All photos ©2006-2010kkm.
Motorcycling -- "the closest thing to flying without leaving the ground." I call it Land Flight.
It's the sense of freedom and spontaneity which takes over when gliding down an old two-lane highway in search of....whatever is there. This site is a work sheet of sorts for the forth-coming "Land Flight- Let Me Take You There" book of photography and is an homage to the open road, the spirit of adventure, riders of all ages and ability, and especially to those baby boomers out there looking to make the years left ahead count. Too often, it seems the things we really want to do or accomplish in life get set aside for "later"...and as far too many have discovered, "later" sometimes never comes.
My passion latently manifested itself in long-distance adventure motorcycle touring and was hardly expected at that point in life. After enjoying motorbiking in my early 20's, other responsibilities and everyday living intervened. Along the way the bike was sold and I thought it was the end of that. The first steps toward it again came over 20 years later when I was forced to reassess what I really wanted out of life. The catalyst? I lost my job.
After more than 20 years of service to a corporation it took just five minutes to send me out the door with little more than a kick in the pants and a cardboard box. The job, my "second home", vanished as the company re-organized, trimming its ranks of longtime employees. I was officially on the street at 50 without a golden parachute but lucky enough to have a sort of cotton hanky version..enough to buy me a year or two of finding "myself" and best of all: motorcycles.
Though numb from the shock of being cast adrift, I knew it was time to evaluate things and ponder some questions.
Q: After all the years, was I where I thought I would be at that point in life?
Q: Had I been in a rut?
Q: Had I ever really tried to fulfill my dreams?
Q: Or had I dozed through them?
No rocket science there. I didn't like any of my answers and I knew it was time for change. I had convinced myself I was too busy with work, too busy providing for family(though spending little time with them because of it), too busy...being busy...to think about any of those questions. It's not like I hadn't heard it before: YOU HAVE TO MAKE TIME FOR YOU. Now I would. Some say my decisions afterward confirmed I had become a mid-life-crisis poster child. Maybe I am but whatever it is, I feel liberated by it. Now I feel compelled to share this revelation with every hapless soul I run into.
LandFlight is universal in message--freedom knows no age limits---and I hope to strike a chord with those who find themselves slowly suffocating in the ordinary. Adventure awaits for all who want it. LAND FLIGHT Salespeople are more than familiar with customers' scenarios recited almost verbatim at motorcycle dealerships from Maine to California: “... used to have a bike years back, got married, got a job, got rid of the bike. Now, the kids are grown. I've got more ‘me’ time and I want to ride again."
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