It's not a stretch to find freedom on a motorcycle. Tons of people do it. Not everyone's all Sons of Anarchy'd out — many are just fans of the road, and that's the crowd I found myself with during my most recent trip to the Morongo Indian Reservation in California last week. I had the opportunity to hop on the back of a hog and wahoo! This is totally something to do before you die.

While I don't recommend Facebooking photos live from the back of said hog like a new media badass, nor filming your shit-eatin' grin while you're doing it (because you might not be as lucky as I was to only almost lose your phone), if you ever get the chance to get on the open road on a bike, DO IT. Especially if that opportunity brings you to sacred Indian land because the untouched beauty is unparalleled. You will never be the same.

Case in point, local author Tamela Rich spent two years on a bike and it changed her life. In fact, she's even written a book about it called Leaning Into Life: Lessons From The Road. She's paired the freedom she found, the lessons she learned along the way from friends who faced cancer, wrote a book about it, and has since traveled the country raising funds for cancer research.

Her quick history as she says it: "In 2010 and 2011, in search of a good cause, I joined a group of Canadian and American motorcyclists raising money for breast cancer research. After two years of hearing stories from people I met on the road, I learned how their brush with cancer had helped survivors re-examine both their priorities and their assumptions about how to live their best lives." Homegirl has been on a helluva ride which I am eternally jealous of.

Since Mayor Foxx declared this week Pink Week as part of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (ladies, have you done your monthly in-shower exam yet??), it's increasingly important to support locals like Rich as they raise dollars for a great cause that benefits us all.

Rich is doing a book signing Wednesday at the Junior League Warehouse over on Pecan Avenue from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. if you'd like to meet her, too. I promise, she's totally inspiring — just like being on the back of a Harley is! WAHOOOOOO!