Book Review – A Little Twist of Texas by Linda R. Moore

Shortly after I began my Biker Chickz Blog, I started looking for other female motorcycle related websites. There weren’t many, but one that I found right away was Raven’s Roads. The website is authored by Linda R. Moore, a British lady who writes books, articles, and who now has several blogs. She also uses her motorcycle as her main transportation.

As I became familiar with the Raven’s Roads website, I kept coming back to see what was new. I soon noticed that Linda had written a book about traveling from the Silicon Valley in California to a writers convention in Texas, on a motorcycle and by herself. It was called, “A Little Twist of Texas”. I ordered the book through Raven’s Roads right away, and received a personally autographed copy from Linda.

I began to read the book last fall, when I had only been riding my little Suzuki Boulevard S-40 for a couple of years. The concept of riding alone through the desert and facing the challenges of mechanical problems, weather, and other hazards was something that had never occurred to me. I began reading the book and was glued to it from the beginning. Linda described herself as an introvert, who is not really mechanically inclined. How could she put herself in such a scary and uncomfortable situation? The unknown lay ahead. She writes the book in a way that it seems you are right there with her. I felt that our personalities were similar as she describes her thoughts along the way.

Through many trials and detours from the original plans, Linda makes her way to the convention and back to the Silicon Valley. The book, ‘A Little Twist of Texas’ is an adventure waiting to happen, and opened my eyes to what I might be capable of doing. I developed a new attitude after reading Linda’s book, and have learned about other women who’ve traveled far away on motorcycles. I soon went out and bought a larger motorcycle, so that I wouldn’t be limited for any ride I planned. Now I believe anything I can dream of is possible, and I don’t have to analyze it and plan it to death. On my next trip I will go with the flow, see what comes along, and enjoy every day! Thanks Linda.

You can purchase Linda’s book through any of the Raven’s websites. It is also available from other book purchasing resources. The book is an inspiring read.

A Fun Read: Lois On The Loose by Lois Pryce

To alleviate my frustration of not being able to ride my motorcycle lately, I decided to do the next best thing. Read about it. I love books and owning books, so I went online to see what was there. I had a gift card for Barnes & Noble. For those of you who haven’t heard of, ‘Lois On The Loose’ you are really missing out. I thought the description sounded fun so I bought it. Was I in for a surprise?

I can’t put the book down! It is written by a gutsy British lady who decides to ride a motorcycle solo from the Alaskan wilderness to the very tip of South America; as far as the roads would go. She does this on a Yamaha 250cc Serow dirt bike. The trip is remarkably thrilling to hear about, and her writing is such that you follow along as if you are riding along with her. She has a sense of humor which really comes through in the book. I’ve fully enjoyed the read, which I don’t do much of, by the way.

The book only seems to come in hardback in the US, but I’ve enjoyed that feature as I’ve held it and read it. I will be reading it again and sharing it with others, so I’m glad now that it’s a hardback. Lois has inspired me immensely, and now I am planning a longer ride than I’ve ever done. She makes you realize that anything is possible with the right attitude and a sense of humor.

You can see photos and learn more at her website- Lois on the Loose.com. Since writing this book she has done another ride through the African Continent on a similar small motorcycle. She has another book coming out in June, ’08 about the African trip. You can find out more about what Lois Pryce is up to at her website.

It’s raining outside…….

I am a fair weather biker in most respects. I don’t mind if it starts raining on me when I am on my way home from anywhere. If I am going to work or elsewhere, I am really not equipped with rain-gear so usually my pants will be soaked by the time I arrive – wet crotch is no fun. I also don’t like to get my motorcycle splattered with road grime in the rain, at least not on a regular basis.

Here are a few suggestions of things to do when you can’t get out and ride:

• Watch some old classic biker movies such as “Easy Rider” with Jack Nicholson and Peter Fonda, “The Wild Ones” with Marlon Brando, “Hells’ Angels on Wheels” with Jack Nicholson, and “The Wild Angels” with Peter Fonda. “The Big Book of Biker Flicks: 40 of the best Motorcycle movies of all time” by Jack Wooley has these movies and more for your amusement and pleasure. These are fun to watch, very stereotypical, and you’ll recognize other actors who went on to do greater things.

• Read a good book on motorcycling. One that I read which encouraged me to ride was “The Perfect Vehicle: What it is about Motorcycles” by Melissa Holbrook Pierson. She describes the riding experience wonderfully. Other fun books are “Biker Billy Cooks with Fire: Robust recipes from Americas’ most outrageous television chef”, “Biker Billy’s Freeway-A-Fire Cookbook: Life’s too short to Eat Dull Food”, and “Biker Billy’s Hog Wild on a Harley Cookbook: 200 fiercely flavorful recipes to kick-start your cooking from Harley riders across the USA” all by Bill Hufnagle. Lastly, “Harley and Davidson Family Recipes: Celebrating 100 years of Home Cooking” by Margo Manning.

• I also enjoy the Motorcycle magazine, “Rider”. Each month there is an article about a ride somewhere in the US. There are lots of pictures, and good articles, and it is mostly just about riding any motorcycle.

• Surf the web for other biker websites and blogs. There are many out there such as: Rippin-kitten.com, BikerBetty.blogspot.com, and uncagedlibrarian.blogspot.com to name a few. A website called Ready2ride.com has a female rider tab with lots of other female biker websites and blogs. Just do a search and you will spend many hours checking out what other bikers are doing.

• Research your next dream bike. If you are like me you will always be thinking of the motorcycle you want but can’t yet afford. Read up on the one you think you want. Go down to the motorcycle dealer and check it out. Sit on it, and ask questions about it. If it’s raining you probably won’t take it for a test ride, but you can go back when it is sunny!

So these are just a few suggestions to kill time when you can’t get on your bike and ride. In those situations you can still enjoy the riding spirit, keep riding foremost in your mind, and have a few laughs – while watching those old biker movies.