Customer Reviews

Motorcycle Journeys Through Texas (Motorcycle Journeys)

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If your riding style is sport motorcycles and twisty roads of the Hill Country or if you prefer dual sport in the Big Bend region this book may be for you. However, if you prefer long rides either solo or with a passenger, consider this. According to Mr Davis, "You'll notice that most of the rides I recommend are located in the southern two-thirds of the state. This is because that is where the good riding is. The roads in the northern one-third tend to be flat, straight and boring" (page 211). This book neglects a vast portion of our great state, namely anything north or west of Dallas, also the I-35 corridor north of Austin. There is no mention of the "North Texas Hill Country" of any of the beautiful open roads of the low rolling planes, high planes or the panhandle, except for one ride around Palo Duro Canyon about 20 miles long. I'm sorry this individual failed to cover the whole state in his research of roads to ride. He really needs to venture more to the north and out west. After all we have wonderful farm to market roads all over this state, they are not limited to certain regions. Hopefully Mr. Davis will continue to explore other regions of Texas and will include them in any future editions. With this in mind, and as a resident who lives just north of Dallas; I cannot recomend this book as a good source for riders in Texas. I would like to recomend a regionl magazine, Ride Texas. This is a wonderful bi-monthly publication, covering the ENTIRE state.

I've read this work cover to cover twice already. Not because I didn't understand the first time, but because it's an enjoyable read. Furthermore, I discovered some very interesting rides and particulars about others that I would have missed. I've spider-webbed most all the roads in Hill Country and agree with the author's description of this area. I've followed several of the routes noted in this work and one just leads me to the next. If you're looking to motorcycle around Texas, you'll not be wasting your time reading Motorcycle Journeys Through Texas.

This is a fair book for non-Texans or for people who have never ventured outside the DFW Metroplex or Houston. However, some of the facts and spellings in the book are not accurate. For example:

1- The word, "Texas" is not derived from the "Tejas Indians." Rather, it's taken from a Caddo Indian word meaning "friends."
2- The author repeatedly misspells "New Braunfels" by writing, "New Braunsfels," which is a common mispronunciation of the city's name.
3- German is NOT the primary language of the residents of Fredericksburg.

There are a few other assertions and and phrases in the book which will immediately alert native Texans to the fact that this book was written by a non-Texan. No offense is intended to the author but I sincerely wish that non-Texans would do their homework and conduct more fact-checking before they write about our state. Too often, tourist-kitsch is regurgitated in guidebooks and accepted as fact. This is a problem with guidebooks of all types and is certainly not isolated to those about Texas. It's just that when one reads exaggerations and/or misstatements about one's home state, it's hard not to take it personally. There's plenty of good culture, heritage, food, and sights available in Texas without needing to resort to stereotypes or exaggerated Texana.

Most of the rides listed in this book are commonly known to the majority of motorcycling Texans and can be found on various internet sources. I would like to see an updated version of this book covering some of the lesser-known roads in the Trans-Pecos area and the smaller roads around Sonora, Ozona, Sheffield, Junction, etc. None of these roads are mentioned. Unfortunately, there is also no mention of the roads near Strawn, Mineral Wells, Thurber, or Stephenville. Finally, the photos are black-and-white, which detracts from the beauty and scenery available to motorcyclists.

This was an interesting read. I am moving to TX soon and wanted some insite as to what I would be getting into for ridding my scoot. I will update the review once I try out a few of the routes in the book, but it was well written and included a fair amount of history for the different areas. If anything could have been better, it would have been accomidations (inns/eateries) but these are hard to keep current and everyone has there own preferences...
Great book so far!

So far, of all the books I've bought for this purpose, this has been the most informative. Well worth it.