A Bikers Touch

Bianca hated those Merrick boys. She wasn’t alone. They were nothing but trouble, but no one dared stand up to them. Look at one Merrick cross-eyed and before you knew it you were at war with the whole clan. She kept to herself and bit her tongue when they wrecked her diner on a regular schedule. It was a small price to pay to stay on Merricks’ good side. Braden Foster never was much good at keeping his opinions to himself. The leader of a nomadic band of bikers, Braden was accustomed to facing trouble head on, usually with fists. Occasionally with a crowbar. This policy didn’t win him many friends, but it rarely mattered. He never stuck in one place long enough to weather the consequences. That was before he came to the aid of a pretty lady restaurateur. He figured he’d at least earned a cup of coffee for his trouble, but when he stepped between the Merrick boys and Bianca’s diner, he lit a spark that threatened to burn the whole town to ashes. It was up to him to put it out. Bianca knew a gathering storm when she saw one. But which was more frightening: the storm between Braden and the Merricks, or the one brewing in her heart for a man arguably more dangerous than the Merricks themselves?

Motorcycle riders from all walks of life--from Main Street to Wall Street, Hollywood to Washington, D.C.--are invited to peel back their "badass" masks and answer one simple question: What is the meaning of life? Their answers expose the motorcycle community's lesser-known philosophical and charitable nature and help to smash the typical motorcycle-rider stereotype. Joining the "regular folks" interviewed are celebrities, including Peter Fonda, Gen. Tommy Franks, John Paul DeJoria, Jillian Michaels, Kyle Petty, Carey Hart, and Norman Reedus, along with a former chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a congressman, a senator, a former NASA astronaut, governors, military generals, actors, rock n'roll and country artists, corporate executives, and NFL, NBA, MLB sports figures. Whether you drive on four wheels or straddle a "wild thang" on two, these voices are sure to enlighten and entertain.

What could one little drink hurt? That one thought pushes Sasha Green into meeting the local motorcycle club leader Kieran Hanson. Life as an office drone has been wearing Sasha down and that particular night she's looking for a little spark to reignite her life. That spark comes in the form of Kieran, a rugged and rough around the edges biker riding with the Wild Vipers MC. From the moment that Sasha walks into the bar, Kieran knows he wants to stir her up and see what happened. One crazy night together has Sasha doubting her choices in life and temptation is oh so easy to give into. Will Sasha keep to the straight and narrow, or will she choose to live free and party hard?

In 1947, 4,000 motorcycle hobbyists converged on Hollister, California. As images of dissolute bikers graced the pages of newspapers and magazines, the three-day gathering sparked the growth of a new subculture while also touching off national alarm. In the years that followed, the stereotypical leather-clad biker emerged in the American consciousness as a menace to law-abiding motorists and small towns. Yet a few short decades later, the motorcyclist, once menacing, became mainstream. To understand this shift, Randy D. McBee narrates the evolution of motorcycle culture since World War II. Along the way he examines the rebelliousness of early riders of the 1940s and 1950s, riders' increasing connection to violence and the counterculture in the 1960s and 1970s, the rich urban bikers of the 1990s and 2000s, and the factors that gave rise to a motorcycle rights movement. McBee's fascinating narrative of motorcycling's past and present reveals the biker as a crucial character in twentieth-century American life.

In the basement of an apartment building in Manhattan,Scott Zieher discovered a pile of photographs among theeffects of a recently deceased tenant. These photographs,presented for the first time in Band of Bikers, offer anintimate portrait of a group of gay bikers in the city and thewoods, and a touching snapshot of an entire generation atits carefree zenith. Newly aware of muscle and biker magazines and their heavy-handederoticism, photographer and photographed brimwith a subtly vibrant, chromatic pride. The photographs asa whole bring into focus a brief, specific period of relativeinnocence, when middle-of-the-road Americans more oftenthan not failed to perceive the homoerotic undertones oftheir most heterosexual of institutions. With conceptual lightcast by issues ranging from anonymity in homosexuality andunderground motorcycle chic, to vernacular photography'spop-culture ramifications, a warm and generous spiritof camaraderie pervades this subterranean survey. Likea real-world set forScorpio Rising casually captured byan unpretentious extra, presented as Band of Bikers andaccompanied by an essay by Zieher, this found cache ofold-school, leather party snapshots attains archeologicalsignificance.

Riding motorcycles is fun, but author Ken Condon maintains that there is a state of consciousness to be achieved beyond the simple pleasure of riding down the road. Riding in the Zone helps riders find that state of being. It's the experience of being physically and mentally present in the moment, where every sense is sharply attuned to the ride. Your mind becomes silent to the chatter of daily life, and everyday problems seem to dissolve. You feel a deeper appreciation for life. Your body responds to this state of being with precise, fluid movements, you feel in balance, your muscles are relaxed, and it seems as though every input you make is an expression of mastery. This is "the Zone." Condon identifies all of the factors that affect entering the Zone and addresses each one individually, from the development of awareness and mental skills to mastering physical control of the motorcycle. At the end of each chapter are drills designed to transform the book's ideas into solid, practical riding skills. Riding in the Zone takes riders to the next level in their skill set.

Truthfully and gracefully depicting the clannish, unconventional world of leather fringes and sacred steel, The Biker Code is a perfect gift book for the merely curious, and illuminated scripture for the true disciple. Perhaps no American subculture is as consistently fascinating and serially misunderstood as the biker movement. Both feared and lionized by the mainstream, the insular, fiercely defiant community of hardcore hog devotees is notoriously difficult to infiltrate. But here comes The Biker Code, affording a revealing, knowing, and warm glimpse of the biker lifestyle for the lifelong rider and the uninitiated alike. With fifty photographs in elegant, spare black and white, The Biker Code captures the iconoclasts, free spirits, and born-to-ride outlaws of Planet Harley. Unlike any book that has come before it, The Biker Code quietly understands and affectionately celebrates the Harley life. The Biker Code features original photographs, artwork, and quotes that honestly depict and cleverly celebrate American motorcycle culture.

Little Mike and Maddie are happy dogs. They have lots of toys, treats, and love from Big Bob and Amy, but what they really want is to go for a motorcycle ride. How will they make their dream come true? Ride along with Little Mike and Maddie on the first of many motorcycle adventures to come. Vrumm, vrumm!

A picture book biography by an award-winning team about the first woman to ride a motorcycle around the world One day, a girl gets on her motorcycle and rides away. She wants to wander the world. To go . . . Elsewhere. This is the true story of the first woman to ride a motorcycle around the world alone. Each place has something to teach her. Each place is beautiful. And despite many flat tires and falls, she learns to always get back up and keep riding. Award-winning author Amy Novesky and Governor General's Award-winning illustrator Julie Morstad have teamed up for a spectacular celebration of girl power and resilience.