"Chasing The Sun On Two Wheels" (By Marilyn Reno)

Twice around the world by motorcycle. Over 100 countries, 500,000 miles, eight motorcycles and adventure ranging from trying, unsuccessfully, to outrun wild bulls to being jailed for being a "Gringo" in the wrong place at the wrong time. Living a motorcyclist's dream, Dr. Gregory Frazier has literally "traveled to the ends of the earth." The North Cape in Norway has seen him, as has Prudhoe Bay in Alaska. He has left his mark in Africa, Europe, New Zealand, Australia, Central and South America, and all 50 of the United States.

No stranger to danger, this American adventurer has been known to stop his travels to taste some of the local excitement. Often he climbs aboard racing motorcycles and challenges courses such as the road race track of Daytona; the treacherous, blue sky, 180-degree, gravel curves of Pikes Peak; or the dirt track at Sturgis. Holder of a professional motorcycle-racing license, his name can be found in record books having piloted Indian and BMW motorcycles to wins across the United States.

An organizer of events such as The Elephant Ride (world's highest, coldest motorcycle event) and The Big Dog Ride, Frazier likes to combine motorcycling skills with personal fortitude while competing in some of the world's most difficult motorcycling challenges.

Although he is classified as a "professional motorcycle adventurer," he does not confine his thirst for adventure to two-wheel motorized events. An encounter with a rodeo bull once left him with a concussion and dislocated shoulder when he discovered how quickly a crazed, 800-pound cow could make eight seconds seem like an eternity. On another occasion Frazier jumped ("I was pushed!") out of an airplane at 15,000 feet and nearly passed out from screaming for the 60 second, 10,000-foot fall before the parachute opened. He says of his many adventures, "I hate adventure that has anything to do with snakes or sharks."

Frazier has worked as a film producer, event promoter, business executive, fire fighter and field worker. Today he is a well-known journalist and author, his works having appeared throughout the world's motorcycling press. A regular columnist for MOTORCYCLE TOUR AND CRUISER, his technical and travel articles have received high acclaim throughout the motorcycling industry. He has authored nearly a dozen motorcycling books ranging from travel "how-to books" to technical manuals.

An American Indian, Frazier (Indian name "He-Who-Chases-The-Sun," or "Sun Chaser") is one of less than a handful of Americans to have singularly circumnavigated the globe by motorcycle once. His second solo world tour attempt is currently being documented as a mission of incredible proportions or madness, depending on the slant of the media coverage. He saddles responsibility on his Native American heritage for his affliction of wanderlust and thirst for two-wheel adventure.
When not traveling by motorcycle around the world, racing or writing, he resides in the Big Horn Mountains of his native Montana. His hobbies are fishing, photography, economics, reading and he is an antique motorcycle aficionado.
He says of his wild adventures around the world:
"My first global motorcycle ride was an accident. I had been told the Eskimos of Alaska were very nice people, so I rode to the far North in Alaska. Once there I was told I should meet the Maori people of New Zealand, the Natives of Hawaii and the Aborigines of Australia. Next it was the Gypsies of Romania, the Turks, and the Norwegians. Before I knew it I had ridden around the globe. That ride was more like a two-wheel leaf in the wind tour than a planned expedition."

"I suffered from some mistakes the first time around the globe. Once my motorcycle sank to the bottom of a glacial stream after the raft I constructed broke apart. Another time I got myself so stuck I had to dismantle the motorcycle and carry it in pieces across a snowfield. On another occasion my personal life hit a bump in the road, nearly bringing my wonderful disease of wanderlust to an untimely and painful halt."

Of his second global ride he says:

"I missed many parts of the world on my first global ride, like South America. Wanting to experience South America, I made plans for a short, 30,000-mile, six-month ride to the bottom of South America to take a photograph of some other motorcyclists I knew who would be there for a Christmas Meeting in Ushuaia, Argentina. My plan was to start in Alaska and make a North and South American loop. While gazing at my wall map of the world I became slightly depressed knowing my touring would end upon return to North America. I quickly cheered up as I saw the possibility of continuing my ride on to Europe, up to the North Cape, then down to the bottom of Africa, over to Asia, then a short jump to the bottom of New Zealand, and eventually back to the USA. I knew I would ride many new roads, meet more indigenous people of the world and maybe, just maybe, stay ahead of my credit card bills long enough to complete the trip."

"There was also the potential of a special relationship I had been without in my previous solo wanderings around the world. Friends said I thrived on being lonely and I aimlessly traveled to avoid closeness. I argued that solitude mixed with misery created loneliness and I skillfully avoided most misery. I attributed my lone wolf wanderings to survival instincts and well-honed skills. Whatever the reason, the possibility of another global motorcycle ride far surpassed the potential of having to return to the sedate life of a drone or worker bee. I sold my car, some words and, with the help of some great sponsors and a credit card, departed on my second global ride."

(Meeting global circumnavigator Bernarda "Benka" Pulko, on the road in South America, was a cosmic experience. Each like a leaf in the wind, we metaphysically collided, riding motorcycles in opposite directions around the earth. It was not our only dynamic interaction as we continued to float around the globe mutually pursuing dreams and goals.)

"Some global motorcycle travelers adventure through planning and execution. Others merely experience an extended vacation. One hundred years ago, because I am an Indian with wanderlust, I would have been roaming the earth on a horse. Today I wander the globe on two wheels. For me, adventure is the liberty of motion through the wind. While I relish walking in moon shadows and listening to the whisper of stars at the ends of the earth, my lust is for the freedom and speed by which I get there."