As I look back on my motorcycle history so far, it has become quite multi-faceted. Since I like to ride on pavement, dirt, and ice, and I also used to roadrace with AHRMA, I have found each brand of motorcycle has something a little different to entice me each time. In my own personal opinion, if you haven’t taken a bike off-road, then you haven’t truly experienced all a motorcycle has to offer.
When first I met my husband, I owned a non-running Honda dirtbike, but I did not know how to ride it yet. So I truly enjoyed being a passenger on the back of Tom’s bike, but then everything changed after he taught me how to ride. By taught, I mean 2 laps around the yard on a dirtbike, and we hit the trails. It turned out being so much fun, and not nearly as scary as I had imagined. My husband knew I was good at operating machines, and he knew practice was the best way for me to learn. Riding on Michigan’s deep sandy backwoods trails quickly taught me how to use my body mechanics and how my speed affected the motorcycle in different situations. As my riding quickly progressed, I became proficient in riding on any surface, including iced over lakes in the winter.
Of course, after learning how to ride, I had to get a road bike. I grinned from ear to ear as I rode my 1974 Honda CB350, and it did not take me long to progress from there. Since my business is manufacturing parts for vintage motorcycles, we were later presented with a chance to race with AHRMA, Antique Historical Racing Motorcycle Association. That was an exciting era which taught me by a lot by watching others’ mistakes and the results. of many years, but later a non-racing motorcycle accident led to a badly crushed and broken ankle which resulted in many surgeries throughout the last 5 years, including my recent below the knee amputation.
Since each surgery brought the illusion of repair, I rode after I healed from each of them. However, it was very painful to ride, and I found my ankle and leg did not agree with the constant twists and turns required of me for the hard-core racing in AHRMA.
So as I now finish the last of the surgical healing, and as I anxiously await my prosthetic, I wonder. What model will serve me best next? Hmmm........ Good question because I will ride again.