What happens when your passion fades. Something you once loved slowly becomes less of a passion. You try – but something just isn’t right.
That’s what happened with motorcycling. It went from something I dreamed about all day, to something that was almost forced. That is, until we went to Vietnam and motorcycled SE asia. My passion came back. And sure, part of it was the adventure of riding in a new country, but it was more than that. It wasn’t motorcycling that was the problem. It was my bike.
When I bought my BMW F700GS and it was a dream come true. A BMW GS! Are you kidding me? The best of the best adventure bike. Indestructible, reliable German engineering. Low enough that a shorter rider could rip it up off-road. And sexy. I loved the look of it. Sleek and sporty enough to be a street bike, badass enough to be an adventure bike.
But wait? A true GS this is not.
Why did I get into motorcycling? Well, I would have to say the romance of riding the world. Watching “Long Way Around” and “Long Way Down” romanticized the sport. A sport I thought was only for young speedsters or older wanna be tough guys became a sport that allowed you to access otherwise untraveled roads, untraveled worlds, unknown places. And I wanted in!
Seven years ago I bought a Ninja 650R to learn to ride. It was great. Upright position, enough power to have fun, but safe for a first time rider.
As my confidence grew, so did my love of off-road riding. Highways were boring and dangerous. Off-road was where the fun was. This is where you really got to explore the mountains, nature and the real wilds of the Canadian Rockies. Unfortunately the BMW couldn’t keep up. Two busted front wheels later, $500 to repair the first, $1800 to replace the second, and I was done. It was time to get a real off-road bike.
Enter Groot, the Honda 150 XR I rented in Vietnam. Now that was fun! Enough pep on the highway, and handy on the rough, water buffalo trodden roads that traversed the steep mountains. Roads that were not unlike the logging roads cut through the Canadian Rockies. The roads that access some of the most beautiful landscapes in the world.
So that was it. We got back from Vietnam and I sold by BMW F700GS. It took one off-road ride where I rode nervously, unsure if the $1800 front rim would hold, and I was done.
And what comes next? Well, Groot of course. In this case, a slightly bigger Groot. A 2015 Honda CRF 250 L.
And you know what? I sit at my desk dreaming again. Dreaming of gnarly back roads that make me hyper-ventilate with fear, exertion and joy. Passionate and driven. In awe of Commander Glacier, our latest ride in the stunning Purcell Mountains. I am home again. At home in the mountains of Western Canada. Sitting on two wheels.
Live Life Epic 