Motorcycle Misadventures

We have a winner on the road to empowerment...

In last week's great guest blog post by Liz Jansen, author of Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment, was a free ebook offer by drawing from the people who commented on the book, and Deborah Hymes won. Congratulations Deborah! Coincidentially, I know Deborah aka her smart and funny Writer Vixen blog. In fact, she attended one of my Self-Publishing Boot Camps last year and was a pleasure to have in the seminar. Deborah wasted not time downloading and reading the book, and she offers her comments here:

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Hi Carla, I'm so excited that I won this book. I'm embarking on several new adventures at the moment, and although none of them involve an actual motorcycle, the spirit of taking to the road suffuses my life right now. I immediately found inspiration and a kindred spirit in "Getting Past Go":  

"I was heading into the unknown . . . and had a whole blank slate in front of me, waiting for me to write the script. I . . . ultimately would have to let go of behaviors, thoughts and beliefs that not only no longer served me, but also hindered my progress. The trick would be to recognize fears that were creating resistance, identify self-limiting beliefs and destroy them one by one, rather than let them continue to hold me away from who I was."  [Jansen, Liz (2011-12-01). Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment (p. 80).  . Kindle Edition.]

I am revved up! Thank you so much. ;)

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Thank you Deborah, thank you Liz! Liz is on to the next stop in her virtual book tour, check out 10 Life Lessons I Learned from Being a Biker in the Amazing Women Rock blog.

Hitting the Road: 7 Steps for Adventure Travel - Liz Jansen: author of Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment, helps conquer your fears

I'm thrilled to be the first stop on a virtual book tour for Liz Jansen, an author, speaker, coach and motorcycle aficionado.  Her book Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment resonates with stories of adventure and self-discovery.  She says that "The Road to Empowerment may lead around the block or around it world.  It always brings us back to who we are."

I agree! I've gotten to know Liz over the years via social media and phone conversations, and we finally met last year and became fast friends. We found that we shared many of the same experiences as motorcycle travelers timidly starting out, working through our fears and doing that thing we really wanted to do - get on a motorcycle and explore. If you are, similarly, trying to figure out whether you're brave enough to work through the fears that have stopped you - well, we're here to gently push you toward your dream. If you've done it, you'll recognize yourself in these 7 Steps for Adventure Travel, so wonderfully illustrated in her book, which is discounted for this tour -- 25% of signed books from her website and reduced ebook price to $6.99 for the tour from Amazon and other ebook retailers.

Now... here's Liz's 7 steps for getting past fear and hitting the road.

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Hitting the Road: 7 Steps for Adventure Travel

Excitement tinged with fear framed where I stood looking forward on August 1, 2003. Forty-nine, single, healthy, unbound by work commitments, I was about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime: a two-month solo motorcycle odyssey across North America. 

Recognizing I had migrated into roles which no longer fit me, I had left a thirty-year relationship and a successful corporate career in the preceding eight months. I was footloose and fancy free. 

I had a new bike, been riding for more than thirty years and was confident in my skills. The opportunities ahead of me were endless. 

So why the fear?

Tues April 24 on SideStandUp - Jenny Lefferts of MAD MAPS

Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Sidestand Up Motorcycle Radio
8:00 - 9:30 ET / 6:00 - 7:30 PT 

Catch my interview with Jenny Lefferts of San Francisco-based MAD MAPS, who makes maps in paper and eletronic formats that are wildly popular with motorcyclists and adventurous motorists alike. Details on the show and more info on Jenny, below.

May 4th Women Ride to celebrate the 6th Intnl Female Ride Day

It's a party! With prizes! And music and dancing and motorcycles! Okay, maybe not the dancing, but that's up to you. Join me in South San Francisco at Moto Shop - a non-denominational motorcycle gathering and DIY fix-it place that opened not too long ago that is rapidly becoming very popular with everyone here in the SF Bay Area. Women, and the men who love us, whether you ride motorcycles (pillion, okay!), scooters, trikes, or sidecar rigs. 4pm to 7pm at Moto Shop. And if you can, join the daytime ride. Click the pic to see updated info on our Facebook page. (More prizes! More fun!) And there's even more info below.

Melissa Holbrook Piersen talks about The Man Who Would Stop At Nothing

 

Check out this article accompanied by an excellent audio interview with Melissa Holbrook Piersen about her book The Man Who Would Stop At Nothing: Long-Distance Motorcycling’s Endless Road. 

 

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A talk with AMA's Tigra Tsujikawa on the 2012 Women & Motorcycling Conference

On Tuesday, January 24 on SideStandUp motorcycle radio I look forward to talking with, Tigra Tsujikawa, Marketing Manager for the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) about the women's conference.  She has worked in the powersports industry for 12 years, including the last 3 and half with the AMA. (More info under the picture.) 

