As we age, it would be so easy to let the "what ifs" intrude. What if it rains? What if my bike breaks down and there’s no cell phone service? What if my joints hurt, my backside aches, and I get cold and miserable? I’m too old for discomfort and uncertainty. There is a multitude of ways we can talk ourselves out of doing the things we’ve always loved. After all, what is the lifespan of man? Three score years and 10 as it says in the Bible? If that’s the case then I’m already living on borrowed time, but as you'll see, I’m nowhere near ready to permanently park my bikes and hang up my motorcycle riding gear.

There’s no outrunning destiny, but as we age there’s nothing to say we can’t enjoy the mobility and strength that remains while we still have it. Motorcycle riding keeps you mentally young and even helps you stay physically mobile. Keep riding while you can. I certainly will.

Isolated communities on the Labrador coast. Sixteenth-century Basque whaling settlements on Newfoundland’s Avalon peninsula, gravel roads to Cree villages in the Quebec wilderness, tiny unpaved back roads in Eastern Ontario–explore them all with me on a variety of (mostly) elderly motorcycles. There are always a few problems to deal with along the way, but would it be adventure if nothing ever went wrong?