WIMA Victoria: Jellybean and Me

Jellybean and Me

On New Year's Day I found myself at my first bike rally. Getting me there had taken a lot of persistence from my friend Marc, who eventually convinced me that 'bikies' are not the evil force that most four-wheeled terrorists think they are.

The first day was spent sitting around with the guys listening to all the 'bike talk'. In the wee hours of the morning one of them asked if I was interested in learning to ride. I explained that I was concerned about getting a bike low enough as I'm only just over 5 feet. A quick sit on his big green Kawasaki with my feet dangling several inches above the ground illustrated the point. However, at this point the wheels in my head began to turn.

Someone suggested I ring VicRoads to enquire about a learner's course. I suspect they thought I wouldn't follow up, but the next day I rang HART (Honda Australia Rider Training) and booked myself in for the learning course. By January 25 I had my learner's permit and on February 1 I bought my first bike - a purple GSX250, my little Jellybean on wheels.

As many nights as I could, I took my bike out after work to ride laps of the industrial estate near home. These little practice sessions lasted 10 to 15 minutes. At that stage, the furthest I'd ridden was to my parents' house (a trip of 20kms). I wanted to meet people who would support me in learning to ride, and after asking around, I found myself at a WIMA meeting on February 10. Before I go on, I want to thank everyone for making me feel so welcome that night. Right from the word go I knew I was going to have the support I needed.

For a reason I have yet to determine, I decided that I would go to the WIMA AGM at Lake Hume, and that I would ride up on my own. I'd not even driven that far before! So it was on Friday February 19 that I was on my way to Albury after having to convince Jellybean that if she didn't start we wouldn't get very far at all.

With my gear safely ocky-strapped to the bike, went along at my own pace speeding up and slowing down depending on how brave I was feeling at the time. I don't think there was a single vehicle on the Hume Highway that afternoon that didn't overtake me!

I knew that trucks passing would knock you around a bit, but I had no idea how frightening it was. The first time one overtook me was on a narrow shoulder of a sweeping bend on a bridge. I had seen it coming and thought it would wait until we got around the bend, but it came around me like a hurricane! I muttered numerous expletives and talked the bike and myself through it. After that experience I managed to hold me own with other passing vehicles, though at times I wondered if they were having a 'let's see how much we can freak out the learner' competition.

After a long and hard ride, dodging flying bits of tyre, getting a little lost and a forgettable incident on the gravel in the Lake Hume car park (Jellybean had to have a bit of a rest and two nice men helped me pick her up again), I finally made it to the reception area. As I hopped off the bike I saw a group of leather-clad people heading towards me. I recognised Moira straight away. If she looked suprised when I told her I had ridden up, she looked doubly surprised when I told her I'd ridden alone. In fact, I don't think I can count the number of people who congratulated me on hearing about my solo ride. In retrospect, I shouldn't have made such a long trip on my own so soon.

I rode part of the way back with Tanya, Dave, Joanne and Robyn. The comfort of having some group support made me wish I'd asked someone to ride up with me. Although I felt uncomfortable at first for slowing the group down, I felt safe seeing Dave in my mirrors riding behind me - kind of like a guardian angel.

It was fortunate that I wasn't travelling alone as I had bike trouble on the way back. The power kept dropping and surging and a few times it stalled completely. Having company made it seem like an inconvenience rather than a traumatic experience. I don't know what I'd have done on my own.

At Benalla I split from the group and managed to limp my way home alone. Tanya had given me her phone number and asked me to call so that she would know I'd gotten home safely - that rider support thing I was talking about! When I finally got home I was aching in muscles that I never knew I had. I cannot remember feeling so physically exhausted, yet at the same time so glad I had done something.

The next day as I looked at my exhausted reflection in the mirror I had to stop for a moment. 'Get a load of me', I thought, as a smile crept across my face. 'I rode to Albury and made it back in one piece'.

Liz Loke