{"id":31614,"date":"2025-12-10T00:01:34","date_gmt":"2025-12-10T08:01:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/?p=31614"},"modified":"2025-11-29T16:01:03","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T00:01:03","slug":"the-wayback-machine-the-five-best-motorcycle-books-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/exhaustnotes.us\/blog\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/the-wayback-machine-the-five-best-motorcycle-books-ever\/","title":{"rendered":"The Wayback Machine: The Five Best Motorcycle Books Ever"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Joe Berk<\/h6>\n

Listicles, Gresh calls them…articles based around the (fill in the number) best things to do, worst things to do, motorcycles, movies, and more.\u00a0 One of Gresh’s friends told him that lists get more hits than any other kind of Internet article.\u00a0 I was a bit skeptical when I first heard that, but Google Analytics doesn’t lie:\u00a0 When we do a listicle, our hits go up big time.\u00a0 And comments, too.\u00a0 We like comments.\u00a0 And a lot of this blogging game is about the hits and comments.\u00a0 Gresh’s The 5 Stupidest Ideas in Motorcycling<\/a>, my recent The Big Ride: 5 Factors Affecting Daily Mileage<\/a>, and other ExNote listicles…they’ve all done extremely well.<\/p>\n

This listicle thing has me thinking in terms of the five best whatever when I’m spitballing new blog ideas, and the list du jour<\/em> is on motorcycle books.\u00a0 It’s a topic near and dear to my heart and one we’ve touched on lightly before, although the emphasis in the past has usually been on a single book.\u00a0 I think I’ve read just about every motorcycle book ever published, and I particularly like the travel stories.\u00a0 That said,\u00a0 I think this introduction is long enough.\u00a0 Let’s get to it.<\/p>\n

Riding the Edge<\/h2>\n

Riding the Edge<\/a>\"\", in my opinion, is the greatest motorcycle adventure story ever told, made all the more significant by two facts.\u00a0 \u00a0The first is that Dave Barr, the author, did the ride after<\/span> losing both legs to a land mine in Africa; the second is that Dave did the ride on a beat up old ’72 Harley Super Glide that had 100,000 miles on the odometer before<\/span> he started.<\/p>\n

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I know Dave Barr and I’ve ridden with him.\u00a0 I can tell you that he is one hell of a man, and Riding the Edge<\/a>\"\" is one hell of a story.\u00a0 The ride took four years, mostly because Dave pretty much financed the trip himself.\u00a0 He’d ride a country or two, run out of money, get a job and save for a bit, and then continue.\u00a0 I read Riding the Edge<\/a>\"\" nearly two decades ago, and it’s the book that lit my fire for international motorcycle riding.\u00a0 None of the rides I’ve done (even though I’ve ridden through a few of the countries Barr did) begins to approach Dave Barr’s accomplishments.\u00a0 The guy is my hero.<\/p>\n

Riding the Edge<\/a>\"\" is written in an easy, conversational style.\u00a0 I’ve probably read my copy a half-dozen times.\u00a0 In fact, as I type this, I’m thinking I need to put it on my nightstand and read some of my favorite parts again.\u00a0 If you go for any of the books on this list, Riding the Edge<\/a>\"\" is the one you have to read.<\/p>\n

The Longest Ride<\/h2>\n

Emilio Scotto.\u00a0 \u00a0Remember that name, and remember The Longest Ride<\/a>\"\".\u00a0 This is a guy who had never left his native Argentina, thought it might be cool to see the world on a motorcycle, bought a Gold Wing (which he named the Black Princess), and then…well, you can guess the rest.\u00a0 He rode around the world on a motorcycle.<\/p>\n

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Emilio took 10 years for his trip around the world, and he covered 500,000 miles in the process.\u00a0 He’s another guy who is good with a camera.\u00a0 I thoroughly enjoyed The Longest Ride<\/a>\"\".\u00a0 I think you will, too.<\/p>\n

Two Wheels Through Terror<\/h2>\n

Glen Heggstad…that’s another name you want to remember.\u00a0 Mix one martial arts expert, a Kawasaki KLR 650, a kidnaping (his own), a trip through South America, and a natural propensity for writing well and you’ll have Two Wheels Through Terror<\/a>\"\".\u00a0 I love the book for several reasons, including the fact that Mr. Heggstad used a KLR 650 (one of the world’s great adventure touring motorcycles), the way he tells the story of his kidnaping in Colombia (a country I rode in), and his wonderful writing.<\/p>\n

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I’ve met Glen a couple of times.\u00a0 The first time was at a local BMW dealership when he spoke of his travels; the second time was at his booth at the Long Beach International Motorcycle Show.\u00a0\u00a0Glen is a hell of a man, a hell of a writer, and a hell of a fighter (all of which emerge in Two Wheels Through Terror<\/a>\"\").\u00a0 He is a guy who just won’t quit when the going gets tough.\u00a0 I admire the man greatly.<\/p>\n

Jupiter\u2019s Travels<\/h2>\n

Ah, Ted Simon, one of the granddaddies of adventure motorcycle riding.\u00a0 I’d heard about his book, Jupiter’s Travels<\/a>\"\", for years before I finally bought a copy and read it, and then I felt like a fool for not having read it sooner.<\/p>\n

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Jupiter’s Travels<\/a>\"\" was one of the first books about riding a motorcycle around the world, and what made it all the more interesting for me was that Simon didn’t do it as a publicity stunt.\u00a0 No big sponsors, no support vehicles, no nothing, a lot like the other great journeys on this list.\u00a0 It was what the guy wanted to do, so he quit his job and did it.\u00a0 Simon’s bike was a 500cc air-cooled Triumph, and I liked that, too.\u00a0 I’m a big fan of the old British vertical twins (the Triumph was a state-of-the-motorcycle-art when Ted Simon did his ride).\u00a0 Trust me on this, folks:\u00a0 Jupiter’s Travels<\/a>\"\" is a motoliterature classic, and it’s one you need to read.<\/p>\n

10 Years on 2 Wheels<\/h2>\n

Helge Pedersen is another name you want to know.\u00a0 He is a phenomenal world traveler, writer, and photographer, and 10 Years on 2 Wheels<\/a>\"\" is a phenomenal read.<\/p>\n

\"\"What sets 10 Years on 2 Wheels<\/a>\"\" apart is the photography, and you get a sense of that just by seeing the cover (this is one of those rare books that you can, indeed, judge by its cover).\u00a0 10 Years on 2 Wheels<\/a>\"\" is what inspired me to get serious about capturing great photographs during my travels, and Helge’s photos are fabulous (they’re art, actually).\u00a0 This is a physically large book, and that makes the images even more of a treat.<\/p>\n

So that’s it: Our list of the five best motorcycle books.\u00a0 What do you think?\u00a0 Leave your comments and suggestions here.\u00a0 \u00a0We want to hear them!<\/p>\n

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