Vol.2 - Issue 4 - Make Memories

VOLUME 002

ISSUE 004

FROM THE FOUNDER:

Hey friend, I am not sure what you are going through right now. Perhaps you’re celebrating, or maybe you are mourning something. Possibly both are happening simultaneously at the same time. Whatever your current moment, we hope this issue of Slow invites you to decrease your pace long enough to be fully present in the moment you are experiencing. Pause. Sip Some Coffee. & Enjoy. Love, The K&C Crew

Kapernicus

The Five Ways Coffee Enriches Your Life.

1. You don’t ask your friends to hang out. You ask them to go to coffee.

Coffee is all about friendship. These beans grown across the world are responsible for bringing all kinds of people together. How cool is it that coffee is a good excuse to get together? How many world events were planned over a cup of coffee? The American Revolution was planned and thought up in coffee houses. Coffee was probably there when scientists put the first human on the moon. Coffee has aided first dates, break ups, and all kinds of moto expeditions. The bean juice has fueled friendship and memorable moments for a long time.

2. Coffee is sure to clean your pipes!

Pooping is very important to human survival. You know this. And coffee gets them pipes contracting for a friendly cleansing of the bowels. You don’t need Kapernicus to go into detail. You have google. Google it. Coffee helps lighten the load. We all need that.

3. Coffee is conduit to deeper conversations.

Imagine yourself with a friend enjoying a delicious coffee drink. While they talk, you listen, and you sip. Coffee gives us something to do with our hands while our eyes and ears show the person talking to us that we hear them. It’s easy to keep a conversation surface level, but something rich happens when we slow down to empathize with someone’s words.

4. Coffee is a natural stimulant that wakes up the brain.

Caffeine’s main effect is on the brain. “Once consumed, caffeine is quickly absorbed from the gut into the bloodstream. From there, it travels to the liver and is broken down into compounds that can affect the function of various organs.” It makes you alert. It helps you tune in. Helps you be present. Aids you in being effective.

5. Coffee slows ya down and speeds ya up.

When you make an effort to enjoy coffee, you are choosing to engage in a centering process. From brewing to sipping, you are engaging with a crop from the earth and letting it aid whatever it is you are doing in life. When we slow down, we think. And when we think, we get the chance to reflect on the life we dream of living. And once the cup is gone, we can pull back the throttle towards the life we desire.

swing arm city

AMELIA PONCE

If you were to capture the Swing Arm City BYO Cam

pout in word what would that word be?

Inclusivity. The BYO (Bring Your Own) campout is a weekend where all are welcome.

Anyone who feels daring enough to join a bunch of strangers off the grid and out of service in the southern Utah desert, that is. BYO is more than just a weekend to get away from civilization, off-road your dirt bikes or 4x4s, or ride motorcycles through Capitol Reef National Park. It’s a weekend where a community of like-minded individuals gather to spend a few days forgetting everything that’s going on in their lives and the world at large by sharing meaningful, deep conversations about our stories over a campfire, celebrating being alive with fireworks and late-night dance parties, and adventuring the beautiful yet diverse landscapes of Utah that are sitting at our fingertips. Whether you ride or not, anyone and everyone is welcome to join the festivities. All we supply are the coordinates; the rest is on you. BYO food, shelter, transportation, and most importantly, BYO fun.

Anyone who enters the weekend is sure to be dustier, and more revitalized than they arrived. Sometimes we’re all in need of a weekend of rejuvenation, and sometimes that “rejuvenation” looks like sand in every crevice of the items you brought, late-night conversations about life with someone you just met a day ago, or maybe it’s an early solo morning pause with some coffee in your hand with the sound of engines revving in the background. Whatever it looks like to you, BYO is a place that offers it.

My favorite memory from this trip had to be the last full day at BYO. It was Sunday and the majority of us collectively decided to go on a group ride with the destination being Leperachaun Canyon — a slot canyon about 30 some miles up the road. A site I had yet to see before, so I grabbed my camera and hopped on the ol’ dusty steed to veer into the wind with a group of 15+ motorcycles. While we were gone, and unbeknownst to us, a treacherous wind storm came barreling through the camp, completely annihilating everything in its path. When we arrived back, camp was basically gone. Tents were snapped and were laying flat, items that were there before were scattered across the desert — most yet to be found — and one by one a majority of attendees were heading out. At the time, a feeling of sadness over-

whelmed me. To see everyone packing up and leaving, most unable to say a formal “see ya later.” It wasn’t the way I pictured that weekend ending. I was tired, dirty, and my tent was thankfully still standing but was basically one big sandbox. Everything I brought was filled with sand — my bags, my sleeping bag, literally everything. I couldn’t leave as I was on my motorcycle, and it took everything in me to put on a happy face when all I wanted was a hot shower, shelter, and a good night’s rest. Thankfully, there was a solid crew who stuck out the wind that night. As we all put on our moto goggles to block our eyes from thousands of flying sand grains, we sat in chairs and laughed at our unfortunate luck. While I didn’t blame anyone who threw in the towel, I was slowly appreciating the simple fact of still being there, still being present. It was the energy of those who remained that helped lift my spirits when I was in a state of “poor me.”

