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Motorcycling Get Rich Quick Schemes
Blog Date - 19 April 2018
In my recent post (Riding A Motorcycle For A Living)I talked about jobs that involve riding a motorcycle. I have often wondered if there's another way to make a living out of my hobby.
Sharon and I first attended the Manchester Bike Show with the Chunky Tread bunch waaaay back in 2015. Yeah, that seems like a long long time ago. The idea from our point of view was to promote the website. After the bike show we'd be famous, advertising money would pour in along with sponsorships and we'd both quit our day jobs to become motorcycling gurus.
This time next week sweetie we'll be millionaires!
At that event we met with Bernard Smith and Graham Field. Both these gentlemen have ridden their motorcycles to very far flung places and now have books to sell. Maybe this could be our future? We'd travel and write books then do shows to promote the book then sell books and earn enough money to do another trip to write another book to sell at shows. We'd repeat this then retire wealthy.
Then...then we get speaking to Bernard and Graham. Over the next 3 years we'd also meet several other well known motorcycle travel writers such as Sam Manicom and Derek Mansfield. It seems my cunning and devious plan is every bit as flawed as any that Black Adder came up with.
There is money to be made by writing and publishing a motorcycle travel book. However - unless you are going to be massive seller such as JK Rowling or Stephen King then at best you can perhaps make a meager living if you work very hard. Typically it seems most of those I've spoken to merely supplement other incomes. Motorcycle travel books are definitely not a get rich quick scheme.
Sorry Sharon, it's camping in the rain not luxurious hotels in hot countries.
I'm sure there are a few exceptions. I'd be curious to know how much Robert Pirsig made from Zen And The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance. That said Zen is actually a book on philosophy, the motorcycling part is merely a means to express some of the notions in the book. I don't doubt Ewan and Charlie's Long Way series of films made a few quid but Ewan was already famous, making sales a lot easier.
While the website ticks along quite nicely we barely make enough money to pay for the website hosting. I'm not entirely sure we've done anything radical enough to warrant publishing a book. I can see my dreams fading before my very eyes.
Dammit. It looks like I'll have to go and pretend to be some kind of computer nerd.
I could write a motorcyclist's guide to North West England? "... discover a world of run-down has-been towns, deprivation and drug abuse, traffic jams and potholes, rain and wind all brought together under a plethora of inaudible accents and lard laden food. This will be an adventure to forget." Hmmmmm...maybe I should start a tour company?
Ren's Tours! After a day with Ren everything else will seem magnificent!
Reading that I reckon I'm onto something here. Unless of course someone wants to sponsor me to travel around the globe with no real hope of a return on their investment?
Seriously! For the price of a brew and a kit-kat Ren will take you to a greasy spoon cafe - hell it might even be somewhere nice! (Probably not...) Contact ren@bikesandtravels.com
Reader's Comments
Bob said :-
I spent a whole 2 days as a dispatch rider!
I thought it was a good way to earn money with my bike but quickly realised it was a good way to ruin my bike. I couldn't have afforded to replace it or make any significant repairs and the distances I had to cover at the speed I had to maintain was more than the old girl (a Honda 400/4) could cope with.
I know a few people who make money out of bikes and they all buy and sell vintage bikes. The money in vintage bikes outweighs any possible utility these machines may have (or indeed ever had), it's driven by retired men wanting to relive their youth so there is good profit to be made if you can play on that.
23/04/2018 10:01:19 UTC
Ren - The Ed said :-
The problem I'd have with vintage motorcycles is I have absolutely no idea about them - I'm sure Mr Soady would agree.
23/04/2018 15:07:47 UTC
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