I knew that it was inside of me all the time.

Not just a knowing, but a feeling. A restless child inside my soul who couldn’t be still. The whispered voice that wouldn’t be silenced.

I wanted to RIDE.

But not only did I not know how, I didn’t know anyone else who did, and I didn’t know how to go about learning.

But the desire was always there. Every time I would see a beautiful bike cruise past me on the street or roar past me on the highway, something would stir inside of me and I knew without a doubt that one day that would be me. So much so that I would purchase and wear t-shirts of my motorcycle of choice Harley-Davidson. As I think back I realize that perhaps I was getting ready.
Good thing I did because it was coming. The universe has a way of giving us what we believe we deserve.

I met my future spouse who had already been riding for many years. After we had been together for a few years we decided that it was time for me to learn how to ride. I was told that if I was going to learn how to ride that I had to learn on the most practical bike available to us. Our 100 year anniversary Harley-Davidson Fatboy. Of course I had reservations about learning on this bike because it’s beautiful and I didn’t want to mess it up in any way.
Logically, my first thought was maybe I should learn on something smaller because I was a woman. The response I got was, “Why? You’re going to ride it, not carry it. Besides I’ve seen women make that mistake for years. Invest in a bike that they out grow in no time and now they’re stuck. That’s not going to be you.”

So at 5′ 4″ tall I learned how to ride that Fatboy with the 18″ apehangers that were already on it. We both had confidence in my abilities; although, my biggest concern was the carpal tunnel that I have in my right wrist and how it might affect my riding. Well there was only one way to find out.

We headed east one Sunday morning to ride as far as possible to see how far I could go. 225 miles and one state over we stopped to have a bite to eat. Then headed back home. 225 more miles. Not bad. So four days later we tried it again just to be sure. About 400 miles and four states later I took a picture by the state sign. Utah, Life Elevated. Seemed appropriate because that’s how it feels when I ride. Of course I had to make the ride back home through the desert heat. I was ready. For my accomplishment I was given that beautiful Fatboy as a birthday gift.

I know that you get me when I say that when I am on the road the bike and I are one. There’s nothing like moving down the highway with a 360° view of God’s beautiful creation. Nothing. No other experience can compare.

In the 3 years that I have been riding, I have been out of my home state on ground multiple times and my rides have taken me to Mexico and Canada. Unfortunately, I have also experienced the downside of this life as well having been hit on the freeway at 70 mph. But we all know that you can’t keep a good woman down. 2 days after I got my bike out of the shop from being repaired you know what I did to celebrate?
Got on that motherfucker and rode out of state like I stole it. Still sore as hell, bad weather, and all.