Paul Clipper

Paul Clipper got his start in magazine writing by taking a trip to California in 1976 just to see what would happen next. He was hired as Assistant Editor at Challenge Publication's Dirt Rider magazine, working under Editor Rik Paul. His auspicious start lasted only two months before Challenge killed the title and left both the editors jobless. A small amount of freelance photography and writing, as well as a job in a commercial photo lab, kept Clipper on the West Coast, where he eventually landed a freelance job with Rick "Super Hunky" Sieman, writing copy for a pair of enthusiast car magazines. This association led to a job at Dirt Bike magazine when Sieman was asked to come back and edit the failing title once again (he was the creator of Dirt Bike magazine in 1971). Paul signed on as Managing Editor in late 1978, and within the next six years Clipper and Hunky worked to make Dirt Bike the number one off road motorcycle magazine in the world. A disagreement with the publisher of Dirt Bike in 1985 led Clipper to take a job with KTM America as Advertising Manager, and his West Coast residency ended in favor of a move to Ohio. In 1986, Clipper bought New England's Trail Rider Magazine from the second owners of the title, and he began a small publishing company to deliver Trail Rider to its growing list of subscribers every month. Clipper was the publisher of Trail Rider for more than 24 years, writing hundreds of feature stories and columns, and shooting thousands of photos along the way. In summer 2010, Clipper sold the Trail Rider title and backed away from the monthly moto-publishing business. Permanently? Not really. You can occasionally find one of his stories in current issues of Trail Rider magazine, and he's been working on creating books featuring popular material from his years at Dirt Bike and Trail Rider Magazine. Since 2010, Paul has spent time employed as a digital content creator for Cyclepedia Press, and served as editor of the local newspaper in Cambridge, Maryland, for a few years before finally retiring from the weekly paycheck scene. His retirement side-hustle now is publishing books for other people, including a "fictional memoir" for the late newscaster Gloria Rojas, books on local and family history for author Carlton Nabb, and most recently a series of books for the Dorchester County (MD) Historical Society. He also also contributes graphic design and editing work to the books of travel writer Jim Duffy/Secrets of the Eastern Shore.