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FALL 2019 ISSUE 02 / VOL . 04
Exhaust Note
BY NEIL REYNOLDS
Silk Road Captain
THE SILK ROAD . The very thought of it evokes visions of ancient times and adventure . East meets West with caravans of camels laden with exotic spices and silks for trade . Okay , it ’ s a little different today . You can still ride camels there , but I set out with Helge Pedersen of GlobeRiders and eight other riders on BMW GSs . Eight thousand miles across Eurasia from Istanbul , Turkey , to Xian , China .
You want adventure ? As we rode through nine countries and numerous villages and towns , cultures and customs were different , scenery and climates were different . Each day was a new adventure . But there was one common denominator — the people . Our motorcycles were like people magnets , and everywhere we went people gathered around and were always friendly .
When we arrived at our hotel in Kashgar , China , there were 18 Harley-Davidson touring bikes lined up in front of the hotel , a most unusual site in China . Above the motorcycles was a large banner , part of which was in English : “ Chinese 10,000 Mile Club .” After parking my GS I walked over for a closer look . The Harleys were adorned with decals , farkles and flags . One of the riders , attired like a quintessential American Harley rider , introduced himself in fluent English as Jackie . He explained that each club member rides their American V-twins 10,000 miles a year , and they were assembling for their national convention , 300 strong .
Walking out of the hotel the next morning , it was entirely surrounded by Harleys parked in every nook and cranny among the tour busses and cars . And the riders , all appropriately attired , milled about creating a party atmosphere . My friend Jackie spotted me immediately , and he introduced me to one of his comrades who had a