The Rider - Gale Smith

Gale with friend Dave Allen at RTE in Sulphur, OK:

Things are more beautiful when seen from a motorcycle...

Hi - I'm Gale Smith. While flying back from a scuba diving trip in February 2006 I decided I couldn't wait to have that much fun only two or three times a year and that I needed to have something at home that would be fun and exhilarating on a regular basis. Before I got off the plane at DFW I had decided to sell my Seadoo and get a motorcycle.

After shopping motorcycles that would work with my 5'3' height, the first week of April I took the MSF Safety course and bought a Kawasaki Ninja 650. Having never ridden a motorcycle before -- let's just say I had a LOT to learn.

The Ninja and I left town in August with a whole 1500 miles on the odometer and took our first long distance trip to Arkansas. We went north to Hot Springs and then continued north on 7 to Eureka Springs. Going to the mountains as such a green rider was probably way too much for me since I was pretty scared the entire time, but I was hooked on long distance rides.

Since the Ninja wasn't exactly a touring motorcycle I researched again and decided on a BMW F650GS Lowered which I purchased in July 2007. I fell in love. My little F650 has over 50,000 trip miles on it and has taken me south to Mexico, north to Canada, west to California, and east to Maine. You can check out the states I've visited on the lists below or on the maps on the Planning Board.

Trip and States Visited

Eureka Springs, AR Aug 2006
AR

Buying F650 in OKC, OK July 2007
OK, AR

Colorado Mountains, Durango, CO August 2007
CO, NM

Mexico December 2007
Nuevo Leon, Tamaulipas

Texas Coast February 2008
1st solo trip TX only

Mexico and Big Bend National Park April 2008
Coahila, Chihuahua

Arkansas Camping May 2008
OK, AR

Run to the Border May 2008 - Solo Ride
TX only

Fall Colors Ride to Eureka Springs
OK, AR

San Antonio for Christmas 2008 - Solo Ride
TX only

Blue Ridge Parkway & Skyline Drive
Canada Maritime Provinces
New England
Summer 2009
US: AR, TN, NC, VA, WV, MD, PA, NY, VT, NH, MA, MS, CT, NJ
CA: QC, NB, PEI, NS, NL

Big Bend for Christmas 2008
TX only

Big Bend with Lone Star Riders March 2010
TX only

Texas Rally April 2010 - Solo Ride
TX only

Treasures of Yosemite in California May 2010 - Solo Ride
NM, AZ, NV, CA, UT, CO

Ride to Vermont and Quebec August 2010 - Solo Ride
US: AR, TN, KY, IN, OH, PA, NY, VT
CA: QC, ON