Free Ride cover art

Free Ride

Heartbreak, Courage, and the 20,000-Mile Motorcycle Journey that Changed My Life

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Free Ride

By: Noraly Schoenmaker
Narrated by: Imani Jade Powers
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About this listen

By the YouTube sensation with more than two million followers, the inspiring account of a woman in her thirties who, in a moment of personal crisis, embarked on an epic, transcontinental motorcycle ride – and along the way found a new sense of purpose.

Noraly Schoenmaker was a thirty-something geologist living in the Netherlands when she learned that her live-in partner had been having a long-term affair. Suddenly without a place to stay, she decided to quit her job and jet off to India in search of a new beginning. Her plans were dashed when she fell quickly and helplessly in love: with a motorcycle. Behind the handlebars, she felt alive and free – nimble enough to trace the narrowest paths, powerful enough to travel the longest of roads.

She first rode toward the Pacific, through the jungles of Myanmar and Thailand, then into Malaysia. Rather than satisfy her appetite for the open road, this ride only piqued it. She shipped her bike to Oman, at the base of the Arabian Peninsula, and embarked on a journey through Iran, across Turkmenistan along its border with Afghanistan, over the snowy peaks of Central Asia and into Europe, all the way back home to the Netherlands. She covered remote and utterly unfamiliar territory; broke down on impossibly steep mountains; and pushed too many miles along empty roads, farther and farther from civilization. But through her travels, she discovered the true beauty of the world - the kindness of its people, the simplicity of its open spaces, as well as her own inner strength.

In spirit of The Motorcycle Diaries and Wild, this is an inspiring story of self-discovery and renewal. Filled with unforgettable figures, hilarious disasters and powerful human connections, it shows you what happens when you open your heart and let the world in.

©2025 Noraly Schoenmaker (P)2025 DK Audio
Adventurers, Explorers & Survival Asia Travel Writing & Commentary Women Funny Heartfelt Witty Middle East Iran

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I love Noraly and really respect what she does. The story is good and shows how amazing and resilient she is.
Unfortunately, because we know her and her voice from Youtube, the American narrator ruined it for me. I'd advise you to buy the book and read it so you have Noraly's voice in your head. It just sounds wrong.
I guess it would take a lot of time for Noraly to do it herself but it would make it 100% better.
Good book and as interesting and amazing as Noraly herself but unfortunate choice of narrator.

Poor choice of narrator

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to hear the internal monologue and motivation, really helped me to understand the vlog journey and the growth of her channel.

riveting

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