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From the Author
In May, 2001, Gary McKechnie received one of highest honors a travel writer can receive: a silver medal in the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism competition for his guidebook, Great American Motorcycle Tours -- often called 'The Pulitzer Prize for travel journalists'.
Awarded by the Society of American Travel Writers, SATW vice president Larry Keller told the first-time author: "Congratulations -- you hit a home run in your first time at bat!"
To build on the success of Great American Motorcycle Tours, which has been profiled on CNN, in USA Today and newspapers and radio stations around the country, McKechnie is planning a series of other American adventure guides which blend a keen sense of humor with an appreciation of his country. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
About the Author
Gary McKechnie is a Florida native, a fourth-generation motorcyclist, a professional speaker, and founder of the Charles Kuralt Travel Society. His second edition of Great American Motorcycle Tours was the winner of the Benjamin Franklin Gold Award sponsored by the Publisher's Marketing Association, and the Lowell Thomas Silver Award sponsored by the Society of American Travel Writers.
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From the mountains to oceans white foam, this summer run is a relatively short one, but with distinct changes in landscape and cultures. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
From the mountains to oceans white foam, this summer run is a relatively short one, but with distinct changes in landscape and cultures. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
Format:Paperback
Now in an updated and expanded second edition, Great American Motorcycle Tours by Gary McKechnie offers the reader a wide variety of suggested motorcycle tours ideal for vacationers and cyclists looking for history, excitement, and the joy of the open road. Different tours appeal to different tastes, such an Amish Country Run stretching from New Hope to Intercourse, Pennsylvania, or a Wild West Run from Livingston, Montana to Jackson, Wyoming. Each individual tour has numerous historic stops, and any attraction can be easily looked up in the index for "user friendly" cross-referencing. Overall, Great American Motorcycle Tours is an enjoyable, practical, and very highly recommended guide.
Format:Paperback
I recently purchased Gary's book in the Spring of '02 for my trips to the Blue Ridge Parkway and Sturgis. It provided an excellent primer for stopping points of interest and quality local eateries. I wasn't hung up on his allowing four days to cover 200 miles, however, I looked at is a buffet in which you can pick and choose the events of interest to you. His advice on packing warmer clothing in the dead of Summer for the elevation changes was dead on. Some may call it 'common sense', but if you see reported temperatures in Asheville at 90 degrees, you may not realize you'll need a jacket and light gloves by the time you hit Mt. Mitchell. I appreciated his advice and considered it money well spent.
By zar1969
Format:Paperback
The foreword of the book is written by Peter Fonda. I personally fail to make the connection why the endorsement of a Hollywood actor who happened to shoot a motorcycling movie should prove the value of a touring guide. But as I tried out some of the journeys, I started to see how the whole experience, which these suggested trips cater to, is concentrated around the image of motorcycling rather than the actual experience of riding. I wasted a couple of weekends diligently following directions through Pennsylvania and up the Hudson. The book led me through numerous towns and it reserved a lot of pages for information on all the things, which you could do to avoid riding your bike - you could find listings on every thrift store, restaurant, rafting company, and even bicycle tour! available on your way. Another interesting (and related) point was the fact that the author estimated coverage of about 50 miles per day i.e. if the suggested trip was 200 miles total, you were supposed to need 4 to 5 days to cover the distance. While very concentrated on all the entertainment that could be bought along the trip, the book was not especially concerned with the quality of the selected riding. Gorgeous scenic ways were followed by long stretches of banal suburban motifs and while stuck in the stop-and-go traffic I was wondering what part of the motorcycling experience I was supposed to be exercising at the time.
This is my rendering of the qualities, which the reader needs to possess in order to enjoy the recommendations in the book: 1. Your name must be Peter Fonda 2. You must be independently wealthy since you can't both hold a job and go to all these 4-5 days trips. 3. You must be versatile in the outdoors' activities to take full advantage of all the fun that awaits you out there. 4. You need friends who would like to hear about stuff like " When I flew in that helicopter over the Grand Canyon...", and "Here is a picture of me next to an Amish farmer..." 5. You only need basic riding skills and moderate motorcycling enthusiasm.
My advice is - get a map, look for the small roads, use your common sense, and explore. Good luck out there, maybe we'll meet on the road.
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3.9 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
cross-country
This is a fantastic book! I wanted to take a cross-country tour and this was the only book I found that covered more than one region. Read more
Published on July 17 2001
1.0 out of 5 stars
Ivan
The foreword of the book is written by Peter Fonda. I personally fail to make the connection why the endorsement of a Hollywood actor who happened to shoot a motorcycling movie... Read more
Published on Jun 25 2001
4.0 out of 5 stars
AN "EASY RIDER'S" GUIDEBOOK
Did you marvelled at Peter Fonda's "Easy Rider" film or even the old Marlon Brando classic, "The Wild One"? Read more
Published on Mar 2 2001 by Dorothy Weiss
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great American Motorcycle Tours
Wonderful & helpful! Just returned from bring our new 2001 Harley from Chadds Ford,Pennsylvania to South Florida. Read more
Published on Oct 11 2000 by Barry
5.0 out of 5 stars
kuralt lives
I'm not a motorcycle rider, but ever since I read Robert Pirskin's Zen and the Art of..., I have envied the unbridled freedom that the motorcycle provides for the human spirit. Read more
Published on Sep 8 2000 by douglas binder
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wild Rides
This humorous guide provided usuful info between the pages and the laughs. As one from the Easy Rider generation, it was a delight to read Peter Fonda's Foreword. Read more
Published on Aug 29 2000
1.0 out of 5 stars
How not to see America.
This would be a good book for those new to motorcycle touring, but for those of us who have "been there, done that", it is a waste of money. Read more
Published on Aug 2 2000 by B. Bates
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Powerful Research Tool for X-country motorcyclists.
Gary's book is crammed with excellent destinations and insights into tour motorcycling. I speak with some authority as the producer of the video series "Motorcycle Tours of... Read more
Published on Aug 1 2000 by Dave Hoven
5.0 out of 5 stars
No dud--laughs, info, and hogs
I cannot disagree more with the narrow-minded review of Jim Shaver. He obviously doesn't understand the demands the author faced to write a book that covers the entire nation. Read more
Published on July 19 2000 by The Reader
3.0 out of 5 stars
Yuppie Yuck
What a dud. When I read the section Mighty Montana Run and saw the distance of the leg 335 miles...alow five days with stops I knew this wasn't the book I hoped for. Read more
Published on July 5 2000 by jim shaver
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