My Iron Horse Keeps Me Balanced

This wave of cold weather reminds me that I do not have a lot of motorcycle riding time left and that summer will soon be turning into fall. Students are heading back to school and some of the birds are already flying south.

I love my motorcycles because on a bike I am in deep meditation. I must be one hundred percent aware of my control of my bike as I head down the road. I love classic bikes and I now ride a 2000 BMW R1100R, that features a flat horizontally opposed twin cylinder engine, a design this German company has been producing for over a hundred years. At this point after riding a bike for almost 30 years I feel at one with this magnificent machine rolling down the road. It is necessary for me to be absolutely conscious of every bump, twist and turn on the road and as well I have to keep an eye on my mirrors to watch for any traffic behind me. Up here in northern Ontario I also need to watch for animals that cross on to the road. I have often had to brake hard or swerve to miss a moose, a bear, fox and beaver.

Riding a motorcycle is not for everyone and I am the first to admit that it is a dangerous way to get around. However, as part of my sobriety and being clean and in recovery I am capable to ride with a clear mind and to be extremely careful on my bike rides. This I consider one of the perks of being in recovery for almost 30 years. Anyone who has a drinking or drug problem does not ride a motorcycle, or at least they don’t do it for very long. The chance of having an accident if you are drinking or taking drugs is very high when riding a bike. As a reward for being in recovery I experience this natural high full of adrenaline, beauty and an amazing sense of connection to the world around me. I like to ride alone and I am not comfortable in groups which I consider dangerous.

For the past few summers I have not been venturing very far on my bike as my partner Mike has been very ill with Pulmonary Fibrosis which affects the lungs. He is the one who introduced me to motorcycles and taught me how to ride. At the time I had just experienced driving cars here in the south and when I discovered motorcycling a whole new world opened up for me. I had the best teacher ever in that Mike was a motorcycle journalist and had a long and interesting history in the motorcycle industry. He passed along many decades of knowledge to me and helped me find a few motorcycles that in fact are more like very fine pieces of art rather than mere motorcycles.

Nothing beats pushing my BMW out of the garage and on to the back lane, doing my pre-ride inspection and then firing up this amazing engine built on a history more than a hundred years old. I have several classic bikes now. My bikes are big but they are also thoroughbreds and handle the road with confidence and style. My risk taking on the road is always calculated and I stay on the safe side. There is this incredible feeling of freedom as I flow down the road with the wind in my face, the colours of the forest, lakes and sights in a kaleidoscope in my eyes. This is my high.

As I move forward happily with the sound of this amazing engine propelling me down the road, all my troubles, all my daily worries or challenges are left behind in my wake. The crazy wars in the Ukraine and Gaza, the insane need to keep developing industry that is causing climate change or global warming, the greed, intolerance, racism and bigotry that are a reality these days are not on my mind when I am riding my trusty motorcycle. I get a break from it all so that I can return home refreshed and at my keyboard to write and push back on the negative things happening in our world with my tiny efforts to help people stay aware, make people think and give thanks to Mother Earth for her beauty and nourishment. My iron horse keeps me balanced.

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