The passing of the legendary Malcolm Smith was not a shock. Malcolm battled health issues for the last few years and they finally caught up with him—something his Baja competitors never could. I can’t feel sad for a guy who accomplished as much as Malcolm did. I celebrate his inspirational life lived to the fullest. Few mere mortals will come close to matching what Malcolm did in his short time on earth.
I had many interactions with Malcolm over the years, though it’s impossible to recall them all here. The one thing I can say, without a trace of remorse, is that I never accepted Malcolm’s many invitations to ride together. And I’m okay with that. The reason? Simple self-preservation.
MALCOLM WAS ALWAYS THE BOSS
About the third time Malcolm invited me to join him on a ride (and the third time I declined), he asked why I always refused? The answer was simple. I’ve ridden motorcycles forever but truth be told, I never approached the level of Malcolm’s riding competence. Not even close.
“Malcolm,” I told him straight, “I’ve heard you are super fun to ride with until.”
“Until what,” Malcolm asked?
“Until you drop off that cliff, or plow through the gas-tank-deep water crossing or ride up an insanely steep hill of loose rocks. I’m scared to ride with you after all the stories I’ve heard.”
Malcolm broke into his signature smile and laughed. I think he appreciated my honesty and he knew I was right. How do I know? He told me this story on the spot.
THE BROTHER-IN-LAW STORY AS TOLD BY MALCOM
“I invited my wife’s brother to go for a ride,” he began. “It was a simple route with only one tricky downhill. You ride up to the edge of this hill and you can’t see the bottom. Once you drop in, there are two boulders at the bottom and you have to aim in-between them. As long as you don’t hit the brakes, it is no problem.”
“So I drop over the edge and I’m surprised by two people who are having a picnic right between the two rocks. There is no way to stop or go around them so I yell at them to get out of the way. They scramble and I ride right over their picnic!”
“I didn’t stop because I didn’t want to get chewed out. I rode a bit down the trail and looked back to check on my brother-in-law. That’s when I saw him cartwheeling down the hill and his bike comes to rest right on the people’s picnic blanket! I’m pretty sure he got an earful. I didn’t stick around to find out.”
GODSPEED, MALCOM
So I never took him up on his ride invitations. But I can live with that. I like to think that right now, Malcolm and Steve McQueen are riding together with Malcolm leading Steve over some blind drop-off.
