I have to say, this is the best assignment I have ever been given. To spend all last weekend at the Cycle World 2007 International Motorcycle Show in Long Beach was a dream come true. And that dream is unlike one I have ever had before.
A 22-year-old girl from middle-class suburbia going out and buying a brand-new Harley Sportster is unconventional, to say the least. It was not something my parents put in my given budget and definitely not something they had hoped their baby girl would achieve after she graduated college and went out into the real world.
I didn’t grow up in a biker family. I knew nothing of the lifestyle and never had put that goal in my five-year plan. But when you go off to college, you spend four years not just working toward a degree, but encountering people and opportunities that change you forever and shape who you are.
This whole biker thing is new to me but, thanks to my best friend Mercedes, or Pipes, as she is known in many circles, one that I’m quickly figuring out. Just two years ago, I rode on the back of her father’s Heritage, and I experienced the most freeing and empowering ride of my life. And at the motorcycle show, I found so many others who feel the same.
The show was like Disneyland for me, except with way more expensive souvenirs. But my favorite part was the Discover Today’s Motorcycling Women’s Studio, which, in my opinion, was an oasis to a young rider like me.
From playing “dress up” with an array of jackets and helmets to a display of “starter bikes” recommended for a woman’s smaller frame and a riding simulator, they had everything a new or aspiring rider could ask for. There was even a makeup artist giving “moto-makeovers” to make a woman rider’s eyes stand out underneath that helmet.
I was in heaven, and I also learned quite a lot. The studio had “coffee talks,” where experienced riders shared their wisdom about everything from how to find the right jacket to the community that lies within the biker world (something I experienced after buying my bike and having nearly every employee at the dealership welcoming me into the Harley family).
Being there not only informed me of how to be a better biker but also gave me a glimpse of the amazing adventure that is to come. I don’t know what adventure lies ahead for me and my Sportster, but I know I will have lots of my biker brothers and sisters riding with me every step of the way. Now, all that’s left to do is find them.
