Dave Bowman

***

A native Southern Californian, Dave attended Cal State University at Long Beach and earned his bachelor’s degree (summa cum laude!) in Computer Science from National University. In addition, he has a master’s degree in Global Technology Management from Pepperdine.

Dave began his aerospace career as a 6-foot 7-inch engineer at McDonnell Douglas in Long Beach, eventually retiring as Vice President and General Manager of Boeing Global Mobility Systems. When he was VP/GM of Boeing’s C-17 program, Dave and I worked together in Long Beach and traveled to exotic locations like Australia, Hawaii, Alaska and Mississippi. Plenty of opportunity to talk about riding, but the topic of motorcycles never came up. Go figure.

Dave left Boeing in 2010 after 31 years, then went to Cleveland, Ohio, to work at power management powerhouse Eaton, as Senior VP of Program Management. He retired from Eaton in 2015, finally giving him time to ride.

Always one to generously give back to the community, Dave sits on the board of Special Olympics Nevada, which provides year-round sports training and athletic competition for thousands of children and adults with intellectual disabilities. He is also a Ministry Partner at Central Church Henderson, where he works on the Safety and Security Ministry, as well as the Hope for The City drive-up food pantry for the resource-challenged in his community.

After a lifetime in Southern California, Dave now lives in Henderson, Nevada – along with his wife of 41 years, Gail. They have two adult children, Nathan and Tess. Tess, 31, works as a Client Experience Manager and Event Producer at Caesars Entertainment in Las Vegas. Nathan, 30, remains in Southern California, where he is a manager for the Anaheim Parks and Recreation Department.

Dave, now 66, reconnected with me after reading my Harley blog year after year, always being the first to respond to my posts by writing from his office computer, “I hate you.” What he actually meant was, “Love ya, man. but work sucks. Wish I was riding.”

Eventually he retired, trading riding a desk for riding a Harley. Good choice, Dave.

After 13 years riding a red 2008 Harley Ultra Glide Classic, he switched to three wheels in late 2021. Dave’s last ride was a 2021 Harley Tri Glide Ultra — a 114 cubic inch, 1,200-pound, two-tone (Gauntlet Gray Metallic and Vivid Black) beauty that came with reverse gear and a parking brake. You go, Dave!

Dave rode with me in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, and 2022. He had planned to ride on the 2023 journey, but an unexpected turn of events changed his plans; instead, he joined the ride for five days in Nevada, Arizona and Utah – with wife Gail, in his F-250 pickup truck.

***