What was your favorite memory from this trip? Tell us a story!

I believe our good friend, Sam Rouda, described it as “Type 2 Fun.” The kind of fun that at the moment isn’t actually all that fun. It’s hard, it isn’t ideal, but looking back on it, we’d be sure to smile and say, “It was all worth it in the end.” We continued on into the night, blaring music, dancing, and enjoying one last night in the desert together — because that’s all we had at the end of the day was each other. The wind never left, but after a while, it was hardly noticeable. The joy and light that the remaining individuals contributed was the highlight of the trip. It reminded me that we can all be going through deep waters or trenches of sand for this matter — but at the end of the day, it’s the people surrounding you, helping you overcome negativity and unfortunate circumstances, that make something worthwhile. Looking back, I’m glad I didn’t have the capability to leave that evening. I was blessed with another night and morning filled with charismatic and positive people who have forever left a mark on my life and will call my closest friends for years to come.

What did you learn out there in the desert? How did it change you?

If there’s one thing I learned from this trip, it’s that doing hard things is fun. My trip to the desert wasn’t an easy one, that’s for certain. Basically, everything that could have gone wrong mechanically for me and my bike did. Not to mention, I rode in conditions that most would have never even thought of attempting. 30-degree weather on a bike isn’t fun, it’s quite challenging, for that matter, but I did it anyway because of what was waiting for me at the end of the process. Between all of the unpleasant and less-than-ideal circumstances, I did end up making it to the desert. I danced, I laughed, I cried, I sang, I smiled, and I lost way too much sleep, yet I never felt so alive dealing with all of that adversity than I have in my entire life. Life isn’t always sunshine and rainbows. It almost always never goes as we plan it to. But I learned that YOU are responsible for your outlook and perspective on things. Manifesting negativity will only bring you misery. I could have let those challenges set me back or have an impact on my trip, but why would I? Why dwell on the things that are out of your control?

I couldn’t change my bike’s health, the forecast, or untimely and unfortunate situations. But I could change my thoughts and how I reacted/handled each curve ball that was thrown my way. If we could all take a moment to pause in the face of distress and realize how lucky we are to be breathing, to be waking up to see another sunrise, another sunset, another chance at life, those misfortunes begin to look a lot like actual fortunes. Change your thoughts, and it’ll change your life.

Amelia Ponce

SWING ARM CITY

JOSHUA WINDERS

I’m trying to think of a word more meaningful and a little more eloquent than “dusty”… but that’s what ultimately comes to mind. The dust is in everything, it covers every surface, and there’s no escaping it, much in the same way that you are enveloped by the community, love, and sense of camaraderie you share with your fellow desert rats at Swingarm. It’s all just a dusty, rip-rolling, good time.

If you were to capture the Swing Arm City BYO Campout in word what would that word be?

I’ve spent many a time in and around Swingarm. Mostly for photography expeditions, but I know the roads, I know the land, and was eager to do some Moto adventuring. Day one, I went on a ride-along with a crew. It was actually my first ride-along, but I couldn’t keep up. It wasn’t my speed; it wasn’t my riding style. So I turned around and found my own way. It’s humbling, but sometimes you just have to know your limits. On day two, I made plans with a couple of people to show them one of my favorite photography spots. In my head I just pictured leading maybe two or three other bikes and a car or two, but at some point down the road, I looked in my mirror to see the entire camp following my lead through the desert. A barrage of more than twenty bikes and a few cars, a caravan trailing behind a little, itty bitty Honda Rebel… I’d be lying if I said I didn’t feel a twinge of pride. But life has a funny way of lifting you back up out of those valleys you wander through.

What was your favorite memory from this trip? Tell us a story!

If there was one lesson that stood out from the entire experience at Swingarm, it would be that “fitting in” and “belonging” are two very different things. Once upon a time, I believed that there was a certain persona that you had to emulate to be a part of a motorcycle community, a certain look, a certain bike you had to ride, a certain speed you had to go. Everyone that ends up in Swingarm may have a shared fascination with two-wheeled steeds and a pull towards slightly more extreme and exciting ways of coexisting. But each individual is as unique as the next and holds the desire to create beautiful experiences and lasting memories. A

clique may accept you because of who you are, but a community will accept you in spite of what that is. Even in the desert, I think it’s safe to say that no one really “fits.” It’s desolate, arid, and contains nothing that we need for our survival. But we belong based on our initiative to involved in a collective and to seek a story worthy of which to be a part. Belong is a tide that comes in and goes out. Sometimes you belong at the back of the pack making your own way and going your own pace, and sometimes you belong at the front, leading the pack. Sometimes you belong behind the camera, and then sometimes even in front. No matter how strange the place, how extreme the circumstances, or how beautiful and weird the people are, belonging can happen anywhere.

What did you learn out there in the desert? How did it change you?

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