Book Update - France In America

My regular readers already know I went on a pretty long ride on my motorcycle across America. It was 21,475 glorious miles of getting to know the country and its people. The journey was a tremendous experience, as I visited 27 different states and witnessed many of the great places America has to offer.

What started out as a simple blog journal of the ride eventually led to the decision to write a book about the road trip and I am pleased to report that book is almost complete. To give you an update, about a month ago, the writing was finished, the photos to be included were chosen, the maps were all drawn and editing was completed.

I then travelled to Thailand to undertake the next stage in the evolution of the book – to create the layout of the book by deciding exactly what goes on each page. Sizing and locating each of the many hundreds of pictures in the best place within the text isn’t easy, so I needed the help of people with considerable experience in this.

My brother Tim lives in Thailand and it was to him I turned for help. He runs a communications company, Inis Communications, that writes, edits and publishes documents to help global health and development organisations achieve greater impact through high quality publications. Tim had helped me with guidance and advice about writing the book and I now needed his help again. Here are the two of us, working on the book....

Tim and his team made the task of creating the book layout very easy and it was a pleasure to watch experienced people at work. At four hundred pages this is a big book, and they worked their way through it with the ease that only experts can. The main graphic designer, Benya, did a terrific job and produced a layout I am very happy with. This is Benya discussing the cover of the book with me....

Many, many thanks go to Tim and his whole team for turning my words and pictures into a fantastic-looking book. I am thrilled with the end results.

You can find out more about the book here.

More updates will follow. The next stage is another area of complete mystery for me - choosing the right printer. Now, just how do you go about that.....?

Next week, I will tell you about fulfilling a promise I made......

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My New Motorcycling Website!

Today, my new motorcycling website www.garysfrance.com was launched.

Containing information about different aspects of motorcycling, the site has sections about my forthcoming book, touring guides, my videos, a competition (win the latest GoPro camera), a bit about me, reviews of motorcycling books, other people videos I like, plus a whole load more.

I hope you find just a little bit of time to go take a peek.

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Harley Davidson 1905 Model No.1

Only 16 of the 1905 Harley-Davidson models were built. It was not much more to the first Harleys than these two main components, motor and bicycle. Although William Harley Davidson brothers used a bigger engine than most of their current producers, the pedal force is an essential complement to the internal combustion engine on hills meant that the bicycle layout should be maintained.


Harley

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Biker get away to the sun?

Now is the time of year that most bikers in the northern hemisphere don’t like. The warm days of summer have passed, the grey and rain of autumn have made their unwelcome appearance. Getting out on our motorcycles just isn’t as much fun as it was in the summer. As a biker living in London, England, as yet another riding season draws to a close, it’s all pretty depressing to me.

There is only one thing for it – head south to the sun. For most people in Europe, you have to go a pretty long way south before the temperatures begin to climb, but in the US, that isn’t the case if you live in the more southerly states.

Take Texas for example. Motorcycle rallies are over for most of us, but not so in Galveston, Texas. The ‘Lone Star Rally’ runs from 1st until 4th November this year. Located on the Gulf of Mexico near Houston, Galveston is on the same latitude as... the Sahara Desert. The average daily high for Galveston on 1st November is 75F / 24C with the record high being 82F / 28C, and thats plenty warm enough for most of us.

Photo courtesy of Galveston.com

Claimed by the organisers to be the largest four-day rally in North America, this year’s event features concerts, a custom bike show, hundreds of vendors and even an appearance from Charlie Hunnam who plays ‘Jax’ in the TV series ‘Sons of Anarchy’.

Not able to attend this November, I am determined to go to the rally one year.

Here is the “official teaser video” from the rally organisers website....



If you do manage a autumn get away to the sun somewhere, have fun and post something about it!

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Ghost Rider's Harley-Davidson, it's halloween time!

It's never too early to get your Halloween costume, if you wait like everyone else, unless you have kool motorcycle on your garage,  you could find all the best costumes are gone! all dressed up for Halloween! Super hero costume are perfect for Halloween parties, and this time, the best Halloween harley davidson is Ghost Rider's Harley-Davidson.






Another Marvel Comics blockbuster, starring

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Long Live The Kings

Don’t you just love inspirational videos?

This one is about a group of guys doing something as simple as riding motorcycles together.  It is very cool. 

It makes me want to go out and ride.

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Achieving dreams.

Five old men from Taiwan, average age 81, set out on their motorcycles for 13 days, for one simple reason – to achieve their dreams.

Dreaming is important.  Achieving those dreams more so.

I hope I can still ride a motorcycle with my friends when I am eighty-one years old.

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