Thanks for joining us!

‘In a car you’re always in a com­part­ment, and be­cause you’re used to it you don’t realize that through that car win­dow ev­ery­thing you see is just more TV. You’re a passive ob­serv­er and it is all mov­ing by you bor­ing­ly in a frame. On a cy­cle the frame is gone. You’re com­plete­ly in contact with it all. You’re in the scene, not just watch­ing it any­more, and the sense of pres­ence is over­whelm­ing.’

Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

I love touring on two wheels. I have ridden in most European countries as well as my home in the UK and I have even managed a little riding in South East Asia.

To me, a motorcycle is the perfect way not just to see other parts of the world but to experience them. You can smell the tang of the forests and feel the chill as you climb high mountain passes. Of course, you can experience these things when walking or cycling too, but a motorcycle allows you to travel through large changes of landscape in a relatively short time, and it’s probably that aspect which I enjoy most of all.

I can still remember the first time I saw the Alps in the distance, like a bank of dark clouds on the horizon. Two hours later, I was there, in the midst of twisting roads over precipitous drops and spirit-lifting vistas. That experience provided a feeling of fulfillment, of being there in that particular moment that is sadly lacking from much of everyday life.

But here’s the thing: I’m getting older. Soon I’ll be sixty. This doesn’t just mean stiff limbs and new aches and pains, for me it has also brought a different view of the world. I still like to travel but speed and power just don’t interest me like they used to. The idea of having the latest, biggest, most hi-tech bike not only doesn’t excite me any more, I actually find it a little dull.

Which is what this site is about. I want to explore the possibilities of touring on a small capacity motorcycle while consuming as little of the world’s resources as possible. I plan to find an elderly bike that won’t cost much to buy and which will probably need a little care and attention to prepare it. Then, I want to see if I can use it to explore parts of the world which I haven’t seen.

I’m lucky in that I won’t be doing this alone. My wife and I have been together for almost thirty years and we both still enjoy the challenge of travel. She’ll be coming with me and giving the view from the back seat.

Together, we’re the Motorcycle Minimalists and I hope you’ll come with us on some big journeys on a small bike.