Our guest on Episode 42 of the Rider Magazine Insider Podcast is Andre LaPlante, who runs MotoVentures, an off-road training school started in 1998 by his father, Gary LaPlante. Andre has worked in the motorcycle industry for 20 years in various sales, marketing, and advertising roles, including 16 years at Cobra Engineering. He has raced motocross and competed in trials for 30 years, and he took 3rd place at the 2022 BMW GS Trophy Qualifier West. Andre is also a U.S. Motorcycle Coaching Association (USMCA) certified instructor. During this episode, we talk about MotoVenture’s “dirt first” philosophy and the value of off-road training for motorcyclists of all ages. Even if you are a street rider, you can learn valuable skills that will help you ride more confidently.
We also talk about Andre’s father, Gary LaPlante, a long-time motorcycle industry veteran who started and ran MotoVentures for many years and wrote the book How to Ride Off-Road Motorcycles. Gary is battling brain cancer, and we encourage listeners to show their support by signing up for training with MotoVentures, buying Gary’s book, or visiting his GoFundMe page and making a donation to help defray his significant medical expenses. Andre is a down-to-earth motorcycle enthusiast who is carrying on his father’s legacy of training people how to be better riders. That’s an effort we applaud and fully support.
You can listen to Episode 42 on iTunes, Spotify, and SoundCloud, or via the Rider Magazine Insider Podcast webpage. Please subscribe, leave us a 5-star rating, and tell your friends! Scroll down for a list of previous episodes.
Visit the Rider Magazine Insider Podcast webpage to check out previous episodes:
- Ep. 41: Scott A. Williams, writer and contributor to Rider
- Ep. 40: Chris Peterman, Director of Motorcycles at CFMOTO USA
- Ep. 39: Hayley Bell, Founder and President of Global Business Development for Women Riders World Relay
- Ep. 38: Eric Trow, Rider Contributing Editor and Stayin’ Safe Principal
- Ep. 37: Bill Dragoo, Dragoo Adventure Riding Training (DART)
- Ep. 36: Gordon McCall, Director of Motorsports for The Quail Motorcycle Gathering
- Ep. 35: Rennie Scaysbrook, Pikes Peak record holder, motorcycle journalist, and racer
- Ep. 34: Cat MacLeod of Leod Escapes Motorcycle “Track and Tour”
- Ep. 33: Inna Thorn and Tim James of Backcountry Discovery Routes
- Ep. 32: C. Jane Taylor, author of Spirit Traffic
- Ep. 31: Alan Wilzig, motorcycle collector and owner of Wilzig Racing Manor
- Ep. 30: Scott Moreno, founder and owner of IMTBike Motorcycle Tours and Rentals
- Ep. 29: Greg Rice, long-distance rider and Iron Butt Rally competitor
- Ep. 28: Brian Case, Director of the Barber Advanced Design Center at the Barber Vintage Motorsports Museum
- Ep. 27: Steven Goode, motorcyclist who completed the Great American Deli Schlep to support MAZON
- Ep. 26: Nancy Gerloff and Mark Augustyn, creators of Mimi and Moto: The Motorcycle Monkeys
- Ep. 25: Jess Stone, designer of the K9 Moto Cockpit and founder of Ruffly
- Ep. 24: Eddie Braun, Hollywood stuntman who completed Evel Knievel’s Snake River Canyon jump, and star of the film “Stuntman”
- Ep. 23: Ryan McFarland, founder and CEO of Strider Bikes and All Kids Bike advocate
- Ep. 22: Americade interview with Bill, Gini, and Christian Dutcher
- Ep. 21: Peter Starr, motorcycle filmmaker, author, and MotoStarr podcast host
- Ep. 20: Jon DelVecchio, founder of Street Skills and author of “Cornering Confidence”
- Ep. 19: Lauren Trantham, founder of Ride My Road
- Ep. 18: Keith Code, founder and director of California Superbike School
- Ep. 17: Valerie Thompson, world’s fastest female motorcycle racer
- Ep. 16: Wayne Rainey, president of MotoAmerica and a motorcycle racing legend
- Ep. 15: Longhaulpaul (Paul Pelland), Chasing the Cure: a million-mile motorcycle journey for MS
- Ep. 14: Andy Goldfine, Aerostich founder and Ride to Work Day advocate
- Ep. 13: Dr. Gregory W. Frazier, America’s #1 extreme motorcycle adventurer
- Ep. 12: Daniel Calderon, Curator of Exhibitions at SFO Museum
- Ep. 11: Peter Jones, Rider columnist and author of The Bad Editor
- Ep. 10: Christian Dutcher, Director of Americade and Touratech DirtDaze Rally
- Ep. 09: Melissa Holbrook Pierson, author of The Perfect Vehicle
- Ep. 08: Rainer Buck, CEO of Edelweiss Bike Travel
- Ep. 07: Michael Lock, CEO of AMA Pro Racing
- Ep. 06: Alonzo Bodden, motorcycle enthusiast and comedian
- Ep. 05: Paul D’Orleans, publisher of The Vintagent
- Ep. 04: Eric Trow, Rider columnist and owner, Stayin’ Safe Advanced Riding Training
- Ep. 03: Clement Salvadori, traveling motorcyclist and Rider contributor
- Ep. 02: Kevin Wing, world-class motorcycle photographer and Rider contributor
- Ep. 01: Robert Pandya and Discover the Ride at the Progressive International Motorcycle Shows