This Motorcycle Life Podcast

Since the first motorcycles took to the road, they’ve been objects of fascination for artists. The trouble is, not many of those artists were actually riders, and images of motorcycles in popular culture ended up as symbols for things that weren’t always good, and ignored what makes them amazing. In this episode, I speak with Tempus Deficit, an artist who has been part of an explosion of art about motorcycles, by motorcyclists. Things get a little nerdy, but there’s no mistaking what motorcycle art says about our community, and why we should all be fans.

With the riding season coming to an end for many of us, this seems like a good time to take stock. But as we reflect on the places we’ve been and the memories we’ve made, are we forgetting something? In this episode, I talk with someone who thinks the answer might just be gratitude. Jay Segarra was once a Marine. Now, he’s a motorcycle mechanic. But it’s what happened in between that taught him to take nothing in life for granted. Jay talks about the machines that nearly killed him and then ultimately saved his life, about the love that gave him a second chance, and about how everything we need to be happy is right in front of us.

They say you never see a motorcycle in front of a therapist’s office. Most of us, in fact, freely admit that there are days when we just ride to stay sane, and that sometimes the only place life makes any sense is inside our helmets. In this episode, I talk with someone who has put that to the test more than most. Cat Martin is a lifelong rider and a riding instructor who recently endured a series of painful losses in her life. She talks candidly about continuing to ride through that pain, and what your motorcycle can – and can’t – do for you when the chips are down.

No motorcycle brand inspires stronger emotions, deeper loyalty, fiercer criticism and maybe more seething envy than Harley Davidson. With 115 years of history behind the bar and shield, more North Americans ride Harleys today than any other make, and the brand is so famous globally that its name alone is worth $5.7 billion dollars. Yet behind the corporate story remains a stubbornly idiosyncratic motorcycle company whose products still turn heads and haunt dreams, and whose riders are still a tribe of their own. In this episode, I talk to former Harley Davidson insider Steve Piehl about what makes the company tick, how it’s changing, and where the magic will come from to see it through its second century.

You know the look. The one your parent or partner gets as you gear up for a ride, the one that says, “why couldn’t you have taken up golf?” Sometimes, being a motorcyclist means being misunderstood by the people who know you best. But what if it didn’t? What if the people closest to you shared your passion? In this episode, we meet Peter and Jonathan Boulton, two motorcycle podcasters who were born into a motorcycling family. Their story might make you a little envious. And the reason why turns out to be something every motorcyclist needs, even if our riding family is simply each other.

Awareness is how motorcyclists survive. And, for some, it’s also how they win. That would seem to be the story of Grand Prix legend “Fast Freddie” Spencer, an extraordinary talent whose awareness was so acute he could tell who was pursuing him on the track by which flags were waving in the stands… at 200kph. That gift would help win multiple world championships, along with the still unequaled achievement of doing so in two classes in a single season. In this conversation, Freddie Spencer talks about his journey, and the hard-won lesson that awareness isn’t just a riding skill. It’s a way of life.

Right from that very first ride, motorcycling is about pushing ourselves a little further, beyond our comfort zones, beyond our perceived limits, and sometimes beyond common sense. Does this hunger to do more ever stop? Not if you’re Oliver Solaro. ‘Canada’s Ice Road Biker’ has just returned from delivering half a ton of desperately needed supplies for the sled dogs of Churchill, Manitoba… with a home-built snow bike. This conversation with one of motorcycling’s bigger-than-life characters is a master class in ingenuity, humour, and how when things go wrong, it just means better stories.

For some motorcyclists in the north, winter can be just too much to bear. Some of us ride anyway. Some of us grit our teeth and wait. Some of us escape to an island for a few days. Me, I go to California and pretend it’s not happening, and this year, you get to come along. In this mini-episode, my notes from a few weeks in LA… the traffic, the culture, the canyon roads, and a chance encounter with a fellow rider who reminded me of the one thing we all share, no matter where we ride.

There must be a reason why some of motorcycling’s most sacred shrines started out as places to eat. So, what does food mean to us? Guy Arnone is an avid rider and motovlogger who also happens to be the executive sous-chef at a Michelin-starred restaurant in New York City. If anyone had an answer, I was sure it would be him. As usual, I got more than I bargained for. Funny and forthright, this conversation is a lesson in what it means to be passionate about what you do, on two wheels or off.

The custom bike scene, along with the legions of ‘modern classic’ bikes it’s spawned, has invigorated motorcycling. Beyond the cafés, scramblers and choppers that adorn our Instagram feeds, this retro aesthetic has even crossed over to the mainstream, making moto culture global, fashionable… and aspirational. What is it that attracts us to motorcycling’s mythic past? In this episode, I talk to Hugh Francis Anderson, a young British writer with a passion for bikes and a provocative take on what it means to motorcyclists, and maybe everyone else, too.

The Toronto Motorcycle Film Festival made its debut in September, joining cities like Lisbon, New York and Portland in celebrating this special aspect of motorcycle culture. After our interview in Episode 4, festival director Caius Tenche invited me to moderate a panel discussion with some of this year’s filmmakers and judges. Naturally, I jumped at the chance. It was a lively and fascinating conversation, and I’m excited to share it with you in this special episode.

Although most of us resist, there’s something about a motorcycle that dares you to disappear, hit the road and just see what happens. In this episode, I talk to someone who regularly takes that dare. Kendall Wright lives the freelance life, and with the freedom that gives her, points her bike toward the horizon whenever inspiration strikes. We spoke on the eve of her departure for a spontaneous lap of the continental U.S., and her cheerful sense of adventure will inspire anyone who wonders, “what would it be like to just go?”

To be passionate about motorcycling is to be passionate about motorcycle films, or so it seems lately. In this episode, I talk with Caius Tenche, director of the Toronto Motorcycle Film Festival, about why our appetite for two-wheeled cinema is so insatiable. Tenche gives the digital age its due; it’s never been easier to record and share our stories. But behind this, it turns out, are reasons far more timeless and essential to why we ride.

The best kept secret about motorcycling, and the maybe thing that surprises new riders the most, is its deep sense of community. In this episode, I talk with Marina Mann, co-founder and CEO of EatSleepRIDE, a community-powered web site and app for motorcyclists, about why we're all brothers and sisters on two wheels. She nails it, and after hearing our conversation, you'll never let a salute from another rider go unanswered again.

Nothing is more fun on a motorcycle than a twisty road, and nothing is more difficult to master. In this episode, I talk with former pro racer, riding instructor and million mile veteran Todd Eagan about what it takes to get there. After a steady diet of stern lectures about physics and skills, Eagan's perspective is refreshingly human. And cornering mastery turns out to be as much art as science, and as much about faith as technique.

The epic long distance ride is as close to the heart of motorcycling mythology as anything except maybe the machine itself. This episode explores why these odysseys tug at so many of us through one rider's story. After 50 years on two wheels, Terry Bell had never taken that long ride. Then one day, everything changed. The trip would be called 'The Big Stupid', and its lessons were surprising.