Working Class Hero

21.10.08

During my travels one afternoon, I spotted a young lady weaving through the traffic in Edenvale on her motorcycle. I flagged her down at the nearest traffic light, handed her my business card and asked her to contact me and, sure enough, the next morning there was an email waiting for me. We arranged to meet at the McDonalds in Edenvale as I was intrigued to hear her story. Angela Bowie (no relation to David by the way), is a 25 year old bookkeeper who comes from a family of motorcycle enthusiasts. Her father, 5 brothers, uncles and aunts all ride bikes so it was inevitable that she would be bitten by the bug. 18 months ago, she purchased her very first motorcycle, a Bajaj Pulsar and thus began her introduction to the wonderful world of motorcycling. Angela works and lives in Edenvale and covers a distance of approximately 15kms per day. She has racked up an impressive 10000kms over the last year and a half and her passion for motorcycling is evident by the smile on her face as she talks to me. I asked her if she has had any accidents since she started riding and she told me that a mere three months after taking to the streets, she was knocked off the Bajaj by a truck. Luckily the only injury was a broken thumb and Angela was straight back in the saddle, determined to ride again. She is not the least bit phased by her close call, and has instead learnt to be more alert and focused when riding. Like all of us who commute on a daily basis, Angela loves the freedom that motorcycling offers her, the fact that she is never stuck in pesky traffic jams and can climb onto her bike and enjoy the pure adrenalin rush that just cannot be experienced whilst sitting behind the wheel of a car. Angela is so enthusiastic about her motorcycling that she has even convinced her boyfriend to start riding. We had a giggle over the fact that it just is not very macho to sit behind your girlfriend on any motorcycle let alone a little Bajaj. He is now the proud owner of a Triumph Tiger and together they go on breakfast runs and even attend track days. The Pulsar has proven to be a reliable and cost effective commuter, but sadly Angela has outgrown her little Bajaj as she says it is just not fast enough to keep up with the guys on a breakfast run. She has her sights set on either a Honda Hornet, Suzuki GSR600 or Triumph Street Triple. It was an absolute pleasure to meet you Angela, we look forward to seeing you in the traffic on your new steed!