Rider Profile - Catherine Naslund
Catherine’s life centres around motorcycles including 80% of her social events. “We’re at charity events during the summer, and every road race event so there’s not a lot of time in the seat”
Growing up, Catherine had lots of friends with motorcycles and was always a passenger. She had an interest in riding but that interest was almost extinguished during a hair-raising ride on her brother’s GS1000S with her wearing only a halter top, shorts and sandals and him going “way too fast”. His exuberance on the throttle almost ejected her and that was her last experience until she got on the back of her now husband’s bike.
Becoming a rider has prompted some interesting observations. First of all, “you notice motorcycles more when you’re a rider. You also notice the number of riders and passengers who aren’t wearing proper protective gear.” Secondly, is the reaction she still gets from people who have known her in a business context and then learn she’s a rider. “Their immediate comments about biker chicks etc, show me how uneducated they are about our hobby. Even my daughter thinks it’s a little silly of me.”
She enjoys riding for the sense of freedom it evokes. It’s something that my husband and I can do that we have in common. She finds that riding with others she can trust far preferable to riding alone. She uses her Bandit for basic transportation around Toronto and feels more comfortable in the city than in outlying areas. She has been on a few longer distance rides, most recently visiting Lake Placid with friends. She gets annoyed with people who want to ride long distances and not stop. To her, the ride is the experience – an opportunity to explore new places, meet new people. “Riding without stopping damages the experience.”
She’d like to see a lot education of car drivers in regards to respecting motorcyclist’s safety and our right to the road. They’re not aware of how dangerous some of their actions are. Catherine is also an advocate of always keeping your riding skills current. She’s been to Fast school a few times and it’s given her more confidence in leans and reaction time.
Her advice: “Definitely take courses; and if you don’t feel comfortable, don’t do it. When my husband rides a motorcycle, it’s an extension of his body. It’s not like that for me yet. When I learned to ride, it was at an age when I was aware of my mortality.”
"As long as i feel safe and i trust the people I’m riding with, I’ll continue to ride as long as I can."