From the July 14, 1997 issue of "The Beemer"
The official newsletter of the BMW Motorcycle Club of Nashville.
Editor - Buddy Burnett (Buddybur@bellsouth.net)
Gathering Speed
David Braun contacted me by email a few weeks ago and asked me if I would care to review his new book for the BMW Club Newsletter, titled "Gathering Speed - Tales of Motorcycles and Life." His web page URL was included in the message, so I checked in and was able to read several chapters of the book which were posted. I was hooked. [Actually there are several Tales, not chapters. - db]
For those of you that don't know David Braun (aka Flash), he was one of the founding fathers and charter members of the BMW Club of Nashville and of late Denizens of Doom Internet Motorcycle Riders group. I can only reason I haven't made his acquaintance before because he moved to Nashville about the time I moved to Memphis to go to school. He moved later from Nashville to Fort Collins, Colorado about the time I bought my first BMW.
The book recounts tales from Flash's life as a lifelong motocyclist with a few other interesting tales thrown in. Much of the book addresses the time spent in Nashville, so I am on a familiar basis with many of the names and places mentioned. The Goldrush Restaurant and Hillsboro Village area was a jump off point for the motorcycle counter culture during this time frame, and it's interesting to read his perspective.
I'm jealous. I suffer from that adage of the sixties that if you really were there, your probably can't remember any of it. Flash either has an excellent memory or was taking time to write and photograph the events as they were occuring. The stories and pictures range from travels in Europe and the Isle of Man Race to one chapter which recounts the 1981 MOA National Rally at the Loretta Lynn Ranch in Tennessee.
The book is well written, although disjointed, with frequent breaks in chronology, but sometimes that's the way life is lived. The character descriptions and events will hold the attention even of non-riders. Of course if you have any interest whatsoever in motorcycling, especially BMW motorcycles, you'll want to read this book.
[Return to main page for ordering info... - db]