Lyndsay Woodrum
Communications: Advertising/Public Relations, Minor: Marketing
There are many hobbies that I enjoy, but riding my hot pink Yamaha R6 motorcycle is a feeling that allows me relaxation, freedom, and the ability to have a lot of fun with either myself or with friends. I have been riding motorcycles since I was sixteen years old, and obtained my motorcycle license a few months after I had passed the driving test. It took a very long time to convince my parents to help me financially purchase a motorcycle. My mom was totally against the idea, while my dad thought it was a neat idea. My parents thought the situation through thoroughly and came to the conclusion that if I was riding with my guy friends on the back of their motorcycles, they would feel much safer if I was driving my own, because often males like to show-off in front of their friends. My dad ended up helping me purchase my first motorcycle which was a Kawasaki Ninja EX-250. It was a very small motorcycle, but perfect for me to start out on. Since then, I have owned a total of three motorcycles.
Riding my motorcycle allows me relaxation, and I cannot begin to explain how wonderful it feels when I’m cruising down the highway and the wind is flowing through my long hair. The warm breeze blowing on me, while the sun it beating down on my skin on a hot sunny day. I enjoy taking long rides with my friends to places I’ve never been before, and viewing the beautiful scenery as I ride past. Riding my motorcycle is a sensation that clears my mind, allows me to think thoroughly, and often gives me quality alone time.
Riding my motorcycle is a sense of freedom for me, because I feel that I can go anywhere, physically or mentally. The relaxation puts me into a state of mind as if everything is just ideal. The freedom of having my own motorcycle and not depending on someone else is wonderful because I can leave and go wherever I choose. My destination is always obtainable, and that in itself is independence and freedom.
The pleasure, fun, and excitement that riding brings to my friends and I are memories that we will never forget. The Sunday afternoon rides that we meet to enjoy the beautiful weather. The many trips to Deal’s Gap in North Carolina where there is a riding course with 318 curves in 11 miles have been quite the crazy thrill! Or, the adventurous trips to Columbus, OH to bike night at Quakersteak at the Polaris Parkway. My friends and I have made memories that will stay with us our entire life.
The passion of riding motorcycles has in the past not been linked very closely with the female gender, but in time has developed tremendously. In today’s society, there are many female riders who have taken on the experience and opportunity of riding a motorcycle. Riding a motorcycle has always been classified as a “man’s sport”, but today, there are many female’s who are just as qualified to ride. I enjoy seeing female’s everyday who are riding, and I often tell them that I think it is amazing that they decided to start. I do not have many female friends that ride, but traveling around to other places has given me the opportunity to meet many, and those who do not, it has shown them that if I can ride, than they can ride! Hopefully, in my area, there will be more females who will join, and develop motorcycles as their passion.