Columns

My ‘Cold Open’ with RoadRUNNER

James T. Parks

Mar 25, 2025 • 2 min read

Christian (left) and I enjoying a warming cup of coffee at the iconic Wellsboro Diner in Wellsboro, PA, before riding into the bone-numbing temperatures of northern Pennsylvania.

"Wow!” That was my reaction when I first laid eyes on RoadRUNNER Motorcycle Touring & Travel. My moto-journalism aspirations skyrocketed, however, in the fall of 2003, when I was asked to do a multi-day touring article for the publication.

Christian Neuhauser, the magazine’s founder, and his Austrian family of motorcyclists had immigrated to the U.S. just a few years earlier. They had recognized the unmet demand for a European-style travel publication focusing on the motorcycle touring experience. A typical travel article in these high-gloss magazines includes evocative photography, route maps, recommended eateries, accommodations, and points of interest.