West Coast Ride

02 / Know

Know the Story

Before I trusted the advice, I trusted Macca.

West Coast Ride comes from my friendship with Macca, which began at Kapooka and continued through the School of Signals, Darwin and more than twenty years of trust. His mechanical advice became the foundation; I carried it onto a West Coast Chicano Soul ride.

Like Macca said: before we begin, every ride starts with discipline.

Why Macca’s lesson matters

Macca and I met at Kapooka—Australia’s version of boot camp—more than twenty years ago. From basic training we both went to the School of Signals, and then we were posted to Darwin. I was the American in the Australian Army, Macca was unmistakably Australian, and there were plenty of times he came to my rescue or pulled me out of a jam. I learned early that I could trust him.

After twelve years I left the service. Macca changed corps, moved into Engineering and became a diesel mechanic before eventually leaving the Army himself. Somewhere along the way he was given a 1943 Harley-Davidson 42WLA and acquired a 1959 BMW R60.

He has taken those motorcycles down to their individual pieces and rebuilt them more than once. He rides every chance he gets, but the knowledge came before the freedom. Macca understands the machine, respects the process and knows that a reliable ride is earned long before the engine starts.

That is why his advice carries weight with me. Mechanical knowledge is useful; mechanical knowledge from someone whose character I have trusted for decades becomes a life lesson worth passing on.

Enjoy the Ride was the original song I wrote for Macca and his philosophy: ‘If it ain’t broke, maintain it.’ West Coast Ride tells the same truth through my eyes. I stripped it down, added more grit and brought in my Chicano Soul and MarTinman signature.

Let’s Ride and Let’s Ride (Midnight Mix) take the treatment further toward a stripped-back Soul note. The bikes and sounds may change, but every version begins with Macca’s voice and the same rule: ‘Before we begin, every ride starts with discipline.’

Macca & Me tells you more about the character behind the advice—the mate who kept step, had my back and made sure I got out of the jam. West Coast Ride is what that trust sounds like when the lesson reaches the boulevard.

03 / Feel

Feel the Soul

What I want you to feel

I trust the lesson because I trust the man giving it. Whether the subject is a motorcycle, a friendship or something else worth keeping, discipline is the care you give before anything goes wrong.