Rogue Zulu Nation

It has been almost a year since I took my motorcycle camping adventure across country from Birmingham to New Mexico, and life has been a whirlwind since then. If you had told me back in 2002 that I would have a host of fans across an entire state that either lived vicariously through my motorcycle adventures or were willing to travel across a state to ride with me I would have laughed uncontrollably.

20 years and over 100,000 miles later and almost everywhere I go I’m beginning to be recognized upon sight at biker events, bars and clubs. It’s a cool yet unnerving feeling because I’ve always been a loner. Everybody has their own opinion about what is the best kind of motorcycle to ride to what is the best club to be a part of. I respect everyone’s opinion and beliefs but I also have a mind of my own. I’m sure by now you’ve read the title of this post and you may be thinking that I’m trying to start up my own motorcycle club–If you’re thinking that you’re wrong.

I’ve ridden for decades but I never became a member of a motorcycle club whether it be outlaw bikers, a motorcycle club or a riders club mainly because I didn’t want to get caught up in all of the drama. Life is already full of laws and rules, why be a part of yet another organization that will require a whole new list of rules and laws to follow? Now don’t get me wrong, I have biker friends of all backgrounds and we all respect each other for the choices we’ve made in living the biker life.

When I decided last year to finally start filming and taking pictures of my rides it didn’t dawn on me until I started to realize a couple months ago that almost every weekend was scheduled to either lead a ride or ride with someone else. It got to a point where Jay began to wonder if I was going to put more time into being a biker than spending time with her. Being mindful of that I quickly changed up the pace and spent more time with the love of my life. Let’s get one other thing straight too–When I started this whole blogging thing again I based this blog on Howard-to-Howard. All subject matter would be centered around Jay and I building a new life together and sharing our experiences, so my relationship comes first and foremost.

With that being said, I’ve had to learn how to create a careful balance between the biker life and Jay. It’s more complicated than it sounds. Jay’s schedule consists of a plethora of responsibilities professionally as an event coordinator well as in running her own cosmetics business. My life is just as busy with working on the National Guard side at three different locations and two different states and working as an educator on the civilian side. With balancing so many obligations also comes countless social engagements. Somewhere peppered in between is the much needed quality time a relationship needs in order to flourish.

So, no I’m not trying to start a motorcycle club nor do I have any aspirations to be in one. I would be more than happy to support my friends nevertheless. Rogue Zulu Nation is at least for this moment just the title of this blogpost. At least in the capacity of blogging and making any future YouTube videos whether riding alone or in a group I will discontinue my name as Fifth Gear Foodie and undergo the name of my own blog: Rogue Zulu.