Renata has people constantly come up to her and talk to her about her Harley. “I had an old Navy guy come up to me and say ‘I bought my first Harley in 1974’.”
Renata works as a heavy machine operator, loading logs on trucks and loves her job. If given the chance she will ride her bike every day. Her favourite cruise is through Dargaville, Opononi, car ferry up to Cape Reinga and down East coast.
“It just keeps your head on straight, when I put that helmet on...there’s just no feeling like it!” she says, “It keeps you happy.”
Adventure definitely runs through the family. Renata’s dad was a ‘full of life’ kind of guy who rode bikes and even flew planes up until he died. Renata wanted to have something in her life for her. “My mum was in a wheelchair for 20yrs and was really sick. I realised I was just living life the same as her and I didn’t need to.” Old family friends have told her that she looks like her mum when she is riding.
Although her parents passed away before they got to see her ride, she thinks of them often. “When I’m on the bike I feel close to them and think of them as I ride. It’s definitely a connection to them.”