VA-VA VROOM BIKERS (Le Femme)

TRAIL BLAZING WOMEN BIKERS
June 06, 2005


THEIR figures are steadily growing.
And we're not talking about waistlines.

More women are taking to riding motorbikes, both for fun and competition.
And some opt for powerful machines such as Harley Davidsons.
Today, women are seen lifting fallen motorcycles during riding classes at Singapore Safety Driving Centre, said riding instructors.
Motorcyclists here have always been the most vulnerable group on the road.
But the three women The New Paper on Sunday spoke to show an unflagging passion for motorbikes despite this risk.
One biker said her skills in competitive dirt bike races have helped her better avoid accidents on busy Singapore roads.
VA-VA VROOM BIKERS
Women turn heads as they ride on their mean machines
HE is 1cm shorter after fracturing her spine. She has broken her knee, received bruises, suffered sprains and nearly had her navel ring ripped off.
Yet Ms Janelle Koh's passion for motorbikes remains as powerful as some of the machines she rides.
The 1.7 m tall global sales consultant with a telecommunication company was, until recently, a dirt bike racer who has taken part in competitions here and in Malaysia.

She recently sold her 400cc KTM dirt bike. She has also owned two 200cc dirt bikes.
She is among a small but growing group of women here who handle powerful bikes.
Said Ms Koh, 27: 'I'm independent and stubborn. I will go all out if I really like something.
'I ride because I don't want to depend on a boyfriend to pick me up.
'Without a bike, I'm handicapped.'
She said she started racing in 1998 and participated in at least five races before she stopped racing two years.
In one race held by the Singapore Motor Sport Association, she came in first in the women's category, riding a two-stroke 200cc dirt bike. She also was third overall against male riders. There were at least 10 riders in that race.
On weekdays, she is no different from the many women who work in Shenton Way. She is always dressed in business suits.
She rides to work daily.
On weekends, she is a different person altogether, ditching her work clothes for something more appropriate for motocross.
And she's not afraid to compete with the boys.
Said Ms Koh, the youngest of three siblings: 'I can't beat the guys in terms of strength. But I can beat them with my persistence. Guys who race sometimes give up when they think they don't have a chance to get the top three positions. I just continue until I see the chequered flag.'
Her determination has earned her victories and respect.
'When girls race, spectators automatically cheer for you,' she said.
'I've never crashed on the road. But I've crashed many times on the dirt track. I was out of action for six months when I broke my knee.'
The tattoo enthusiast also enjoys trail-riding (riding dirt bikes on rugged terrain) in Malaysia with her male friends.
The price of a dirt bike ranges from $7,000 to $14,000. Head to toe safety gear can cost as much as $1,000. And racing bikes have to be serviced more, said Ms Koh, who does it herself.
'Racing dirt bikes is about powersliding, brakesliding and fanning the clutch when blazing out of rutted corners,' she said.
Anybody can go fast in a straight line. But to go fast on uneven terrain and tear into tight corners, while preparing for jumps, takes a focused rider.
She doesn't find it funny to be asked by men how fast she has gone on the road.
'I never ride fast on the roads. It's the wrong place to speed. I tell them if you want to get my attention, why not come and race me on the dirt track. If you win, I'll date you.'
She says she has friends who have died riding. Some of her non-biker friends have discouraged her from riding. Others, like her Caucasian boss, her aunties and mother, say it's cool to ride.
'They only want me to be more careful,' she said. Her mother even helps her clean the muddy motorbike after a race.
'Riding a motorcycle is seen as dangerous. For a woman to ride, I think some people see it as socially unacceptable,' said Ms Koh.
Yet she believes her off-road riding skills have helped her survive on Singapore roads.
'If I skid on the road, I'm not likely to panic. Skidding is second-nature to dirt bikers.'
What she cannot accept sometimes is the behaviour of some road users.
'Some guys acknowledge you as a fellow rider. But there are idiots on the road who will try to disturb you. They will speed and come very close to you. Sometimes I ask them to stop and I'll give them a piece of my mind.'
She gets thumbs-up from men
PERHAPS riding a thunder bike like a Harley-Davidson commands more respect, especially if you are a woman.
Unlike Ms Janelle Koh, Ms Tina Soo-Tho (below), 36, a Harley rider, hasn't been harassed by other road users.
Instead, they have always given her the 'thumbs-up sign', said Ms Soo-Tho.
Some men even left name cards and handphone numbers on her motorcycle in the hope of befriending her. She said she never responds to such moves.
One male driver even called a local radio station and described her as a 'distraction on wheels with a pretty face'.
Said Ms Soo-Tho, who rides to work daily from Holland Road to Telok Blangah where she works as an executive secretary in a logistics firm: 'I get people who stop their cars or motorcycles beside me and say 'cool bike'.'
Maybe the men are curious about how she is able to ride the heavily chromed American steed of steel.

