One of the joyous and beautiful features of riding a motorcycle are those moments when you watch your speedometer jump to life and feel the wind brush your face; When you feel that adrenaline rushing through your veins and making you feel more alive than ever, things like your gender do not seem to matter.
Motorcycles are divided into two kinds, small engine, which is smaller than 200cc (cubic capacity), and bigger engine, which is bigger than 200cc. I started riding a 175cc motorcycle eight years ago, and three years later, I bought a 250cc Kawasaki Ninja at the age of sixteen, and I have been riding big motorcycles, with different kinds of machines, in all manner of places since then. I take pleasure from twisting the throttle, watching my speedometer go to 70 miles per hour, and passing through cars and trucks on I-81 on my way to school. I usually start my day feeling great, cruising on my motorcycle, until people asked me questions, “You have a nice ride! Is that your boyfriend’s?”
When you see five girls rolling down the street on their motorcycle together, you will see people turn their heads and start taking pictures of them. But when you see guys riding together, people will give no comment and take it as a regular and common thing to do on a daily basis. Why does this happen? As a female rider, I feel like people put stereotypes on motorcyclists. When they see a motorcycle, they will assume that it belongs to a male rider, and when they find out it belongs to a female rider, they will start questioning our ability to ride a big engine on two wheels. The usatoday.com website reports that, “Nearly 20 percent of motorcycle riders are women.” So people should not be surprised anymore if they see us women riders out there, rocking our badass ride without a man sitting in front of us and taking control of the motorcycle. This might seem like a small matter among other big gender-equality issues out there, but because it is a small thing, it should not be hard to turn people’s mindset around(?).
One important thing I learned from riding motorcycles is that the pleasure we take from it is gender-neutral, so the riders should be too.
I personally have been enjoying changing my motorcycle’s oil and trying out different sizes and styles of motorcycle tires ever since I upgraded to a 400cc fuel injection motorcycle. And yes, I do get people’s “looks” when I park in the EMU parking lot or when I’m gearing up to leave. I am simply a commuter who enjoys a more exciting way to get to school and winding down my brain after a tiring day with the thrill of freedom and liberation while flying on the interstate. It is not the motorcycle or any other activities that engender you, it’s people who do all that, and maybe they are a little bit jealous of how cool you are. I just ignore them and keep on riding, and so should you.
