What was your first motorcycle?
Brad: Mine was a 1962 Allstate Moped painted green. I was 12 years old.
Cinda: Mine was a 1972 Honda SL125. Brad and I would go out in the neighborhood as I learned to ride. I stalled it many times but finally got good at kick starting the bike, which came in handy when I started trail riding a Honda XR185. I attribute my good riding skills to riding in the dirt, over obstacles and different surfaces, such good experience. In 1974 Brad gave me a red Honda CB400F, complete with a pink bow, for Christmas!
Current motorcycles?
Brad: My current street bike is a 2023 Honda NC750X DCT. A Kawasaki KLX400 is my off-road bike.
Cinda: My current bike is a 2022 Honda CB500X in Earth Green. This is the bike to which I have downsized. It’s very light weight, has a nice seating position, good protective windscreen, and adequate power. The Honda is quite a change from the BMW R 1200 ST that I put 80,000 miles on. I loved that BMW, great power, and torque. But it was time to move to a lighter motorcycle.
What is your all-time favorite motorcycle?
Brad: My 1969 Honda CB750 had the biggest impact on my motorcycling future. It had four exhaust pipes and sounded unlike any other motorcycle at that time. Riding it was great fun.
Cinda: So many bikes! I loved the Honda Interceptors, 500 and 750, great V4 motors. Also, the Honda Pacific Coast. American Honda loaned a red PC800 to me for a year, then we purchased it at a good price. I put 60,000 miles on the PC800 before moving onto BMW motorcycles.
How long have you been riding?
Brad: I’ve been riding motorcycles for 61 years.
Cinda: I have been riding motorcycles for 50+ years! Goodness!
When did you join the MSTA?
Both: We joined the club in November 1987.
How did you hear about the MSTA?
Both: Our good friend Gary Christopher, Senior Manager at American Honda, said we would enjoy this great group of like-minded people. He was correct. Many of our lifelong friends have come from this group.
Who or what was your biggest influence in motorcycling?
Brad: When I was 3 years old, my Uncle Ted of Bloomington, Indiana, owned an Indian Scout. He would take me for short rides with me sitting on the gas tank and holding onto the handlebars. I loved it!
Cinda: Brad, my husband, always encouraging me to ride new bikes or climb that big hill or ride through any kind of weather. “You can do it Cinda!”
Where are your favorite places to ride?
Brad: Texas and Colorado. Some of the best rides where to the Christy Lodge in Avon, Colorado, that our good friend / club member, Lynn Weis, organized.
Cinda: Texas Hill Country. I love chasing Brad through the Texas countryside.
Describe a memorable motorcycle adventure?
Brad: In the early 1980s Honda of Japan sent a couple (Makoto and Naoko Aoki) to the USA to learn about American motorcycle riders and what they like in a machine. The couple were based in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and we became close friends with them. We took them many places and did many different sports together; snow skiing, water skiing, and lots of motorcycle riding. (Makoto even entered the three of us in a six-hour endurance race at Texas World Speedway. We were “endurance testing” a CB650SC for Honda.) The Aokis were eventually transferred to American Honda in Torrance, California. One day Makoto called and offered us a Gold Wing to ride up the Pacific Coast Highway to Oregon and back. So, we did! Highlights included the Pacific Ocean, Grants Pass, Crater Lake, and Lake Shasta. Beautiful scenery, fabulous trip, however we had to ride two up, something new for us. No problem. Throughout the trip, Cinda and I traded off riding in the front seat and riding as the passenger. We had a great time!
Cinda: I rode a Honda XL250 on an AMA Dual Sport 2-day Adventure Ride. We started on the coast in Los Angeles and rode to Barstow, California, the first day. The second day we rode to Las Vegas, Nevada. Our last checkpoint was in a casinos on the strip. It was very cold and our stops were quick! We snacked on dried apricots and nuts along the way. At the end of our adventure, we were loading the bikes on the trailer in Las Vegas, to head home. One of us found an apricot in our pocket and believe it or not, we fought over that apricot!
What is the best motorcycle advice or tip learned through the years?
Brad: Motorcycling has never been better than right now. The motorcycles, the riding apparel, places to ride, and access to people to ride with, are readily available. So, just get out and ride!
Cinda: Making ourselves more visible is important. Using Hi Viz clothing and additional lights makes one more visible day or night. We have added Cardo communicators to our helmets and they are awesome.
What turns you on about motorcycles or riding?
Both: We really love going on road trips, riding all day, spending the night somewhere, then getting up the next day and doing it all again.
What do you get out of your MSTA membership?
Brad: I like seeing different areas of the country. The MSTA events are always so well planned and often in some location we haven’t visited previously.
Cinda: Many of our friends and “family” are from the MSTA.
What are your hobbies and interests outside of motorcycling?
Brad: We live on a lake. I enjoy the lake life. I also volunteer on our Lake Palo Pinto Fire Department.
Cinda: I serve on the board of our Palo Pinto County Historical Commission. This county is where James Loving and Charles Goodnight lived and started the Goodnight-Loving cattle drive in 1866. This was made famous by the Lonesome Dove TV series. I also serve on the Auxiliary for our Lake Palo Pinto Fire Department.