Peace, Love, & Eagles: A Motorcycle Ride to Freedom

Freedom takes many forms, but rarely is it as beautifully illustrated as when a beautiful Bald Eagle decides to share your journey. Riding through the expansive high plains of southern Wyoming, where the sky stretches endlessly and human presence fades away, I encountered something truly extraordinary – a curious bald eagle who chose to follow me for miles.

Standing on my pegs, cruising at a modest 30 mph along the dirt roads near the Colorado-Wyoming border, I first spotted this magnificent creature perched atop a pine tree. As I passed by, trying not to disturb its solitude, something unexpected happened. The eagle took flight and began following me, soaring about a hundred feet above my right shoulder against the brilliant blue sky. For five remarkable miles, we shared the landscape – a rider on his steel horse and the king of the skies, both experiencing the same freedom in our own ways.

This encounter resonated deeply with Steve Miller's iconic "Fly Like an Eagle." The song speaks of personal revolution, of breaking free from constraints – exactly what motorcycling represents for so many of us. When we ride, we shed anxieties and expectations, declaring our independence from the mundane. We experience transformation with every mile. The eagle seemed to understand this, swooping down as if to communicate a profound truth: that out there, away from the noise and busyness of modern life, we can find perfect presence. We can learn to live for today, to simply fly and be free.

Next time you're on your bike, whether navigating busy streets or remote trails, remember to slow down occasionally. Stand on your pegs. Take in the world around you. You never know what magic awaits – perhaps your own eagle, ready to teach you something about freedom, connection, and the incredible perspective that belongs uniquely to those of us on two wheels. Share your own magical riding moments and leave a review on Apple Podcasts to help others discover these stories of peace, love, and the special freedom that comes with motorcycling.

Steve Miller Band “Fly like an Eagle”

Episode Transcript

Ron (00:05):
I saw him up ahead.
I prepared to pass him slowly,not to draw his attention, not
to disturb him.
I rode by and I could see himvery clearly watching me.
Yeah, he saw me.
Then, just as I passed him, hestarted to follow me.

(00:26):
Most definitely he wasfollowing me, so I just kept
riding at a slow pace.
No need to worry, I don't thinkI just told myself that, he's
just curious.
He continued to follow me forthe next 10 minutes or so as I

(00:47):
rode east.
I glanced back and didn't seehim one time.
Then, a moment later, heswooped down right in front of
me.
He was beautiful and maybe hehad something to teach me.
And he did Curious, stay tuned.

(01:20):
Recorded in beautiful Loveland,colorado.
Welcome to Peace, love Moto,the podcast for motorcyclists
seeking that peaceful, easyfeeling as we cruise through
this life together.
Are you ready?
Let's go?
Well, maybe you picked up on it, but that was the Steve Miller

(01:55):
Band playing their iconic songFly Like an Eagle, like an eagle
.
Yeah, the lyrics of that songare so evocative, I think, and
they really resonate too, Ithink, with the motorcycling
experience, at least theexperiences that I've had.

(02:16):
So yeah, it was an eagle.
So let me fill in a few blanks.
So I was out on my bike, as Inormally am as often as I can,
riding the high plains ofsouthern Wyoming, a place where
the sky just feels bigger andthe world feels more empty, but

(02:40):
in the best possible way.
But in the best possible way.
I was on a slow, deliberateride on the many dirt roads that
follow the Colorado-Wyomingborder.
If you find Vita Woo on theWyoming map, you look straight
south of that and this massiveexpanse of open space.
That's where I was essentially.

(03:01):
So I'd been out there for about10 miles originally, turning
off of highway 287, getting onthe dirt roads, deflating my
tires a little bit, and I hadn'tseen another vehicle in at
least 10 miles.
Not a single vehicle.
It was just me and this vastopen land, open land, and that

(03:30):
was awesome.
And then I saw it this amazinghuge bald eagle that was on top
of a pine tree and honestlythat's a bit of a rare sight in
this area, because usually youfind bald eagles around here
near to large bodies of watersor lakes and rivers.
Sometimes they love the fish,right.
But no, he was out therehanging out on the high plains

(03:51):
and I slowed down as Iapproached him so I just didn't
want to scare him, but he justtook flight anyway and I swear,
as I rode by, that eagle startedfollowing me.
He climbed and then he startedfollowing me.
It was so cool.
He was just curious.

