For as long as I can remember, I’ve had an obsession with two wheels. Although my level of immediate interest in this wonderful class of vehicles has ebbed through my nearly 27 years of life, I feel it’s served as a focal point, and an interest I intend to pursue unceasingly moving forward…let me explain.

Dec 2016: Let (F)Unemployment Begin!

As a twenty-sixth birthday present to myself, I left my job for better-managed opportunities.

This has been the best thing I’ve done since I decided to study abroad in Istanbul roughly 6 years ago now. Not surprisingly, many people ask when I’m getting a new job or what I do for work, and I’ve never really had a good answer other than “I’ll find one if/when I need one” or “I’m not worried about it”.

I suppose it’s a bit confusing why even I would bring this up in regards to motorcycles, but, to me, it’s quite clear - (F)Unemployment has given me the opportunity to seek out what it is that I want to do and to focus exclusively on how to get there.

If you haven’t read it by now, I highly recommend reading “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”. One of the biggest actions that came from reading this book is writing a Personal Mission Statement for myself. Here’s what I wrote in January 2017:

I will prioritize my personal relationships.
I will focus on today.
I will never compromise my personal or professional integrity.
I succeed when others succeed.
I will listen twice as much as I speak.
I will give more than I take.
I am a student.
I don’t make mistakes. I learn lessons.

This was the action that set me upon the path of deciding only to do what is best for me; to prioritize these items above all else. This is not a static statement, however, and I’m currently working to revamp this statement for 2018. Stay Tuned.

Jun 2017: 2xxx Mile US Road trip

One of my favorite events/trips from my time (F)Unemployed was simply riding around parts of the US on my trusty stead, the infamous KLR650.

From dirt, boring open highway, mud, twisties, flat, mountainous, backroads, city skylines, and small-town America, I pretty much did everything the US had to offer (except sand and desert…so, I have some more work to do!).

Some people think I don’t love the US because I’m constantly (really, constantly) criticizing it. Or traveling somewhere else. This could not be further from the truth.

I absolutely love the US, and I criticize it because I think we can make it greater than Donald Trump every dreamed of. I travel other places to see what else there is, to see how other people live, interact, and think, and because I feel that I’ll always have an opportunity to live and travel here in my home country.

I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list.

That said, road trips are fun, but road trips on motorcycle are absolutely the best way to see this wonderfully beautiful country of ours. I cannot be convinced otherwise. If anyone reading this wants to take a road trip of any kind, do not hesitate for a single second to call me (it’s absolutely urgent, so don’t text! Call!).

August 2017: The Revelation

“The word priority came into the English language in the 1400s. It was singular. It meant the very first or prior thing. It stayed singular for the next five hundred years.”
-Greg McKeown,
Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less

A priority is simply the single most important thing and Essentialism is all about finding that priority in different arenas - your personal life, professional life, daily schedule/routine/habits, etc.

I’m not merely part of this experience, but every fiber of my being IS this experience.

There’s just no feeling in the world, in my opinion, like being on two wheels in the open air. I cannot count the times I’ve ridden my motorcycle out of an American neighborhood in the morning and just suddenly felt a wave of positive energy flow over me.

As the tachometer climbs and each upshift brings a growing awareness of speed, focus of seeing, anticipating, reacting becomes hyperawareness. The crisp morning air blows through my jacket giving an immediate tingling, awakening sensation over every inch of my skin twice as energizing as coffee. Every minute detail of the road ahead is mapped, processed, then felt under tire even through the throb of the engine, RPMs still climbing. The entire world sprawls out before me in nearly all of my peripheral vision, giving a perception of oneness with the road, Earth, and sky - I’m not merely part of this experience, but every fiber of my being IS this experience.

I want to be responsible for sharing this experience with as many people as possible. Whether it’s through engineering design, through social awareness, outreach, and education, through sharing my own personal motorcycle experiences, or any number of other or combination of other aspects.

At the time, I very suddenly realized where I want to focus my professional efforts - Motorcycles.

Safe travels and happy surfing!

Josh S =P

Hey all! Thanks for reading…wow, this third part took me much longer to get out than I thought it would. I’ve been pretty busy trying to figure out where this motorcycle journey is going to take me next (literally and figuratively). If you’ve talked to me recently, you may have heard me talk about places and positions ranging from Austria to Vietnam to the Bay Area and motorcycle race-frame designing to leading motorcycle tours to being a motorcycle mechanic.

I’m still trying to figure it out, but I hope you’ll stick around for what happens going forward.

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