These are the days, you know. The ones we'll remember when we look back with shaking hands and rutted brow. The days we'll tell stories about when the grandchildren come to visit. Certainly, the motorcycle adventures will be their favorites. The tales they will remember us for. Motorcycle adventures. What interesting old coots we'll be.
The simple fact that you picked up this magazine says you're living right. Living the day close to your dreams. And I have a feeling those dreams, at least the ones involving two wheels, are a lot like my own. I feel a pull from the horizon that's not unlike the scent of a lover or the warmth of a fire on a cold day. I'm constantly summoned by the methodical hum of the road and all the possibilities it represents. Constantly wanting to feel the blur and bite of the atmosphere in that way that's so exclusive to motorcycle riding.
You? You know what I'm saying. No matter what you're doing there's always that small ache to be on the bike. There's that one chunk of soul that needs more than the average allotment of breathing room.
My vision for this magazine is twofold. I want to bring stories into your home that quench that exact thirst. Simultaneously, I want Motorcycle Escape to set your ambition ablaze.
I guarantee you will find something useful in these pages.
Because really, isn't that what magazines should strive to be? Useful? Not just pretty, but smart, too? I've been in the publishing business for a long, long time, and I can tell you it's very easy to create a magazine with flash-in-the-pan appeal.
It's the business model for the industry to create--with the least amount of investment and effort--a magazine with a look and feel that says, "Hey baby, take me home." To hell with how you feel when you get there and find the product vacuous. Well, I can tell you right now, there's no cookie cutter in our kitchen. We've been covered in flour for half a year getting Motorcycle Escape just right. More than anything, we wanted to create a magazine that's not merely a visceral thrill, but also a valuable tool. I have no doubt we've done just that.
The core framework of this magazine is built from practical information. You'll find tips, Q&A, checklists, how-tos and sources everywhere. Want to know how to fix a flat on the road? Turn to page 90. Which is the best waterproof boot? Page 10. Best steak in Red Lodge, Montana? Page 35. The visa you need to tour Vietnam? Page 52. You get the idea. This magazine not only explores the best destinations, roads, eateries, and so on, but also supports the kind of preparedness and planning that makes each journey successful.
Escape's icing, of course, is the collection of adventure-touring stories. Epic rides to places like the Isle of Man TT races and the Brazilian coast. But instead of some glossed-up and stuffy "...and then I tied my shoes"-type travelogues, Escape tales bring you into the scene and, best of all, show you exactly how to recreate the adventure. There's no other motorcycle travel and adventure-touring magazine as deep as the one you are holding. I believe that is simply because it takes too much time, effort and expertise to create such detail. It takes the kind of collective passion generated by a staff of utterly dedicated enthusiasts, writers and photographers who are personally committed to the product, not the paycheck.
So who the heck are we to assume the duty of simultaneously soothing and stirring your wanderlust? We're riders like you who daydream about sneaking off on motorcycle adventures during business meetings. The Motorcycle Escape team consists of me, who despite being female can ride over 500 miles without stopping to pee. Kidding aside (though it's true), I've been a motojournalist for 18 years and have more miles on my personal odometer than anyone on staff. Cross-country rides are my thing, and I've bootlaced the United States more times than a typical rider crosses his county line. Senior Editor Andy Cherney is quickly catching up to me in seat time, though. Andy and I also run Motorcycle Cruiser Magazine, an equally whole-hearted effort to provide a resource for metric cruiser riders and touring enthusiasts.
On our freelance team we have Marc Cook, former Executive Editor of Motorcyclist Magazine. Marc is the guy you want along on every ride, the kind who can plug a tire with his eyes closed and never forgets to pack extra face-shield cleaner. Lee Klancher is another adventure-minded talent, and he always goes the extra mile for the cause. Lee is the type who will call from the jungle and say something like, "Do you want the python in the foreground, or the Komodo dragon?"
From the editors to our revered art director and the production goddesses, we're all travel enthusiasts, and each of us is personally invested in the magazine you're holding and, ultimately, in the hope that you'll find it valuable. If goodwill seems too thin a veil and you need a more selfish reason for us to care so much, it's a simple admission. If you like Motorcycle Escape enough, we'll get to make it more than once a year. Trust me, we won't get paid more, but we will gain in personal satisfaction and, of course, get to scratch that ol' itch with extra seat time.
Because it's always there, isn't it? The pull of the horizon and the draw of the roads that might take us there. Doesn't matter if you're 70 or 17, these are, indeed, The Days. Each weighted equally by the burden and the splendor of possibility.
Let's make them glory days.