Ups And Downs

UPS AND DOWNS

ROUNDUP

UP: To John Hermann, for putting his vacation time to good use. A San Diego real-estate appraiser by trade, Hermann has made 26 motorcycle tours of the Alps over the past 20 years, and last year turned those experiences into a guidebook. Motorcycle Journeys Through the Alps contains the details of 49 separate day trips, as well as tips on riding gear, packing, rental bikes, food, hotels, organized tours and currency. The $19.95 paperback book, illustrated with black & white photos, is available at select dealerships or directly from the publisher, Whitehorse Press, 154 W. Brookline St., Boston, MA 02118; 800/531-1133.

UP: to Lisa McDonald, a member of Minneapolis, Minnesota, city council, for exquisite interior design skills. McDonald displays motorcycles from her collection in her office, changing them on a monthly basis. McDonald, who owns a 1952 Vincent Black Shadow and other vintage bikes, told a local newspaper, “I love looking at bikes as much as I like riding them. They’re works of art.” She adds that her love of motorcycles helped her get elected, as there is a considerable number of riders in her district.

DOWN: To Burton Natarus, a Chicago, Illinois, alderman, for his narrow-minded view of motorcycles. Natarus has proposed banning motorcycles after 10 p.m. in part of his ward, because he says they’re too loud. As Michelle Stevens, a Chicago Sun-Times editor, said in an editorial “Natarus is willing to alienate all motorcyclists to get rid of a few jerks.”