Overview

There are millions of new motorcyclists hitting the blacktop every year. But being part of the American motorcycle culture takes more than just wanting to be cool. It takes a passion for the open road, freedom, and a lifestyle that even the best financing cant buy. This book, by someone who knows motorcycles as few do, provides a road map to biker culture for anyone new to the experience. Jay Barbieri explains everything a new rider needs to know to become a real biker. He begins with a brief history of motorcycles, and draws on his twenty-five years of riding experience for examples of what works and doesn't in this heady world. Most of all, he aims to spare new bikers the bad decisions neophytes typically make. With hundreds of motorcycle trips under his belt, there is not a mistake Barbieri hasn't made or a situation he hasn't encountered. By sharing the sometimes comical outcomes, he gives the new biker a head start to become more comfortable, credible, and knowledgeable about joining a community that is as much a part of American culture as baseball, hotdogs and apple pie.

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9780760332108

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Reviews

New York Daily News, Dec. 23. 2007 <br> Nydailynews.com, Dec. 22, 2007 <br> For anyone who wants to take to the open road, these tips should save you some of the pain of learning from your mistakes. <br> Petersen.org, October 2007 <br> With sometimes comical anecdotes from his 25 years of riding experience, Biker's Handbook is full of useful tips on how to be part of the fun in the American motorcycle culture. <br> Motorcycle-USA.com <br> Readers are provided a sound foundation of dos and don'ts between vignettes of moto history ... What helps bring Barbieri's work to life are the abundant black and white photos. It was a smart move to give the reader a visual foundation of the friends and faces and places that have helped shape his past. They add validity to his stories. Toss in tons of cartoons and caricatures of him and his buddies in different predicaments and you've got a book that is visually entertaining and fun to read. <br>

Advance praise: Just about everybody in the V-twin motorcycle aftermarket knows Jay Barbieri. Besides being a TV producer for American Thunder on SPEED Channel, Jay is genuinely into motorcycles. What you may not know if that Jay has a very quick wit and a great, though twisted sense of humor. He puts his many years of riding experience and a good dollop of that sense of humor to work in his Biker's Handbook: Becoming Part of the Motorcycle Culture. If you are new to the two-wheeled lifestyle, do what Jay tells you and you'll be fine. If you're already a biker, you'll laugh your butt off because Jay's accounts of the good, bad and ugly experiences of living the lifestyle ring hilariously true. Dave Nichols, editor of Easyriders and V-Twin magazines --- New York Daily News, Dec. 23. 2007 Nydailynews.com, Dec. 22, 2007 For anyone who wants to take to the open road, these tips should save you some of the pain of learning from your mistakes. Petersen.org, October 2007 With sometimes comical anecdotes from his 25 years of riding experience, Biker's Handbook is full of useful tips on how to be part of the fun in the American motorcycle culture. Motorcycle-USA.com Readers are provided a sound foundation of dos and don'ts between vignettes of moto history ... What helps bring Barbieri's work to life are the abundant black and white photos. It was a smart move to give the reader a visual foundation of the friends and faces and places that have helped shape his past. They add validity to his stories. Toss in tons of cartoons and caricatures of him and his buddies in different predicaments and you've got a book that is visually entertaining and fun to read. --- Having worked and partied with Jay for the last few years, I can attest to the fact that he's a crazy bastard. As for his book, I heartily recommend it. It's a great read, being both informative and entertaining. In his own free-wheeling way, Jay tells you what you need to know about bike events and the motorcycle subculture to fit right in and enjoy the ride. Definitely read it with a cold one at hand, in a place where you can laugh as loud as you want. Chris Maida, editor of American Iron Magazine Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nov. 18, 2007 JSOnline.com(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), Nov. 19, 2007 Even excluding the cheesecake picture of Michele Smith ... bike enthusiasts will enjoy paging through the handbook. ---

Having worked and partied with Jay for the last few years, I can attest to the fact that he's a crazy bastard. As for his book, I heartily recommend it. It's a great read, being both informative and entertaining. In his own free-wheeling way, Jay tells you what you need to know about bike events and the motorcycle subculture to fit right in and enjoy the ride. Definitely read it with a cold one at hand, in a place where you can laugh as loud as you want. Chris Maida, editor of American Iron Magazine Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nov. 18, 2007JSOnline.com(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), Nov. 19, 2007 Even excluding the cheesecake picture of Michele Smith ... bike enthusiasts will enjoy paging through the handbook.

