My bookshelf is stocked with every type of book relating to motorcycles and travel. Round the world or round the block. Hiking, adventure biking, 4x4ing, I've got lots of them. One book I don't have is Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig.
Amazon describes it thus,
“One of the most influential books written in the past half-century, Robert Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is a powerful examination of how we live and a breathtaking meditation on how to live better.”
Maybe it's me but I think it's the worst book ever written about motorcycles and motorcycling. Pirsig has his head so far up where the sun don't shine that he will never need sunglasses.
I remember when it first came out, I was first in line to get a copy. Prepublication news said that he had ridden across country on a Honda Super Hawk and written about his trip. Coincidentally, I had just finished riding across North America on a Honda Super Hawk and wanted to compare our trips.
We must have been in different universes because nothing he wrote matched anything I experienced. I had no existential revelations or spiritual visions. Ghostly Indians did not ride alongside me to cause me to question my life.
I rode along US 6 and my trip was about the beauty of the world I was passing through. My contemplations consisted of wondering if I had enough gas to make it to the next town and whether I should seek shelter because it looked like it would rain soon. Meeting people along the way who were warm and friendly was all I need to believe the world was in good shape.
Instead of contemplating my navel I concentrated on the slight ticking sound coming from my engine. I thought about the friends I had left behind in Boston and speculated on what lay ahead when I got to San Francisco. I didn't need a mantra to clarify my purpose in the world. I ride, therefore I am.
I'm sure the crowd that claims spiritual powers from crystals loves the book. Whenever someone claims that the book really spoke to them I excuse myself and walk away as fast as I can.
In 1974 I got about 1/4 through the book and tossed it into the trash. My only thought was, “Boy did he save a lot of money on sunglasses!”
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