Her current Harley-Davidson 883cc Sportster weighs about 250kg - about seven times the weight of this petite rider who tips the scale at 37kg.
But don't be fooled, she is able to handle the motorcycle with ease.
She admits that her height is one of the reasons why she chose to ride Harleys. Harleys have low seat heights unlike dirt bikes.
After passing her class 2 riding test in 2002, she bought her first Harley bike, a much bigger 1,200cc Sportster.
The test required a student to raise a fallen bike to its upright position - those who couldn't would fail.
'I managed to put the bike to its upright position. It's about technique, not size,' she said.
Ms Soo-Tho loves the roar of the Harley.
She said: 'I like the raw feel of riding it. Riding a Harley is also aboutcamaraderie. It's as though youbelong to a brotherhood orsisterhood of bikers.'
More women get ticket to ride
MORE women are turning up at the Singapore Safety Driving Centre (SSDC) to learn to ride bigger bikes.
Said Mr Ramani Muthu, SSDC's Executive (Operations) for motorcycling: 'Compared to 10 years ago, more women riders now return for their class 2A and class 2. Previously, women riders rarely took lessons after passing their class 2B.'
This class of licence allows a rider on a motorcycle with an engine that does not exceed 200cc.
Mr Muthu, 44, added it's now common to see more women riding bigger bikes on Singapore roads.
Women spend on average of 46.6 hours on training before getting their class 2B licence.
Men take 10 hours less to get the same licence, he said.
Said Mr Muthu: 'Perhaps women take a longer time to complete the lessons because of their build. Skills-wise, guys tend to be slightly better.'
In March, there were 146 male students who graduated with a class 2A licence, compared to seven women.
In the same month, there were 69 male riders who passed class 2, and two women.
So who is the safer rider?
It's hard to say, Mr Muthu said.
Accident statistics are sobering.
In 2003 and 2004, there were 94 motorcyclists killed each year.
In 2003, no women were killed.
The following year, one woman rider was killed.
Said Mr Muthu: 'You can't really say women are safer riders because there are fewer of them compared to male bikers. But female riders are generally more cautious and patient on the road.'
At present, there are 21,000 woman motorcycle licence holders (inclusive of classes 2B, 2A and 2) as compared to 658,000 men, said Traffic Police.
But not all motorcycle licence holders ride, said Mr Muthu. Some do not ride after passing their licence.
Said a spokesman for Traffic Police: 'Although the number of female riders involving in traffic accident forms a small percentage, these figures are not an indication that female riders are better or worse riders.
Undergrad kept bike a secret from family

OR a month in February, undergraduate Nadya Abdullah kept a secret from her parents.
Every time she returned from classes, she would quietly park her motorcycle at a nearby multi-storey carpark and stash her helmet in a box on her bike.
But a month later, her father spotted her with the bike at the carpark in Jurong. She feared it would be the end of her riding days.
Said Ms Nadya, 22, who passed her class 2B licence in February: 'My dad asked me why I was riding. He wanted to know how long I've been hiding it from him.
'He said he would never expect his own daughter to do something like that because of the danger riding involves. I remember he said: 'Please make me happy, don't ride any more'.'
Nobody in her family of four owns a bike. But she wasn't about to give up riding.
'It's not as though I've done something illegal,' she said. 'I've always wanted to learn something new and be independent. Besides, I think riding is cool.'
She revealed she had already bought a DR200 Suzuki dirt bike even before she passed her riding test.
She spent $3,500 for her six-year-old motorcycle.
And she's already considering her next machine - a sports bike, like the 400cc Honda RVF.
Fortunately for her, her father has not told her mother about her riding.
She said: 'If my mother finds out, she will skin me alive. She will nag and blame it on my boyfriend, who also rides. But my decision to ride a motorcycle was never influenced by my boyfriend.'
Ms Nadya said her father has come to terms with her love of riding.
'He asked me to be careful when I am riding,' she added.
'I think now, he is trying to be more understanding about the whole issue.
'Or he could be using reverse psychology on me. If he is doing so, it's not going to work. I'll still ride.'