The Meaning Of Life According To Bikers

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.

From "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" to "The Motorcycle Diaries", to be a biker is to be on the road to the meaning of life. From ethics to existentialism, motorcycling raises some of life's biggest questions. What should our attitude be towards danger and death? Does riding shed any light on the nature of reality? Do we have any obligations towards the environment, humans and other animals? And can motorcycles be as much a work of art as a Michelangelo painting? Philosopher and motorcyclist Craig Bourne answers all these questions and more in this stimulating road trip through philosophy.

At 50 Piero, a lawyer, does not lack anything to be happy. Yet, suddenly something breaks: his enthusiasm disappears, his work loses its meaning, and he feels even his family can no longer offer him sufficient support. This is the diary of a journey that joins the ride on a Harley Davidson and of an on-theroad meditation, of a rebirth that took place on the road.

"Based on his popular series in the New York Times chronicling his cross-country bicycle trip, bestselling author Bruce Weber shares his adventures from his solo ride across the USA. Riding a bicycle across the US is one of those bucket-list goals that many dream about but few achieve. Bestselling author and New York Times reporter Bruce Weber made the trip, solo, over the summer and fall of 2011--at the age of fifty-seven. Expanding upon his popular series published in The New York Times, Life Is a Wheel is the witty and inspiring account of his journey, where he extols the pleasures of cycling and reflects on what happened on his adventure, in the world, in the country, and in his life. The story begins on the Oregon coast with a middle-aged man wondering what he's gotten himself into and ends in triumph on the George Washington Bridge, wondering how soon he might try it again. Part travelogue, part memoir, part paean to the bicycle as a simple and elegant mode of both mobility and self-expression--and part wry and panicky account of a fifty-seven-year-old man's attempt to stave off mortality--Life Is a Wheel is an elegant and entertaining escape for any armchair traveler"--

From "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" to "The Motorcycle Diaries", to be a biker is to be on the road to the meaning of life. From ethics to existentialism, motorcycling raises some of life's biggest questions. What should our attitude be towards danger and death? Does riding shed any light on the nature of reality? Do we have any obligations towards the environment, humans and other animals? And can motorcycles be as much a work of art as a Michelangelo painting? Philosopher and motorcyclist Craig Bourne answers all these questions and more in this stimulating road trip through philosophy.

It’s no wonder descriptions of riding often resemble the words of Asian mystics and Jedi knights: The ride causes your senses to open completely. You experience only the present, the now. Readers who prefer revving a Harley to meditating in a Zen garden know that biking is just as contemplative as chanting in the lotus position. Here, philosopher-bikers explore this seeming dichotomy, expounding on intriguing questions such as: Why are the motorcycles the real stars of Easy Rider? What would Marx and Foucault say about Harley riders’ tight leather garb? What’s it like to live a dual life as a philosophy professor who wrenches his own 1965 Electra Glide? Would Jesus hang out in a biker bar or a coffeehouse? And more importantly, would He ride a Harley or a Honda? These witty, provocative essays give readers and riders a new appreciation of what it means to become one with the road.

This book asks a critical question for our times: why do an increasing number of people support, admire and aspire to be outlaws? Outlaw motorcycle clubs have grown, spread and matured. Popular culture glamorizes them; law enforcement agencies fight them and the media vilify them. Meanwhile, the outlaw bikers exploit the current cultural and economic climate to attract new members. How Outlaws Win Friends and Influence People argues that the growth of these anti-establishment groups under neoliberalism is not coincidental, but inevitable. The book asks a critical question for our times: why do people today, in increasing numbers, support, admire and aspire to be outlaws? What needs and desires do the clubs satisfy? How do they win support and influence? Answering this is crucial if we are to successfully fight the social harms caused by these groups, as well as the harms that underlie their proliferation. Unless we understand the cultural dynamic at play here, our fight against these organizations will always take the form of a battle against the mythological Hydra: when one head is cut off, two more grow. “Tereza Kuldova is a rebel with a cause - her new book is a razor-sharp critique of stereotypical conceptions of the ‘outlaw biker’ and provides refreshing insights into their subjective life-worlds”​ - Daniel Briggs, author of the award-winning Dead-End Lives.

Discusses and exemplifies the importance of relating to others in ways that involve mutual acknowledgment and respect.

Robert Penn has saddled up nearly every day of his adult life. In his late twenties, he pedaled 25,000 miles around the world. Today he rides to get to work, sometimes for work, to bathe in air and sunshine, to travel, to go shopping, to stay sane, and to skip bath time with his kids. He's no Sunday pedal pusher. So when the time came for a new bike, he decided to pull out all the stops. He would build his dream bike, the bike he would ride for the rest of his life; a customized machine that reflects the joy of cycling. It's All About the Bike follows Penn's journey, but this book is more than the story of his hunt for two-wheel perfection. En route, Penn brilliantly explores the culture, science, and history of the bicycle. From artisanal frame shops in the United Kingdom to California, where he finds the perfect wheels, via Portland, Milan, and points in between, his trek follows the serpentine path of our love affair with cycling. It explains why we ride. It's All About the Bike is, like Penn's dream bike, a tale greater than the sum of its parts. An enthusiastic and charming tour guide, Penn uses each component of the bike as a starting point for illuminating excursions into the rich history of cycling. Just like a long ride on a lovely day, It's All About the Bike is pure joy- enriching, exhilarating, and unforgettable.

Losing a job always delivers a hard blow, but it was especially hard for forty-something author Louise Lewis, one of many victims of the technology industry's dotcom implosion. No Experts Needed: The Meaning of Life According to You! tells the story of how she pulled herself together and discovered a new life of meaning. Just minutes after being "set free", Lewis, a single woman with a mortgage to pay, sits in the San Jose, California, airport panicking over her future. While toying with the option of giving into depression, she receives a powerful message from God that instantly releases the weight of her worries. "This is just a new chapter in your life. You hold the pen, I'll guide your hand, and together we'll write one hell of a chapter." through Spirit's continued involvement, Lewis is inspired to ask normal, everyday people to answer Spirit's question: what is the meaning of life? No Experts Needed: The Meaning of Life According to You! weaves through a vast collection of spontaneous, thought-provoking answers and inspirational stories that demonstrate how the simple act of listening to Spirit can add meaning to every moment of your life.