The Conjurer

'54 TRI BONNY

Tickle the carbs until they're wet and the juice trickles down the side. Pull the clutch in and slowly prime the kick starter with an easy up and back motion. Listen to the clicking of the spring on the return, like the roulette wheel on the Big Spin. Release the clutch. Feel the breeze off of the ocean, the calm of the sky. Offer yourself to the gods. Take a deep breath and throw your chest up towards the heavens....

And then SLAM that kick starter straight to hell, wrench back the throttle and scream with the roar of the engine. Your past has tumbled off your back, perplexed and disoriented, not able to catch up. Stomp on the gear shift lever, the tires spin, and the frame is twisted in the backdraft of torque, kick it down again, hugging the road, take it into a turn, motor hums, toe up the gear, twist the throttle, the bike lunges forward, toe up, toe up, single mind-forward, squirm up on the seat, into the wind, crawl up to the tank, place your heart against it, feel the vibration, the heat of the engine and that wild wind, and the succulent desire to fly faster than gravity.