somehow, someone knew this machine’s job wasn’t done yet.

What is it about motorcycles and guitars? This frame did some time as what Larry called “a very expensive guitar stand.” Pictured at center is Larry’s dad’s 1930 Gibson guitar, which has been played by the same four generations that have shared the Chief.

Fast forward to 2018, and here’s Larry starting the completely rebuilt Indian for the first time. Note the confidence… I think that runs in the family, too.

Larry’s YouTube channel yielded this companion piece, a short demonstration of what it’s actually like to ride this bike. I was struck by three things: First, it looks kind of hard. Second, the rider makes it look easy. And third, once you’ve mastered it, there seems to be a languidness about this big, old horse that you’d be hard pressed to find in a modern bike. In Eric’s words, “it’s like a clock.”

This episode’s inspiration, Eric Clingenpeel, astride the resurrected Indian Chief.

Larry, Eric and brother Reece, in Wyoming. For sheer soul, there’s not an ad agency on earth that could have done a better job for this storied brand than the picture below.

There could be no better way to wrap up this story than to meet the kids who will write the next chapter, thanks to the proud grandpa who got them on film. Below, members of the family racing a hand-built facsimile of the chief in a local soapbox derby, and young member of the clan at the helm of an electric replica Larry found at a garage sale. He’s lucky I didn’t get there first.

Thanks to Mark Kasprzyk of Redlight King for once again letting me feature his music on this show, this time his brilliantly reimagined “Old Man.” The famous story about Neil Young personally approving the use of his iconic 1972 track for this project is, I’m happy to report, absolutely true, and I think Redlight King’s performance is genius. Written early in his career, Young’s original feels almost like a wistful glimpse into the future, a rising star wondering aloud where it will all go. Redlight King’s interpretation is like a coda to that, a look back in gratitude to the people who make us what we are. I love it. Redlight King has been hard at work throughout the pandemic, despite being the challenges of performing. A new album is in the works, and they’re thrilled to be booking festivals again. Follow Mark on Instagram @redlightking, and on music platforms like Spotify.

 

Are motorcycles really as therapeutic as we think they are? Are we just having fun when we ride, or is something more profound going on under our helmets? Meet lifelong rider Dr. Joe Leondike, a Lieutenant Colonel in the US Air Force. A psychiatric nurse practitioner who treats PTSD patients, Joe says the conditions that help a mind heal itself are a lot like the ones we experience in the saddle. His take: motorcycling can be self-care, but only if we’re willing to put the work in. A fascinating perspective, and maybe the best answer yet to why we ride.

Show Notes

As I mentioned in my opening comments, and as Dr. Leondike echoed, nothing we spoke about in this episode should be considered a substitute for the care of a mental health professional. If you’re feeling in distress or overwhelmed or this conversation raised difficult issues for you, please ask for help now. From the Movember web site, here is a list of local crisis resources here in Canada.

A great deal has been written about EMDR, and while science is still building the empirical case for how it works, the results are pretty compelling. I can’t identify a best single authoritative resource for explaining the process, but this seems like as good a place as any to start. Scroll down to “For Laypeople”. The personal stories you can find elsewhere online are amazing, but given the material involved I thought it best not to choose any to share here.

In our conversation, Joe cited a study on the mental state riding a motorcycle puts us into. It was funded by a grant from Harley Davidson and conducted by UCLA neuroscientist Dr. Don Vaughn, and you can read more about that study here. The last research I remember seeing on the health benefits of riding is now quite old, so it’s exciting to see some fresh learning on this.

Many thanks to Dave Gunning for letting me share “All Along The Way” with you. The track appears on the album ‘No More Pennies’, and he chose it just for us. Dave hails from Pictou County in Nova Scotia, and his rootsy East Coast sound is something I have an ancestral soft spot for. You can learn more about his music at his web site, which is here. That’s also where you can find all his social feeds (if you’re an Insta pal, he’s @dave_gunning).