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Online Book Club Gives Ride Minnesota 3 Out of 4 Stars
I recently uploaded an electronic copy of Ride Minnesota to Onlinebookclub.org and waited patiently for the book review to appear on-screen. It didn’t take long, only about a week. I’ve never been sure just what to expect from my brain-child, so I was pleased to learn that it was awarded three out of four stars.
The anonymous reviewer sounds British (“Having never been on a motorbike or considered one, I was not sure quite what to expect …”), but I don’t hold that against him/her. Five years ago, I was a non-rider myself. Despite the reviewer’s inexperience (I’m sure he’s a he!), he recommends the book to motorcyclists who are thinking of touring Minnesota.
I especially like his last sentence: “The book is written in a very easy to read format and while it may fall into the category of travel guide, it almost feels as if you are speaking to an old friend who recently took the journey and is offering wholehearted recommendations for you to enjoy.”
I consider that high praise! To read the entire review, click the link above.
Book Signing at Diamonds Tonight
Fresh off an 1,800-plus circle tour of Lake Superior, I’ll be at Diamonds Coffee Shoppe, 1618 Central Ave. N.E., tonight. The local vintage motorcycle group will be meeting, and I’ll be there at 6:30, ready to sell and sign copies of Ride Minnesota. I’m looking forward to talking to the bikers and just plain old having a good time.
Several people have asked me if cars can follow the motorcycle routes described in the book. Yes! In fact, some of them may be easier (or at least more comfortable) in a car. More on that in a different post.
See you tonight!
Ride Minnesota Now Available on Kindle
Yep, I’ve gone and done it. Ride Minnesota is now an e-book, available for download on Kindle. Not only is it available here in the U.S., but also in Germany, Italy, France, Japan and India as well.
My husband gave me a basic Kindle for my birthday last year. I wanted it primarily to see how it works, realizing that I can capture a wider audience with an e-book. Although the paperback edition came out first, Ride Minnesota was written with Kindle in mind.
The motorcycle route maps are still there, and I’ve added more photos (if you have a Kindle Fire, you can see them in color). I tried to make the book an interactive experience with embedded links to websites for places mentioned in the book, so readers can “visit” before they actually visit. (Enable Wi-Fi to “go out” and “come back” to the book.)
The book is exclusive to Amazon and Kindle for 90 days. You can download it for $5.99. Just type “Ride Minnesota” in the line next to the shopping cart.
Signing My Life Away
No, I haven’t been recruited by the devil. But it seems like the fastest way for me to sell my book, Ride Minnesota, is to do a book signing.
At the moment, I have two scheduled. One is this weekend at Motoprimo for their Vintage Motorcycle Day, 11:00-1:00.
The next one is my own neck of the woods, Northeast Minneapolis. I’ll be developing writer’s cramp (physically, not mentally) at Diamonds Coffee Shoppe, 1618 Central Ave. N.E., at 6:30 p.m. Members of the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club will be there, too, with their bikes (it’s actually their monthly meeting). Diamonds is a great place to hang out. They have good coffee, and the pies are mighty tempting! The signing will take place August 12.
Exploring Minnesota Via Motorcycle
This is a do-over. I unintentionally hit the publish button in the quick publish mode. I will not use that mode again!
As I was saying, riding with a group of motorcyclists is fun, but I also find it confining. It’s a lot of work keeping track of the rider ahead of you, the guy on the side and the ones following (even though I’m not driving!). More so than in a car. And, of course, you end up sniffing a lot of motorcycle exhaust.
That’s why Ralph and I like exploring on our own, discovering hills and valleys, curves and straight-aways, new sights, new sounds, fresh air. Just us. That’s how I came to write and publish Ride Minnesota, to share our experiences other motorcyclists who want to get out and explore Minnesota. There are a lot of interesting places in this state, and we haven’t seem ’em all–yet.
I’ll be at Motoprimo in Lakeville tomorrow afternoon, in conjunction with the Victory Demo Truck Tour. I’ll have copies of Ride Minnesota on hand, ready to sign and purchase. Come and see me!
Riding in the Rain
All the rain we’re getting this weekend reminds me of the tail-end of our trip to the Grand Canyon. We left Valentine, Nebraska, behind a storm system that was destined to dump record amounts of rain on Minneapolis. It was gray, misty September day. Our objective was Aberdeen, South Dakota, and a straight shot home on US 12 the next day.
