I have always been into motorcycles in one way or another. My dad had one when I was little. I remember that he would put me on the seat in front of him and coast down our hilly driveway much to my delight. As a teenager with pages from magazines plastered all over my walls, the Calvin Klein ad campaign with Carré Otis really resonated with me.
Seeing images of a gorgeous woman on her motorcycle was something I wasn’t used to seeing, but found inspiring.
I would jump on the back of any of my friend’s bikes when given the opportunity. Every summer I would go up to bike week in Laconia to hang out for a day and just immerse myself in what was going on around me.
I couldn’t wait to have a boyfriend who had a motorcycle so we could just take off. One major flaw: my boyfriends would get motorcycles after we stopped dating. WTF?!? Finally one summer I noticed more and more women on their own bikes. It finally dawned on me that I could get my motorcycle license and get my own damn bike! Duh.
So that’s what I did.
I won’t lie about my experience taking the MSF course. It was a mild disaster. First of all, I was the only girl in the class, which threw me off my game. It immediately made me insecure. I felt like all eyes were on me and everyone was just waiting for me to screw up. Which I did. A lot.
That first day of the course I almost gave up because I sucked so bad. I didn’t cry while I was in the class but as soon as I got in the car to drive home I was a mess. I cried all night long. My boyfriend spent that night pumping up my ego and encouraging me. Everyone does bad the first day, he told me. So after a few tear-spilling hours I started to get mad for feeling sorry for myself. I decided to suck it up and conquer it.
The second day of the course it was pouring rain. I had my BF’s rain suit which was a lifesaver. Our instructor was late, so we did laps around the track until she showed up. Later that morning she said she thought I didn’t show up because she didn’t recognize me out there-I was doing so well. That was the encouragement that I needed. I ended up passing, but not with flying colors. About two weeks later I bought my motorcycle (a 2004 Suzuki Volusia LE). Two days later I went for my first ride-100 miles to Laconia. Woo!
