Yet leap I did , and with both feet .
They say that fortune favours the brave and this is true , I left my job and underwent surgery on both hands and crossed my fingers .
My training began in 2013 , and by 2014 I was working as a qualified motorcycle instructor for one of the biggest providers in the country . Here I was living the dream .
It ’ s funny how people make jokes about the plumber who has a leaky tap at home as they never have time to fix them . How true it is . Here I was teaching others how to ride but never seemed to have time to ride myself . This was about to change .
When I first got my motorcycle licence all those years ago , I had always dreamed of loading up my bike and setting off to explore our beautiful country . Like so many others the reality of raising children and paying bills had taken over . Here I was working and teaching others how to ride and living the dream , but the urge to travel was still there , simmering below the surface . It took the loss of my best friend to cancer to make me realise I needed to do it and do it now . So , I packed my gear , loaded my bike , and set off . The first trip I planned was to Victoria , as I had always wanted to see the 12 Apostles . The course I had plotted took me from my hometown on the far south coast of New South Wales down through the snowfields and into Victoria .
Once over the border I planned on riding over Mount Hotham , down through Bright and onto Ballarat . After this I would turn down towards Torquay and commence my ride along the Great Ocean Road . Returning home by riding back through country Victoria , a ferry trip across the bay to Portsea , and following the coastline back into NSW . A total of about 2,700 kilometres .
Sounded simple , but as I hopped on my fully loaded BMW and started to ride away , I was full of doubt . Over the years I had always found that by putting on my helmet I could find some inner peace , but as I rode away that day this silence was gone and it had suddenly become very noisy inside the helmet .
Could I do this ? What if my bike broke down ? Was it safe to be riding alone ?
The determination I felt to achieve my dream , soon silenced those doubting voices and the adventure began .
This first trip now feels like a lifetime ago , and I have found since then , that I don ’ t plan as much and certainly don ’ t pack as much , which I ’ m sure my bike appreciates .
As a woman who rides solo and travels I continue to encounter those looks of disbelief but now I find that instead of feeling defensive I can enjoy them .
A few years ago , I was getting ready for a trip , so I popped into my local camping store to purchase an EPIRB for safety . The salesman had asked , “ Where are you off to ?” “ Outback ,” I replied . “ Probably Lightning Ridge .” “ By four-wheel drive ?”, he then asked . “ No , I ’ m riding a motorcycle out there by myself ,” the
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