Celebrating Brian Mock
Mister Agreeable always brings the fun.
I wasn’t sure what to make of the scrawny dude rolling up to Red Rock Coffee on a 1400cc Moto Guzzi California in early October 2017. There was a chill demeanor to his aura, an unmistakable calm that I didn’t realize at the time would have a profound effect on my life.
My friend Brian Mock turns 54 today. He’s a successful machinist; he’s never known anything else and he’s at peace with this. He rarely talks about work, unless he gets a text or call from a staffer while we’re on a motorcycle adventure. Thirty years ago he bought his childhood home in Milpitas from his mother, with an attached garage lined with motorcycle posters from his teenage years.
An easy conversationalist with a love of ska, Subway sandwiches, granola bars and Body Amor electrolyte drinks, Brian always shows up prepared. And while he joined the Sunday Moto Club on its third group ride, he’s become a bedrock of our tight Bay Area motorcycle community, making friends and encouraging newer members with his knowledge of the area’s finest roads.
Like most of us, his life isn’t all champagne and tickle parties. There’s some serious stuff happening in his world, which we talk about with more frequency. His discipline and supportive nature have served him well these past few years, but unbeknownst to him, he’s also contributed mightily to my level of happiness.
As I was second-guessing my career path a few years ago, Brian adroitly recommended a moto trip to the Eastern Sierras. Frankly, I was scared shitless. His skills and speed were far superior to mine, and visions of humiliation and frustration clouded my fish brain.
Fear not, it turned out, because Brian is patient and digs having a riding pal. He also has a special, unique and rare personality trait of being agreeable here in the Silicon Valley. He’s not a braggart, narcissist, show off, or corporate monkey over striving to impress shareholders; he literally doesn’t give a shit about the scene.
What Brian gives several shits about is riding. Like me, he’s owned several bikes over the years, trying something different, new or improved each time. Our one true embarrassment of riches is our northern California surroundings, with unlimited roads to ride, mountains to climb and ocean to view. And he knows them all like the back of his Helimot-gloved hand, printing off and highlighting our chosen route for a specific two, three- or four-day journey.
So imagine my surprise when he casually agreed to join Jean and I on our first moto tour of Europe last year. And imagine his surprise when I collaborated with my former Cycle World boss Matthew Miles to hook him up with REV’IT! Gear, replacing his worn out chain mail jacket and pants ensemble that I grew tired looking at every trip.
Every new year brings uncertainty. The other day my son Henri and I discussed the same topic Matt Crawford and I broached in December: gratitude. What the world sees in each of us is just the outer shell covering what lies inside; jumbled or clear, focused or disheveled, keen or wayward. It helps to invest in one another, asking open-ended questions and being present.
Happy birthday, Brian Mock. Thanks for always bringing your best, and for helping Jean and I forge unforgettable memories in Europe last August. Let’s see what sort of trouble we can get into this year, pal.
Friends like that are a rare find indeed.