In 1903, George A. Wyman left San Francisco on his California motor bicycle, with the hopes of becoming the first person to cross the country with a motor vehicle.
In 2016, I left San Francisco with the goal of following Wyman’s tire tracks while riding a Zero DSR electric motorcycle. Afterwards, I wrote a five-part series of stories for RoadRUNNER Magazine, interleaving my experience crossing the country with Wyman’s, and gave presentations at motorcycle rallies. The story was very well received and I set upon writing a longer form book about the trip.
Several years and tens of thousands of words later, I lost steam. But I’m back, now on Substack, and with a new resolve to tell Wyman’s story. He’s been lost to history - a pioneer forgotten by time and forgotten by his own motorcycle community. But I have his photos and my photos, his story and mine, and now this platform to share it.
Subscribe and come along for the ride.
I’m catching up on all your stuff today, John. This was a great read in RoadRunner when it came out. I became a subscriber when I met the family at the Knoxville TN edition of the Honda Hoot many years back. Our local BMW club had a booth doing map distribution and local riding tips.