Just a few years ago I didn’t think I’d ever be brave enough, strong enough, or skilled enough to ride my own bike. In fact, when I took my first skills test in 2018 at age 52, I failed spectacularly! A week later I got the worst possible passing score, and a year after that I was still too afraid to ride my bike up my steep driveway. In 2020, I hit a low point battling throat cancer and going through a second divorce. I was in pain and couldn’t speak or eat normally for several months. The hair on the back of my head fell out, and I had to program a speech app to talk for me in my high school classroom. I felt like a failure and didn’t believe I could ever experience joy again.

A lot has changed since then, in large part because of several life-changing motorcycle journeys. The positive life lessons I learned on the road have helped me to experience more joy, confidence, and hope than I ever thought possible. Even more importantly, I have learned to see myself as a person of value and strength. Filled with a new sense of determination and purpose, I have traveled over 100,000 miles through much of North America, including up to the Arctic Ocean.