Riding the Dash – Independent Motorcycle Travel for Women

Why am I a woman who rides motorcycles?

In the poem “The Dash,” Linda Ellis talks about the punctuation mark between the dates of birth and death found on a tombstone.  The dates represent the beginning and end of a person’s life, but that dash, oh that dash, embodies the totality of their existence.  The triumphs and tragedies, the joy and pain, the accomplishments and unfulfilled dreams; it is all there riding on that short little mark separating birth and death.  As I reflected on the poem and my own existence, it occurred to me that most of my dash is now being lived out riding the dashed centerline of America’s two-lane roads on my Harley, much of which I have written about on FitHippie.blog  When I first started riding motorcycles in 2006, women made up less than 10% of American motorcycle riders; eighteen years later, women make up about 19% of U.S. motorcycle riders.    

I’ve had several hobbies over the years that engulfed my social life and free time; scuba diving, rock climbing, running, triathlon, skydiving, and shooting to name a few.  Each of these pastimes brought personal growth and friends, but most only lasted for a few years.  Riding motorcycles however, has become much more than just a hobby.  It has become a vehicle for introspection and evolution.  It has become part of my identity and has endured for a couple of decades.  I know that there will come a day when this endeavor will also recede with the passing seasons of my life.  But, for now, I’m rumbling along that dash on my Harley, with a growing number of women riders, for all it’s worth!