Passion, People and Community | @motocaitlin | Rider Stories

My name is Caitlin, I’m 23 and pretty new to motorbikes. I currently ride a Kawasaki Ninja 400 on my A2 licence.

I got into bikes late. Unlike the majority of riders I know I wasn’t brought up with any exposure to motorbikes. I believed the bad press surrounding them and therefore had no interest in them. That was until last year when I actually got on one for the first time...

I was seeing a guy who worked for Kawasaki and he took me out on the back of a Z900RS and I haven’t looked back! Within a few months we were loading up a Triumph Sprint ST, heading to Belgium for the weekend on the ferry! I enjoyed the freedom, breeze and being able to filter through traffic jams (it makes me feel like a princess ok).

Being on a bike was so fun that I no longer enjoyed driving a car, it didn’t give me the same feeling. Within 2 weeks of getting back from Belgium I had booked my CBT. I didn’t bother getting a 125 as I had a feeling I’d outgrow it very quickly so I went straight on to lessons and passed my A2 test in September.

Lots of motorbike fun later we now live together with my Ninja 400, his ZX10-R and a Yamaha FZ1 we use for touring. I’ll be turning 24 in July so I’ll be able to take my test again to obtain my full licence. I love my 400 but I can’t wait to swap it for a 636!

My two favourite bits of motorcycle kit are my Bull-it covec high waisted skinny jeans and my helmet intercom system so I can talk to the people I’m riding with (I normally just use it to alert them of cute dogs in the back of cars).

My parting advice is go for it! Don’t be intimidated by knowing nothing and starting from scratch, bikers are extremely friendly and passionate people who will likely bend your ear off any chance they get to talk about riding and help you out. It really is a great community of people. Just remember to go at your own pace. Riding a motorcycle is a very personal experience so do it for you, and enjoy!

Follow Caitlin's story on her Instagram @motocaitlin