I’ll be riding 2000 miles on my Harley this weekend, and I guess you could say I’m kind of pumped. This will be one of the longer trips that I’ve done since my epic bike trip 10 years ago of more than 10,000 miles in a 3 month period of time.

Back in 2002 I was in a rough spot in my life.  I had just come through some difficult things that left me questioning life in general and what it was all about. I didn’t have any answers or any clue where to start looking to find answers so I did the only thing I knew to do… I hit the road.

I bought my first Harley Davidson (Sportster) back in 1996 at the ripe old age of 17. So I was no stranger to the road and riding, but for this trip I was wanting something a bit bigger, the only problem was I couldn’t afford the bigger Harley “Softail” that I had my eye on. Most of the newer Softails with lower miles were costing 14 and 15 thousand dollars. My budget was around 8 thousand and I was going to have to take a loan out to do that.

Then it happened (insert angels singing here). I got a phone call from a buddy of mine in New Zealand where I lived in 1999 and 2000, but that’s another story. My buddy told me to check the exchange rate of their dollar vs ours. When I did I saw that ours was worth more than double there’s. So I went on line, found some New Zealand Harley dealers, and before I knew it I had acquired a like new condition low miles 1995 Softail Nostalgia worth $16,000 for only 8 thousand bucks!

A few hundred dollars in shipping charges and a few weeks later it arrived in Los Angeles.  I paid $99 for a one way bus ticket from Raleigh, NC to LA to pick up my bike, and meet my New Zealand friends who couldn’t pass up the opportunity to join me on this adventure with their bikes.

I learned a lot of things about myself and about life in general on that road trip. Taking a few months to get away from it all, and ride with no clear destination and no time to be there was exactly what I needed to keep hold of what little sanity I still possessed.  Had I not taken that ride  I honestly think I would be dead or in prison right now.

SO… Even though this short 6 day 2000 mile ride is nothing in comparison to the other one, I’m still excited for the opportunity to hit the open road again. Because in the end, every mile I ride is like much needed nourishing calories for my soul.

In Portland last week I was supposed to be doing a live interview with some local tv station, but then just before we started I heard the infamous phrase “we’ve been bumped.” Having your interview bumped, basically means there’s some other breaking news that is more important, so usually a station will just tape your segment and show it later… no big deal.

I am however always curious as to what the breaking news is just in case it’s some crazy terrorist attack or an earthquake or something. In Portland the answer was “Haven’t you noticed?  It’s snowing!” I had noticed, but I didn’t pay any attention to it because every flake, which I’m pretty sure I could count them all, was melting immediately on impact. So my thought was, “Wow, either people in Portland are really lame if this is exciting breaking news. Or, and more probably the case, an interview with me is pretty low and the totem pole even below a few melting snow flakes.”

The best “bump” came with a live CNN interview I was supposed to do in December. The cameras were set. The crew was ready to start rolling in a matter of seconds and then… wait… the producer put his hand on his ear peace and listened intently. “Damn, ok guys we’ve just been bumped.” Again… no big deal. But as I huddled around the TV playing the live breaking news streaming on CNN I was once again aware of my totem pole status. I had been bumped because Obama was announcing that congress had failed to come to an agreement over some bill or something.

Melting snow flakes are one thing, but if something like “News Flash! Congress can’t work together. Both sides of the aisle have lost their minds and our system is broken.” is able to bump me. Then I must be REALLY lame because everyone on the freakin planet knows that.

For the first part of the book tour in the south I wanted to have my family with me every where I went. Do to the nature of hopping around from one place to another AND the fact that we’ve got two crazy youngsters in the prime of craziness, what better way to take a long road trip than in a big ol 1990′s model RV! (Complete with faded blue and purple pastel stripes and pink seagulls) There are a few lesson’s that I have learned now that I am an expert RV’er and I feel inclined to share them with everyone.

One, Always dump the “Black Water” tank before you dump the “Grey Water” Tank.

Two, when you’re eye level with truckers you MUST learn their ways and their secret signals. Why? because it’s just cool.

