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North Central U.S.

It was almost noon as I rolled into Zanesville, Ohio, and my stomach reminded me that all I had for breakfast was black coffee...

Wheels and a Wedding: Wisconsin Motorcycle Ride

A wedding is a wonderful time to celebrate with friends and family, but when that family resides in Wisconsin, it is also a great...

Fall Motorcycle Travel Guide 2025

We’re approaching fall, when kids go back to school, the air gets cooler, and leaves start to show their true colors. It’s a great...

Forty-Nine and Fifty: Riding U.S. Route 50 from Ohio to Maryland

I was back at my old stomping grounds. It was here, 50 years ago, where my life changed, where a dream took hold and...

Yore Mother Road: Recollections of a Route 66 Motorcycle Ride

Decades after its official demise in 1985, Route 66 remains in fragments, with the rest either paved over and renamed or reclaimed by nature....

America’s Mother Road: Chicago to L.A. on Route 66

Designated as a federal highway in 1926 and running from Chicago to Los Angeles, Route 66 connected – and often ran right through –...

Iron Range Ramble: Northern Minnesota Motorcycle Ride

For motorcycle enthusiasts, northern Minnesota offers some of the best riding in the Midwest, combining scenic beauty with rich history and small-town charm. My...

Keweenaw Peninsula, Michigan Motorcycle Ride

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, which sits above Wisconsin and separates Lake Superior from Lake Michigan, is an often-overlooked haven. Its combination of rugged mountains, lush...

Athens, Ohio Motorcycle Ride: Ohio’s Windy 9

Athens, Ohio, has always been special to me. My great aunt, Jean Drevenstedt, has lived there since the early ’70s. She was a psychology...

Beauty in Bluff Country: A Southern Minnesota Motorcycle Ride

Motorcyclists living in Minnesota experience long winters with plenty of time to think about roads we want to ride. It’s a sweet feeling when...

Get Your Kickstart on Route 66

Dubbed the “Mother Road” by John Steinbeck in The Grapes of Wrath and known as “Main Street USA,” U.S. Route 66 will celebrate its...

Riding South Dakota’s Black Hills BDR-X

If you’re looking for a golden adventure riding opportunity, the Black Hills BDR-X marks the spot. Backcountry Discovery Routes are adventure/dual‑sport routes that typically...

The Return of the Moonshine Lunch Run

This Favorite Ride doesn’t include a route map because it’s all about a single destination: the corner of 300 Road and 600 Street in...

Trans Wisconsin Adventure Trail

As I reached for the pump handle to fill up at the start of this trip, I suddenly realized my hydration pack wasn’t on...

Exploring the Far North: A Northern Minnesota Motorcycle Ride

Most of us love the feeling of anticipation leading up to a multiday motorcycle trip. This particular Minnesota motorcycle ride one was more memorable...

Saving the Best for Last: A Ride to the Sturgis Rally – and Beyond

Retirement is underrated, which I discovered both too soon and too late. Fifteen years ago, my employer of 36 years eased me out their...

Roller Coaster Hills: A Southeast Ohio Motorcycle Tour

This Southeast Ohio motorcycle tour story, which highlights some of the best Ohio motorcycle roads and a stay in the historic town of Marietta...

Northeastern Michigan and Lake Huron Lighthouses Loop | Favorite Ride

At first glance the small farming town of Posen, which is situated along State Route 65 in northeastern Michigan and hosts an annual Potato...

Wolf River Run in Wisconsin

The WisconsinHighways.org website’s State Trunk Highways section says: “One of the noticeable idiosyncrasies is the meandering nature of some of Wisconsin’s state highways. Just...

Great Lakes Getaway: Touring Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan

I arrive in Duluth, Minnesota, in the middle of the night, welcomed by a cleansing wind blowing off Lake Superior, the largest of the...

Des Moines River Loop

There are some great roads in central Iowa around the town of Boone, which is about 45 miles north of Des Moines. This ride...

Riding Ohio’s Triple Nickel

No more than 10 miles from where I learned to ride a motorcycle is one of our country’s finest set of twists and turns....

A Scenic Ride on Wisconsin Route 67: IMS Outdoors Chicago Ride

The second stop on the 2021 Progressive IMS Outdoors tour is near Chicago, Illinois, over the weekend of August 20-22. As the only stop...

Wisconsin’s Waumandee Valley River Roads

Buffalo County, Wisconsin, is a hidden gem for motorcyclists. Located in the northwest part of the state, its southern border is the Mississippi River,...

Highway 61 Remastered: Riding Along Minnesota’s North Shore

If you go when the snowflakes stormWhen the rivers freeze and summer endsPlease see if she’s wearing a coat so warmTo keep her from...

List of U.S. Motorcycle Tour Operators 2020

With international travel in 2020 looking less certain by the week (and possibly risky, not just health-wise but also with the possibility of becoming...

Connecting Small Towns in Northeast Iowa

Iowa is not known as a motorcycling destination, but rather a through state. Motorcyclists travel mostly on the four-lane roads thinking that’s all there...

Big Water: Exploring Southern Indiana’s Chunk of the Ohio River Valley

Despite being a lifelong Hoosier, I hadn’t spent much time riding in the southern part of Indiana. This year would be different -- I...

Iron Range Ramble: Riding Minnesota’s Arrowhead Region

"It’s not the destination, it’s the journey," says the motorcycling adage. That’s true! Most highlights of motorcycling are experienced during the ride. I choose...

One Ride, 47 National Parks

Forty-seven national parks, 17,335 miles, 67 days, three flat tires, two forest fires, three boat rides, temps ranging from 31 degrees and sleet to...

North Central U.S.

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