The previous day we’d left Colorado, its spectacular mountains gradually fading in the distance as we traveled the Great Plains. The hills of western Nebraska reminded me of a rumpled brown blanket; I half-expected to find a giant asleep beneath them.
The rain got a little heavier and a little colder as we rode north on US 83 toward Pierre. We stopped at a truck stop somewhere along the line. The farmers and truckers just glanced at us as we drank some hot coffee to warm up. We had no choice but to ride in the rain that day. We had to get home.
Yesterday there was thunder and lightning and driving rain. We had a choice, and we opted for my 2000 Saturn as we headed down 35W to Motoprimo to do a book signing. Sales manager Bill Bassett set up a table next to the Victory motorcycles, and Ralph and I spent the day chatting with folks from around the area. The local chapter of Women on Wheels had met at the store earlier in the week, and Bill had ’em primed and pumped to buy a copy of Ride Minnesota.
One of the book buyers was a lively little motorcycle instructor from the Minnesota Motorcycle Safety Center, Laura Shaffer-Munson. Saying, “Only an idiot rides a motorcycle in a thunderstorm–you’re nothing but a lightning rod,” she told us a story about a motorcyclist who was hit by lighting. Witnesses said the rider continued down the road for a while, then ran into the ditch. He was dead long before he reached it.
Book Signing Saturday at Motoprimo
This just in: I will be selling and signing copies of Ride Minnesota at Motoprimo Motorsports in Lakeville from 11:00 a.m. to Noon this coming Saturday, May 18. The address is 16640 KENRICK AVENUE, LAKEVILLE, MN 55044
Now Available Through Amazon
Ride Minnesota is now available for sale through Amazon.com. I checked my CreateSpace account this morning and I have earned 1.32 euros from the book so far. Let the marketing begin!
Break-in ride
Ralph and I took time between chores today to hop on the motorcycle and ride to Taylors Falls, Minnesota. After having snow dumped on us earlier this week, today’s temps (current reading, 73 degrees), were just too nice to ignore. Although April is nearly at an end, the countryside is a dull brown, more like what you’d see in at the end of March. Small ponds have melted, but the larger lakes still have ice on them. That didn’t stop Minnesotans from hiking around Interstate Park in shorts and tank tops, though! One climber had a really nice (as in ouch!) sunburn going.
We climbed a rocky place near the St. Croix River and ate our lunch, basking in the sun like lizards. It was great to watch soaring birds (I think they were turkey buzzards. They didn’t look like eagles) and smell green grass and wet dirt! I have to admit that I was not prepared for the sight of high school prom-growers walking down the trails to the river. Flowing, sparkly gowns and tuxedos are totally incongruous in a wilderness-like setting.
I packed the only four copies I have of Ride Minnesota into our saddlebags, but we didn’t have much occasion to socialize with other bikers. That’s ok. There are other rides to come.
If you drive MN 95 from Stillwater to Taylors Falls, you may run into this guy. He’s at the Franconia Sculpture Park which is at the corner of MN 95 and US 8. The park is open year-round, dawn to dusk, and it’s free. Read more about it in Ride Minnesota, which should be listed on Amazon.com any day now.
70s this weekend!
I never thought I’d be a motorcycle mama, but here I am at nearly 60, early awaiting a 70-degree high on Saturday so Ralph and I can take the bike somewhere. It doesn’t matter where. Just as long as we go, explore, discover, and share our discoveries. That’s what Ride Minnesota is all about. Sharing our discoveries about our home state with others.
The idea for the book came from a visit to the Minnesota History Center
Apple Blossom Scenic Byway
in St. Paul. A good friend of mine, also a writer, had to interview someone for a magazine article and asked me to go along. While she conducted her interview, I poked along in the museum and looked at the exhibits (always good, highly recommended!). I can never resist a bookstore, so it was natural that I wound up there. I found several books about various types of Minnesota tourism–hiking in Minnesota, biking in Minnesota, paddling a canoe in Minnesota. There were no books about motorcycling in Minnesota! The lightbulb came on.
That’s how Ralph and I came to spend every available good-weather weekend cruising the highways on our Victory, looking for hills, curves, unique scenery. That’s how Ride Minnesota was born.
One of the more interesting rides is the Apple Blossom Scenie Byway, south of Winona. As the photo shows, there are curves ahead!
Ride Minnesota 