Whether you?ve been riding together for years or share the road for just one day, the bond between riders always feels like family. (Photos by the author)

My obsession with the White Mountains and Kancamagus Highway in New Hampshire began nearly a year before I rode the famous route. I?d been testing BMW?s K 1600 B on a late-season ride on Vermont Route 100, just tootling along with all the Subarus, when I saw a guy on the side of the road standing atop an aged custom Harley, waving.

Curiosity got the best of me, so I swung the bagger around to meet Eric, a local mechanic, who said he was standing on his bike to get people to stop and make a donation for a friend and his wife who were in a motorcycle accident.

Route courtesy of New England Riders (NewEnglandRiders.org)
Scan QR code above to view route on REVER, or click here

This would turn out to be Stanley Lynde and his wife, Laura, owners of Lynde Motorsports in Brattleboro, Vermont. There was an official GoFundMe webpage at the time, but Eric ?didn?t do the internet.?

And his method seemed to work, with several people stopping by as we chatted, offering donations and well wishes. Eric, a veteran motorcyclist and builder who can no longer get out for big rides, was very emotional about the situation. When I asked him if there was something I could do beyond a donation, he promptly said yes, I could ride. Specifically, he requested I head up into the White Mountains and ride his favorite road, the Kancam...