Richard Worsham
06/12/24 • 42 min
“Farm to fork” is a popular movement in which restaurants source fresh, locally grown ingredients from nearby farms for the meals they serve, as opposed to purchasing those items from wholesale distributors that cater to nationwide chains. Janus Motorcycles is the farm-to-fork of motorcycle makers, a regionally focused alternative to the global parts vendors used by many long-established manufacturers.
In this episode of the “Driven to Ride” podcast, host Mark Long interviews classically trained architect Richard Worsham, who founded Janus Motorcycles in Goshen, Indiana. The northeastern part of the Hoosier state is well-known for its large Amish community, which provides the highly skilled and practiced labor to fabricate everything from steel frames—modeled after the classic Norton featherbed—to leather seats and saddlebags.
Janus Motorcycles has purposely kept its offerings smaller in displacement and largely free from current technology trends. “We’re more about the activity our customers are doing on the bike than we are about the technology it takes to get there,” says Worsham. “In our experience, we found the less technology you use, the more direct that feeling actually is—that sensation, that experience you have on the bike.”
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“Farm to fork” is a popular movement in which restaurants source fresh, locally grown ingredients from nearby farms for the meals they serve, as opposed to purchasing those items from wholesale distributors that cater to nationwide chains. Janus Motorcycles is the farm-to-fork of motorcycle makers, a regionally focused alternative to the global parts vendors used by many long-established manufacturers.
In this episode of the “Driven to Ride” podcast, host Mark Long interviews classically trained architect Richard Worsham, who founded Janus Motorcycles in Goshen, Indiana. The northeastern part of the Hoosier state is well-known for its large Amish community, which provides the highly skilled and practiced labor to fabricate everything from steel frames—modeled after the classic Norton featherbed—to leather seats and saddlebags.
Janus Motorcycles has purposely kept its offerings smaller in displacement and largely free from current technology trends. “We’re more about the activity our customers are doing on the bike than we are about the technology it takes to get there,” says Worsham. “In our experience, we found the less technology you use, the more direct that feeling actually is—that sensation, that experience you have on the bike.”
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Previous Episode
Mike Van Der Sleesen, Round 2
Have you ever met someone who describes their life on this planet in such an entertaining way you lose track of time? Well, that is the dilemma “Driven to Ride” podcast host Mark Long faced with Mike van der Sleesen. Mike, the CEO of Vanson Leathers, was one of Mark’s first guests, and that interview barely scratched the surface of a life of adventure spent on and around two wheels.
See, Mike was born in the U.S. but he grew up in The Netherlands and France, where he was first exposed to the joys of motorcycling at 9 years old on a Solex, its front wheel driven by a small engine. Van der Sleesen progressed to two- and four-speed Puchs, followed by another two-stroke, a Garelli. Slot in behind a passing truck at just the right moment, Mike recalled with a chuckle, and you might catch its draft.
In the 1960s, Van der Sleesen found himself in the thick of the vibrant British motorcycle scene, and he has never lost interest. Today, Mike owns five Nortons in various trims, one of which he bought in 1972—two years before he co-founded Vanson Leathers, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Van der Sleesen reminds us that motorcycling, much like life, is all about the journey.
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Next Episode
Crystal Fong
“You’ve come a long way, baby,” was an advertising slogan created in the 1960s by Philip Morris for cigarette brand Virginia Slims. Aimed exclusively at women, the long-running campaign promoted equality among genders, particularly in the workplace. Crystal Fong has come a long way, too—both literally and figuratively—as she explains to host Mark Long on this episode of the “Driven to Ride” podcast.
California-born Fong, who has ridden her 250cc Honda Dominator through 40 European countries, was first exposed to motorcycling while attending college. “A friend of mine took me on the back of his bike,” she recalls. “I wore a cotton hoodie, with Nike Dunks, and a helmet that was way too big. We went 160 mph and did wheelies and endos. That was really fun, but very nerve-wracking, because I had no control.”
Turns out, Fong prefers to be in control, as in the rider, not the passenger. She eventually earned her motorcycle license, bought a bike, and began commuting. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she rode with a friend to Yellowstone National Park. The psyche-calming joy of being on a motorcycle ultimately led Fong to set her sights overseas. All taken one step—or more appropriately, one kilometer—at a time.
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