Three, don’t let your wife make you a sandwich with extra mustard while driving 75 on the highway.

And last but not least… At night, just because you can’t see out doesn’t mean the whole campground can’t see in.

So the last 4 or 5 months I have been volunteering my time to help teach a course at Appalachian State University.  In a nutshell, It’s a senior seminar focused on researching this generation’s unique ability to change the world using social media campaigns, corporate social responsibility, etc.  It was a class that professor Amy Hudnall and I dreamed up over coffee one day last year, and I have to say, I am so glad I decided to take on this challenge.

We are at the end of the semester right now and the class has now broken into four different groups for their final projects.  The reason why I am so stoked about this class isn’t so much for the content, but the way we set the course up by putting a huge emphasis on the group project.  Some of the groups clicked right away and others have had some serious personality issues within the groups, but helping them work through these issues and watch them still have the ability to turn in amazing work has been awesome!

So for any of you naysayers out there that thing the generation coming up is lazy or out of touch or whatever, I say piss off!  These kids are going to change the world… for good!

A couple weeks ago I had the opportunity to speak alongside General Colin Powell at a leadership Conference in Richmond VA.  I’ve been speaking now professionally for the last 2 years and even though I always get a little nervous before each speech I am never to overly stressed.  However, I’ve never had to follow Colin Powell in a speech before either.  The week leading up to my speech I have to admit that I was a bit intimidated to follow one of the greatest leaders in our nations history.  “What the hell can I offer this audience of 3000+ students and adults after a guy like Gen. Powell.” I thought over and over throughout the week.

But then, I heard Gen. Powell speak.  And all my fears went away.  Why? Because the guy didn’t come out of the womb fighting and immediately take charge of anything and everything that was around him as I had anticipated.  He was real.  He was humble.  He started out his story saying that his GPA wasn’t even good enough in school for him to join the military and the only thing that got him over a 2.0 was the school allowing him to use his A in ROTC to be added to his transcript.

Gen Powell is hands down the best speaker I have ever heard and by far the coolest dude I have ever met.  He talked with me for a while in the Green Room before his speech and made me feel important acting as if I was the only person in the room. Which amazed me because I know full well that I am probably the least important guy that he talked to that day.

I am now convinced that great leaders aren’t born.  They are made by the decisions they choose to make, the people they choose to surround themselves with, and the energy and passion they put into their mission and the people that enable that mission to be possible.

I don’t have many profound words running around in my head today, but I do have a thought.  Actually, maybe it’s more of a statement.  “I am seriously madly in love with motorcycles.” It’s been just warm enough this November for me to take the bike out and get my road fix.  And I couldn’t be happier.

Just as the Black Pearl embodies all that freedom is for Jack Sparrow, motorcycles have been all that and more for me ever since I was a kid. Had I not sold my truck and bought a Harley at the ripe old age of 17 I’m pretty sure I would have ended up insane… well more insane than I already am.  There has not been one year out of the 15 years since that first Sportster that I have gone without owning a Harley, and there will not be one till the day that I die.  Hell, maybe even God will let me have a Harley after that too!

On my Harley there are no emails, no crying babies, no phone calls, no expectations of me, no nothing.  There is only me, the road, the rumbling engine, and the sound of the wind as it whips around my beard and past my ears.  Did I mention I love motorcycles?

I have something to say. I. Love. Canadians. Why do I love Canadians? Well, I’ve had the opportunity to speak in Toronto, Vancouver, and Halifax over the last few weeks and there’s one thing that ever city, coast to coast, seems to have in common. They all LOVE beer! Seriously, each city I travel to in Canada always boasts as to why they are better than another Canadian city and they always use the amount of pubs per capita and the type of micro brews in the area to back up their arguments.

I used to think that if all hell broke loose in the U.S. economically that I would have to move my family south to Brazil or Peru or something like that. But now, I think I’ll just head north. And you know what? I might even like it better. I’ll have hockey, a sport that still allows the players to punch each other in the face and only get a couple minutes penalty. AND I’ll live in a place that uses beer as a marketing tool for recruiting residence.  OH CANADA, HERE I COME!