Breaking the Limit: One Woman's Motorcycle Journey Through North America

by Karen Larsen

Book Overview

Breaking the Limit is one woman's account of riding her motorcycle from New Jersey to Alaska and back. Realizing that years of work and travel in other people's countries made her a stranger in her own, and with an invitation to meet her biological father for the first time, Karen Larsen set out on a fifteen-thousand-mile trip with nothing but her motorcycle and the barest of essentials.

Larsen's journey tests the limits of her own endurance,...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0786868708
• ISBN13: 9780786868704
• Release Date: July 2004
• Publisher: Hachette Books
• Length: 358 Pages
• Weight: 1.37 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.3" x 9.2"
• Age Range: 18 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Postsecondary to Grade 12

Customer Reviews

Amazing endurance

What an incredible read by an amazing woman. The book is intelligently written, including bits of history in her descriptions of areas traveled and her encounters with strangers. I also ride a "SPORTY" and men are amazed that I have ridden over 10,000 miles on it, much less a "short distance" trip of 450 miles in one day. I am in complete awe that this women did it on a model that was not rubber mounted as is mine. Have shared excerpts with my husband and he is interested in reading the book also. And being the man that he is, knowing I would enjoy a solo/soul searching journey of travel, encouraged me by stating he would "hold down the fort" so I could have a similar but shorter experience. Definitely recommend this to all women who ride.

A Story for Everyone

This book is about life on and off a motorcycle - a book for everyone. I just purchased by tenth copy to give to a friend. If you ride a bike you'll love it; if you dont't you'll still love it! I started the book about nine o'clock one evening and just kept on reading until I finished the story. Karen Larsen uses a ride from New Jersey to Alaska and back to review her life and project her future; you can join her and live your own adventure as you pour through the pages. You can laugh with her, cry with her and come away in awe of the world in which we live - if you liked Pirsig you'll love Larsen.

Road Trip - It Doesn't Matter Where To.

There is a mode you sometimes get into when a road trip is all but necessary. I haven't done one on two wheels in quite some years, since before she was born, my pickup with a matress in back is much more my style now. But every year or two I get the urge to go somewhere a few thousand miles away. Given three months between jobs, what better way could Karen Larsen have spent the time than to get on a bike and go 15,000 miles. I agree with her completely that you need some time alone just letting the miles go by. At the same time you find yourself talking to people just as though they were there. And when you go find an interesting site, perhaps a National Park, parhaps just a pretty spot on the road you want to share it. I have never had an unknown father to look up, but stopping off to see friends from the far past is a truly excellent way to spend an evening. Now I'm getting the urge to go somewhere: Death Valley, the coast of Nova Scotia. Hmmmmm!

Excellent

I haven't devoured a book this quick in years. I found Karen's journey to be fascinating both in character and description. I've been a biker for a few years and envied her trip and courage. The book wasn't about finding one's self or searching for the ultimate answer to life but a story of what it feels like to journey on a motorcycle, the inherit dangers and her descriptions of what we feel when we are on our bikes. It was comforting for her to reinforce the idea that as you travel across the country on back roads that as a whole people are friendly and willing to lend a hand and that bikers share a certain friendship and connection that only we understand, irregardless of who you are or what you ride. There is no moral or hidden meaning in this book, just Karen out to discover the real USA and a few things about herself. I must say that the description of the high school she talks about is right on for I grew up in that town and graduated from the same high school.

Pack Your T-Bag and Let's Ride!

A must read for every motorcycle rider, woman and man. After hearing about this book in August '03, I couldn't wait for the release. I picked up this book on a Friday and read it straight through the weekend. Karen Larsen's journey touched my heart and soul. While she explores the country side, she learns about her strengths as a solo rider, as a woman, and as a traveler. The aromas from the flowers and grasses waft out of the pages; her descriptions are so vivid. I felt the heat from the sun baking her as she rode. Moisture in the air where she rode dampened the pages of my book. Dust and rocks flew up from cars in front of her and out of the book. I was on the back seat of Lucy. There was kindness and generosity from strangers. There was carelessness of drivers in cars and r.v.s. The other riders and travelers she encounters run the gamut of stereotypes. The emotions she shared were honest and raw. I enjoyed every page. I didn't want to put the book down, yet I didn't want the journey to end. Thank you Karen Larsen for sharing your adventure. Thank you for your insight into the human psyche. I'll read this book over and over. I'll tell everyone, including my motorcycle riding friends, about this book.