(04:13):
I guess I was only going about30 miles an hour.
Yeah, this is dirt roads andloose gravel out there, so you
go kind of slow, standing in thepegs most of the time, and for
the next five miles or so thateagle just stayed right with me.
I can picture it now.
He was flying over my rightshoulder, maybe a hundred feet
up, just silent, this majesticshadow against this endless blue

(04:41):
sky.
It was completely amazing.
I felt like it was a sharedmoment, as if we were both just
out there, a rider on his steelhorse and the king of the skies
enjoying the same freedom inthis beautiful, beautiful

(05:05):
landscape.
Then, as I mentioned, heswooped down to get a better
look at me.
It kind of scared me at first.
It was like wow, really he wasjust curious, I know it just
felt like though he was tryingto tell me something, sharing a

(05:25):
secret.
Am I reading too much into this?
I don't think so, becausethat's how I felt at the time.
Maybe it was about the pure,uninhibited freedom it feels to
soar over that great big expanseout there.
And maybe, just maybe, he wastelling me I'm glad you joined

(05:49):
me out here today For taking tothe open road and experiencing
the same spirit of flight that Ifeel about 100 feet above you.
It was a moment for me.
I felt like I was in sync withthis eagle.
It was like this connection Ifelt between me, my machine and

(06:11):
God's wonderful nature.
It was a peace, love, moto timewhere I found peace of mind
right then and I still feel itnow.
My wife and I saw Steve Millerin concert some years ago I

(06:35):
think we were in Michigan at thetime and he played Fly Like an
Eagle.
As you might expect, the lyricsof that song are like a calling,
maybe, to be something greater,a calling to feel freedom while
also having compassion for thisvery hurting and confused world

(06:57):
.
The lyrics say, for example Iwant to fly like an eagle until
I'm free.
Oh Lord, through the revolution.
Fly like an eagle, let myspirit carry me.
Then part of the lyrics talkabout through the revolution.
Right, that phrase kind ofsticks with me too.

(07:18):
It's not just about a politicalupheaval, which we seem to be
surrounded with these days, butit's about this personal
revolution that he's talkingabout.
Experiencing the transformationmay be that we undergo when we
shed our anxieties as best wecan, and many of us do that by

(07:39):
just hopping on our motorcycleand going for a ride.
For many of us, motorcycling isthat revolution.
It's this radical act ofself-care that's the way it is
for me A declaration ofindependence.
We're out on our own, we'redependent upon ourselves and

(08:00):
we're just out there.
We're breaking free from themundane, from the expectations
of others sometimes, andnothing's going to hold us back
when we're out on our ride.
Of course, we have to watch outfor ourselves, because we have
loved ones who depend on us andwho love us, but there are times

(08:21):
we just have to break free forjust a little while and just be
free.
Well, we have another weekendahead and I know I'll be heading
out to that same area soonenough and I'll most certainly
be looking for my new friend,that beautiful bald eagle, out

(08:43):
there.
Well, I'll just begin to wrapup with this.
While I love riding mymotorcycle most anywhere riding
in remote places yeah, maybeyou've picked up on this that's
my favorite Riding throughMonument Valley, for example.
Fantastic roads and views whereyou can really feel some

(09:03):
solitude out there, lonely roadswhere, frankly, I don't feel
alone at all.
It's where I'll ride fast if Iwant to go fast, and I'll ride

(09:28):
slow and stand on the pegs whenI just want to take it all in
See, riding on a dirt road, itrequires us generally to ride a
little bit slower, depending onthe bike that you're on.
You may be able to ride fast onthe dirt, which is most
certainly true and fun, butthere is a time for going slow,

(09:55):
no-transcript Everything aroundme, taking it in, opening my
eyes to see the next eagle.
I'm convinced that had I notbeen going slow, without
distractions, I surely wouldhave not seen it following me,
seen it up ahead.
I would have never heard what Ithink the eagle was trying to

(10:18):
tell me, because this is what Ithink he said.
I think he was trying to tellme that out there, away from the
busyness of the world, awayfrom the traffic, away from
apartment houses, just space,the world is really, really good

(10:38):
.
He was saying maybe welcome tomy world, where I don't think
about yesterday or I don't thinkabout tomorrow.
I just live for the day and Ifly.

(10:59):
So next time, when you're out onyour bike, even if you're just
dreaming about your next ride,maybe let the words to fly like
an eagle by Steve Miller.
Maybe listen to that.
Listen to the words, let yourspirit soar, embrace the freedom
, the journey and the incredibleperspective that is so unique

(11:22):
to us on Two Wheels, as always.
Thank you so much for joiningme.
If you like the podcast andwould care to leave a review,
especially on Apple Podcasts, areview would be awesome.
Thank you very much in advancefor doing that.
Until we meet again, I wish youpeace and I wish you love.

(11:43):
Let my spirit carry me on,carry me on From three Right

(12:07):
through the revolution.