 

With 26 years of street riding complemented by eight years of off-road, dual sport, and desert racing, Tsujikawa brings a rider’s view to her projects and programs.  

Tsujikawa’s focus in 2012 is on the AMA International Women and Motorcycling Conference, July 26-29 in Carson City, Nev.  This will be the second such conference that she has managed, leveraging her love motorcycling and enthusiasm for women riders with her work with various women’s clubs and women leaders in the industry.

Join me on Tuesday, January 24 on SideStandUp motorcycle radio. Tune in early and participate in the lively chat room! 

 

 

Tonight on SideStandUp Motorcycle Radio: Liz Jansen on her collection of women's stories!

Catch us tonight on SideStand Up motorcycle radio. 8-10 Eastern, 5-7 Pacific!

 Liz Jansen and I talk about Women, Motorcycles and the Road to Empowerment. 50 inspirational stories of adventure and enlightenment.

Check out Liz's book on her website. Hey, it makes a GREAT holiday gift!

 

Join us tonight to talk BMWs, fastest woman in the world, Melissa Holbrook-Pierson, and more fun motorcycle people

Join me tonight on SideStandUp.com 5-8 Pacific Time (8-10 Eastern) for a great show. Be sure to sign in to the chat room if you can, I know there will be questions! Here's the lineup:

Tonight September the 20th 2011 on SideStand Up Miss Adventuring Carla King (that's me!) talks the finer points of the BMW GS adventure series - F650GS, F800GS, 1200GS and buying used - with Larry Saenz, General Manager of BMW Motorcycles San Francisco, Northern California's top-selling and the only exclusively BMW motorcycle dealership in the Bay Area.

Also tonight:

JJUSTJ ( J Sheets) will be interviewing Belen Wagner -- Belen has set close to 50 records and is a FIM environmental steward for world trials championships.

When Roger Wiles informed Tom he would need to take a sabbatical from his monthly moto safety segment, tom immediately released it would tough to replace Roger. Roger wasn't about to leave the SSU nation short in the rider safety area, he suggested his friend and associate Tom Komjathy of Diversified Safety Konsulting to take over the segment.

Celebrated author and motorcyclist Melissa Holbrook-Pierson returns. Melissa's newest book "The Man Who Would Stop At Nothing" delves into the world of endurance riding featuring one of the titans of the sport John Ryan.

Back in the day on Saturday afternoons Wide World of Sports featured the greatest of sporting accomplishments. Once a year they world air men riding streamliners and such at the Bonneville Salt Flats. It's not just a man's event any longer, Leslie Porterfield is the absolute proof of that. Fresh off a new record of 236 mph Leslie is now known as "The Fastest Woman In The World"

For more information and to learn about discount from SSU advertising partners log onto SideStandUp.com.

The Secrets of Getting Great Motorcycle Insurance: Tuesday on SideStandUp

I'm thrilled to be interviewing my friend Susan Bernosky on SidestandUp.com motorcycle radio tomorrow. Susan rides a Harley, a BMW, and a dirt bike and has been an insurance agent since 1987. You might have even seen her face in a motorcycle magazine for an Allstate ad on insurance agents who ride. Susan recently went indie with Strahan Insurance and will tell us how to get best motorcycle insurance possible.

Sidestandup.com Motorcycle Radio
Tuesday July 26, 2011
7:00 - 9:00 pm Eastern Time (4-6 PT)

 

Bonus materials: I wrote about a ride I took with Susan and her husband Dave to Bolinas. We ate at the Coast Cafe and I wrote about it for the Kawasaki Accelerate online magazine. Find it here. 

Join us on SideStandUp motorcycle radio. And be sure to catch the whole show with all these exciting guests.

Bonnie Warch & Andrea Beach of Coach 2 Ride

John Powell of Ironhorse Motorcycle Lodge calling in from the road

Jay Kannaiyan has made his way to Africa and will be calling in from the spiritual birthplace of the Rastafarian Religion in Shaashamene, Ethiopia.

Dr. Sherry Williams discusses the first-ever large-scale naturalistic motorcycle riding study.

 

 

The Secrets of Getting Great Motorcycle Insurance

I'm thrilled to be interviewing my friend Susan Bernosky on SidestandUp.com motorcycle radio next Tuesday. Susan rides a Harley, a BMW, and a dirt bike and has been an insurance agent since 1987. You might have even seen her face in a motorcycle magazine for an Allstate ad on insurance agents who ride. Susan recently went indie with Strahan Insurance and will tell us how to get best motorcycle insurance possible.

Sidestandup.com Motorcycle Radio
Tuesday July 26, 2011
6:00 - 9:00 pm Eastern Time

Bonus materials: I wrote about a ride I took with Susan and her husband Dave to Bolinas. We ate at the Coast Cafe and I wrote about it for the Kawasaki Accelerate online magazine. Find it here.