Don’t take your attention totally away from the road, but start looking around the next time you go for a drive. Pay particular attention to the the motorcycles that you see during your trip. What is the main thing that you are noticing about riders today? The main thing that I am noticing is that the sport is enjoying an influx of lady riders. I have not only noticed this while out on the road, but we have experienced the same in our motorcycle safety classes. I would guess that the percentage of female students in our program is in the neighborhood of 35 to 45%. In a report on the Women Riders Now.com website (http://www.womenridersnow.com/PublicFiles/DepartmentViewer.asp?ArticleID=810), they say,
According to the Motorcycle Industry Council, the number of female riders has increased 36% since 1998.
I could not argue that point at all. Every class that I teach, the students introduce themselves and give the class an idea of why they are there. Two main reasons pop up in every class. One is that they got rid of the boyfriend or husband and had enjoyed motorcycling with them so much that they decided they would take up the sport on their own. The second is that the boyfriend or hubby is still around but they were tired of sitting on the back seat. They wanted to be in control of that motorcycle.
If you want to see the impact of women on motorcycling look no further than cyberspace. Pull a search on lady riders or lady bikers and you will be blasted with hundreds of thousands of website hits. Their impact is so great on the motorcycling community that new products are being introduced into the market every day, designed just for that woman who wants the freedom of the road. We are not just talking about riding gear any more. The motorcycle manufacturers are designing motorcycles just for the ladies. The Harley Davidson Motor Company (http://www.harley-davidson.com) with the Sportster Low that has a seat height of 25.3 inches. Or the Ridley Automatic (http://www.ridleymotorcycles.com) line of light weight, low center of gravity motorcycles that are targeted at both new riders and women. The automatic transmission takes much of the coordination factor out of riding which is appealing to many people. To each their own, as shifting is part of the fun of motorcycling in my opinion.
The boom of lady riders is not only a United States experience. It is also being witnessed in Canada according to my friend RonW who teaches the safety course there. They are experiencing the same influx of lady riders into their community that we are. I welcome the ladies to riding and encourage them to take a safety course and be responsible.
Steve (HarleyMac1) and the MC Nation
