Burnout Buell Babe

As a photographer I am always on the lookout for a good story out there.

I was introduced to Martine after I had meet her by phone some months before while she was recuperating from her accident at Willowbank Drag strip, and the reason we both had a common thing that was we both crashed on this drag strip, a few years apart. So I was at an event and then got to meet this very fine lady, then it was there that I knew Martine was a very good subject for me to put to the magazine. Why? because like me she is a lady rider, and she looks real sweet on her Buell.  Nice to see and meet other ladies out there that ride, even if it is a very male dominated scene. But Martine is a very talented bike rider, and of course it is good to do a story on a lady rider. Martine is a teacher, in early child care children.

This is her story.

Recently I entered a biker’s world and joined WIMA (Women’s International Motorcycling Association) with my trainer -a Yamaha V-Star 250.

Mt Tamborine was our first challenge, cruising through gracious sweeping corners. This is when I understood that as a rider, you notice more things in detail out on the road. You know like those yellow-arrow sign posts that some tight corners show off! After a few of those, my technique failed, and I ended up brushing the dust off my boots! I checked out the damage on bike and me, not too bad!   I was so thrilled to have missed every post so I rode on and enrolled in some invaluable lessons through Morgan & Wacker.

Those techniques have been very precious to me on the road, and I reckon other riders are thankful I got some new skills too! Trading to a Honda Shadow VT750 was comfortable for a while, but the day I test rode the Buell XB9S- that was it! Cornering with the Buell felt unreal, not forgetting that burst of energetic power! Wanting more grunt, I soon jumped up to the XB12S. Oh yeah baby! Lifting her front wheel through every gear change and with full throttle engaged -we raced down the drag strip! Too bad I shot past the quarter mile and ran the entire track to skim straight over the top of that kitty-litter and test out the bounce on the strategically positioned tyre wall! Emerging from the smoky cloud of dust, we were bruised but not broken. On the same strip in 1996, another rider had a similar unfortunate run. Learning from my experience I can safely say that first time racers should ensure they are taken down the track to see exactly where the quarter mile finishes  -before racing,  (as there were no markings on the tarmac).

Well that day turned out to be a test, tune and crash! Repairs and re-spray were on the cards soon after, creating Street Bratt’s new colour to Gun-Metal grey. Graphite air-brushing may soon polish her off. My new adventure involves Campaigning for Motor Bike Safety Awareness as it is well worth it for us riders, being easy targets on the roads and all. Individuals can create a strong influence towards biker safety.  As one example, should you notice a bad, unsafe section of road – report it to the local council…they respond and repair. Yeah!  Over the last three years, 48000kms of bitumen and a patch of kitty-litter have seen my bike and I’ll be riding tomorrow.  Destination where?   Don't know and who really cares cause it’s all about the ride! Too bad I shot past the quarter mile and ran the entire track! Over the crest the tarmac changed colour from brown to dark grey. That’s when I clicked! At over 200ks I managed to wash off some speed with those super brakes… but continued straight into the abyss as if a magnetic force had a hold to skim straight over the top of that kitty-litter and test out the bounce on the strategically positioned tyre wall! You'll notice that I don't mention any thanks or recognition to a painter because I painted my bike myself. I don't reckon the bike-world want to hear that sort of thing because they all have there bikes professionally painted. The guys laugh at my paint-job but that's okay. It's all good fun - sandpaper, paints and the guts to stuff it up!

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