The Idaho Biker Bunnies and my newly-decorated bike

I remember the day I became an “Idaho Biker Bunny.”

I was in line at a Wyoming Taco Bell with four other Conga riders from Idaho, whom I met in 2010 on my first road trip. They agreed to escort me from Cheyenne through their beautiful state all the way to Boise, where I would then finish the trip to my ultimate destination of Bend, Oregon. This is one of many, MANY times that people have said, “Oh yeah, come on, I’ll show you my corner of the world.”

The eavesdroppers

I noticed a middle-aged couple behind us as we waited in an extraordinarily long line. We riders ranged in age from 48-78 and were animated in our discussion about our recent experience in Cheyenne and our plans for Lava Hot Springs later that night. You know how you can tell when someone’s hanging on your every word but trying not to be too obvious about it? That was the woman.

The man, on the other hand, took action. “Hey, ladies. Are you the biker bunnies with those motorcycles out in the parking lot?”

That certainly broke the ice! The wife began asking us all kinds of questions about our bikes and our sport. We could tell she was itching for an adventure and encouraged her to take a licensing course.

The forbidden fruit

For many of us, motorcycling has been a forbidden fruit, sort of like Ralphie in The Christmas Story–“You’ll shoot your eye out, kid!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrrp://www.youtube.com/embed/ppOXpyhM2wA

I didn’t consider motorcycling when I was a teenager, but as you know, got an irresistible itch in middle age. I learned that I’m not alone in my middle-aged itch. For women, there’s something about middle age and motorcycling. Testosterone takes a more prominent position in the mix than ever before, which makes us more willing to take risks. The kids are often out of the house or otherwise not requiring so much of our attention, so why not?

Life is short.  If you want to do something, just because you weren’t allowed to do something before, just because you might think it’s frivolous, WHATEVER! Follow the urge. Taking up motorcycling gave me a new lease on life. It opened up opportunities that I never anticipated. I just knew I wanted to ride a motorcycle!

GO FOR IT–whatever “IT” is!