News on the HOG Newsletter from our Chapter!

Link to the HOG Story:

https://cloud.email2.harley-davidson.com/Apr24-Maja-Algarve-Chapter

Maja’s Road to Harley and Vlad.

Florida.

It wasn’t apparent and looked most unlikely what was in her future when she climbed onto the pillion seat of a rented Street Glide in Miami not so far back in April 2022, cruising downtown where the streets had there less than smooth qualities, her initial excitement was bounced out of her, by the time they had reached the city limits, added to which the bike was red and not black as she had first prescribed.

The beauty of their route, South to Florida Keys, took her mind away, this was the first time ever that she had been a pillion rider or sat on a bike at all, apart from the odd picture opportunity here and there.

As she revelled and reminisced in the scenes from old movies crossing The Seven Mile Bridge basking in the sun, miraculously dodging the rain showers, she couldn’t get used to sitting still for hours and not being at the controls of her existence.

Portugal.

Some months later she found herself in Europe, sitting on the back of yet another Street Glide, at least this time it was black, touring the ancient sights of Portugal, this time, something had changed, she was enjoying the moment, still not liking not being in control but enjoying the ride and the memories it was producing, her mind had been more relaxed and focused, not from accepting her position, but relaxed because she had had a new vision, together with a defined image which she installed on her phone’s screen saver, Vlad! dressed with the ‘Wild’ Collection.

Run North to England.

In April 2023, a couple of days into another 15 day return trip through Spain France to England, from the pillion seat, she had decided that, that was it, enough is enough, staring at her screen saver, she swiped open her phone posted on social media the words “Born to be a solo rider”, and promptly, found herself an instructor, riding school and booked herself on a bike riding course at the same time, that would take her license from 50cc to unlimited. By the time day 13 and 14 of the trip came around back in Lisbon, she sat in the afternoons on the internet attending the mandatory 4 hours lectures on new rider techiques in the hotel lobby, she had started her next chapter.

Slovenia.

A few full moons later, after flying through the theory test and carefully navigating the cones on the school playground, she was on the road on a 700cc school bike, followed closely by her instructor Marian shouting into her earpiece, this love hate relationship would last for 42 hours of lessons, road after road and street after street. Whilst chasing

each other through the Slovenian countryside, through the hours of training they had discovered, a familiar connection, Marjan’s mother, A milliner had trained as a young girl in Maja’s grandfather master milliner workshop in the 60’s, they reminisced drinking tea on a pit stop at Maja’s Moms house before jumping back on the bikes for more kilometres of shouting into her ear. He was pushing her, pushing her hard, he knew that winter was around the corner and the snow was coming.

Then finally one very cold late Autumn Day that same year 2023, whilst dodging the torrential down pours, the shouting stopped with the last words, you’ve passed!

The rain was replaced with tears of elation, joy and relief, she had ridden her way into a new life behind bars.

Lisbon.

November 29th 2023, 10:00, she was excited, unsure and nervous, she had ridden him before on a short test drive but today she would throw her leg over, and have to make her way through the city traffic and then drive 260 kilometres South for her first free run, the traffic, the hills, the cobblestones, let alone navigating her way out of this unknown city in its weekday chaos was not something that she had seen in her dreams, as her tension built and as the finishing touches were made before the official hand over of her New Sportster S, she looked down the street as she heard the sound of other Harley’s arriving, bikes that she recognised! What were they doing here?

Director Mike and his sidekick Jules, from the HOG Chapter Algarve had ridden up early through the cold morning fog to escort her on her first run. She was relieved to see them.

Together they rolled out through the busy city streets, negotiating the endless intersections and roundabouts, relieved to leave the city behind, crossing the 16km Vasco de Gama bridge, elated and relaxed, she settled into the journey and her new ride, surrounded by her posse escorting her South, she found a moment to reminisce of her roads to her achievement, with a warm smile, as she realised that she was living her dream.

Ride and have Fun……..