Having worked and partied with Jay for the last few years, I can attest to the fact that he's a crazy bastard. As for his book, I heartily recommend it. It's a great read, being both informative and entertaining. In his own free-wheeling way, Jay tells you what you need to know about bike events and the motorcycle subculture to fit right in and enjoy the ride. Definitely read it with a cold one at hand, in a place where you can laugh as loud as you want. <br>Chris Maida, editor of American Iron Magazine <br>Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nov. 18, 2007JSOnline.com(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), Nov. 19, 2007 Even excluding the cheesecake picture of Michele Smith ... bike enthusiasts will enjoy paging through the handbook.

Having worked and partied with Jay for the last few years, I can attest to the fact that he's a crazy bastard. As for his book, I heartily recommend it. It's a great read, being both informative and entertaining. In his own free-wheeling way, Jay tells you what you need to know about bike events and the motorcycle subculture to fit right in and enjoy the ride. Definitely read it with a cold one at hand, in a place where you can laugh as loud as you want. <br>Chris Maida, editor of American Iron Magazine<br><br>Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nov. 18, 2007JSOnline.com(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), Nov. 19, 2007 Even excluding the cheesecake picture of Michele Smith ... bike enthusiasts will enjoy paging through the handbook.

Author Information

When I was four years old, I remember waking up one evening to the sound of the motorcycles. When I looked out my window, I saw my uncle and a few friends sitting on their bikes. I was so excited I rushed out of my room and into the front yard. The next thing I remember was sitting on the gas tank and hanging onto handlebars. As I rode around the block, I could feel the warm air rush against my face. The smell of the gas and oil was intoxicating and the rumble from the pipes was awesome! That night I fell in love with motorcycles. But not just any motorcycles -- American-made Harley-Davidsons. Twelve years later I got my motorcycle license and six years after that I owned my first Harley.--Jay BarbieriBorn and raised in Stratford, Connecticut, Barbieri graduated from the Paier College of Art in New Haven with a B.F.A in Fine Arts (1986), the same year he bought his first Harley-Davidson. For the next ten years, Barbieri worked in the music industry, where his most public and noteworthy triumph was his involvement with CHANT, the most successful classical-pop crossover album in music history. During these years, his obsession with American motorcycles grew so much that he partnered with a biker friend from Traverse City, Michigan to open a custom motorcycle shop called Old Mission Scooters.In 1996 Barbieri struck out on his own to found the first Internet recording label, J-Bird Music Group. In 2001 he sold his interest in J-Bird and moved to California to pursue his dream of combining his passion for motorcycles with the entertainment industry. In 2004 Barbieri was at the helm of SPEED Channel's highest-rated and longest running motorcycle magazine show, American Thunder.Since he got his first Harley in 1986, Barbieri has racked up over two hundred and fifty thousand miles on two wheels and has attended Daytona Bike Week and Sturgis over twenty times combined. He has had the opportunity to ride with and meet other bikers such as Jay Leno, Tim McGraw, Big Kenny from Big and Rich, Eddie Montgomery and Troy Gentry from Montgomery Gentry, Vince Neal of Motley Cru00fce, Rick Allen of Def Leppard, Neal Schone from Journey and NASCAR driver Greg Biffle, to name a few.Born and raised in Stratford, Connecticut, Jay Barbieri graduated from the Paier College of Art in New Haven with a B.F.A in Fine Arts (1986), the same year he bought his first Harley-Davidson. For the next ten years, Barbieri worked in the music industry, where his most public and noteworthy triumph was his involvement with u201cCHANT,u201d the most successful classical-pop crossover album in music history. During these years, his obsession with American motorcycles grew so much that he partnered with a biker friend from Traverse City, Michigan to open a custom motorcycle shop called Old Mission Scooters. In 1996 Barbieri struck out on his own to found the first Internet recording label, J-Bird Music Group. In 2001 he sold his interest in J-Bird and moved to California to pursue his dream of combining his passion for motorcycles with the entertainment industry. In 2004 Barbieri was at the helm of SPEED Channelu2019s highest-rated and longest running motorcycle magazine show, American Thunder. Since he got his first Harley in 1986, Barbieri has racked up over two hundred and fifty thousand miles on two wheels and has attended Daytona Bike Week and Sturgis over twenty times combined. He has had the opportunity to ride with and meet other bikers such as Jay Leno, Tim McGraw, Big Kenny from Big and Rich, Eddie Montgomery and Troy Gentry from Montgomery Gentry, Vince Neal of Motley Cru00fce, Rick Allen of Def Leppard, Neal Schone from Journey and NASCAR driver Greg Biffle, to name a few.

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