Globe-trotting women bikers offer tips on riding solo

The Keystone Convention Center is awash in motorcycles

Safety networks, proper gear and planning, and dealing honestly and openly with the people you encounter can be keys in successful, enjoyable solo riding for women motorcyclists.

These were among the tips offered by three highly experienced international traveling women, who happen to do their traveling on motorcycles. The three, Sarah Schilke, Alice Sexton, and Carla King, discussed "Solo Riding and Touring: Gaining Confidence in Taking to the Open Road" at the ongoing International Women & Motorcycling Conference in Keystone, CO.

Alice Sexton (left) and Sarah Schilke

Sarah Schilke, the first woman elected to the board of directors of the Motorcycle Industry Council and U.S. representative to the FIM Commission on Women in Motorcycling, told how starting out, she joined clubs. This enabled her to ride alone when she chose but to have others who knew where she was supposed to arrive and who could follow up in case she didn't.

Her first big cross-country trip came when she bought a bike on Ebay and flew across the country to ride it home. Through club connections she had places to stay each night, and that made her trip more of a series of day rides rather than a big, daunting trip.

Sarah's tips included:

Have proper gear, because if you get hurt and there's no one else around you could be in serious trouble.
Carry snacks and water.
Have a cell phone.
Sign up for a roadside assistance program.
Take along a list of local contacts.
Carry cash, and various currencies, especially dollars, when traveling internationally.
Carry a credit card.
Talk to people you meet, and develop a rapport with locals. You never know when they'll offer great tips or end up providing needed assistance.

Alice Sexton is president of the Women's International Motorcycle Association. Her key tips are to make sure your bike is well-serviced before taking off and plan the trip carefully. That said, Alice enjoys changing plans when it suits her.

She recommends carrying a tech manual for your motorcycle so that even if you can't fix it, someone else might be able to. She always carries duct tape, electrical tape, a Leatherman tool, and spare bulbs. Alice also indulges herself with one comfort item, her pajamas.

Staying by herself in campgrounds, Alice likes to get acquainted with the campground host as added assurance.

"Nothing is bad on the road, you have to be open to it," she says. "Embrace the unknown but trust your gut."

She also noted that "U-haul is your friend." When the bike is unrepairable just go ahead and load it in a trailer and drive it home.

Carla King

Carla King wrote the book on riding around the U.S., literally. Her book, American Borders, tells her story of riding the Russian Ural as a test before it was marketed here. She has traveled in Europe, China, and Africa and has many tales to tell.

Her first solo international ride came when, after years of putting it off, she told her husband she was doing the trip whether he came or not. She went alone.

The first two weeks were miserable, sad and lonely, but "one day in campground something just changed." She met people, made friends, and never looked back.

Carla described a technique she developed for ensuring the security of her belongings on her bike in other countries. She would park near a fruit stand, buy some fruit, and ask if it was OK to leave the bike parked there. The vendor always said yes and the attraction of the bike and American woman riding it always drew flocks of people, which helped the vendor's business.

She also noted that "people do have a sense of honor, and if you honor them they will honor you."

Asked if any of them are afraid of traveling alone, the answer was a unanimous "No." As a woman riding a motorcycle, they said, you are something of an anomaly. Thugs tend to seek out victims they are comfortable assaulting, and a woman in full biker gear does not fit that profile.

Carla added that she does still get scared at the beginning of each trip, but "I took the leap and the rewards outweigh the risks 90-10."

The International Women & Motorcycling Conference continues through Saturday, Aug. 22.