Community—A Letter from Florian

Riding a motorcycle represents the ultimate freedom, yet most of us crave human interaction. The lone wolf heading into the sunset far from civilization doesn’t tell an accurate story. Sure, many of us prefer to ride alone, but as soon as the lone wolf stops, the human connections are on rapid fire.

We’re all inherently social beings. Building and maintaining relationships contributes to a sense of belonging and support—something the motorcycling community knows a lot about.

Think about your own circles. Are you part of a riding group? Do you regularly get together? At a time when many people are glued to their devices, it seems as if in-person human interaction is falling by the wayside. And if the first five groups you think of are Facebook Groups, then please stop right there. Those aren’t your friends. Have you ever met somebody from those groups in real life? I doubt it.

What seems like an eternity ago, a website called MeetUp was widely used for motorcycle groups, but on a hyper-local level. In its heyday, it was a great tool for finding real people to go for a ride with. Some navigation apps have built-in community features that let you find nearby riders, but you’ll be dependent on your phone again.

There are, of course, still plenty of organizations, like the Concours Owners Group, the Motorcycle Sport Touring Association, the BMW Motorcycle Owners of America and Riders Association, and let’s not forget Harley-Davidson’s and Indian’s clubs, the Harley Owners Group and the Indian Motorcycle Riders Group. As ancient as some of them may be, they have local chapters that are a great way to meet like-minded people.

I also see more and more small events pop up all over the country. Those are probably the best ways to make lifelong friends. I remember our own Touring Weekend events and how many people came as strangers and left as friends. Many still get together to ride, Touring Weekend or not.

My favorite way to meet riders, though, is flagging down the neighbors who ride past my house. It always surprises me just how many people in my little neighborhood have something interesting in their garage. Having riding friends so close makes arranging short rides a breeze too. There’s one rider that still eludes me. I see him almost daily on either his Kawasaki KLR, BMW GS, or Yamaha Super Ténéré. One day, I will meet him when we’re both going in the same direction.

Human interaction is important for our mental and physical health, communication skills, learning and growth, as well as general happiness and well-being. Motorcyclists aren’t a bunch of lone wolves. We’re a big family, so let’s stay in touch.

After a few years of spending too much time in the office and not enough on the road, I made the call to get out there again this year. My calendar is packed full of trips with old friends and soon-to-be friends. Although that doesn’t ease my workload one bit, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Stay connected,

Florian Neuhauser
Editor-in-Chief