Motorcycle Explorer September 2016 Issue 13 | Page 11

As I came out of the bend on my Triumph Street Twin I saw Joli, our guide for the ride out, pulling up on the grass verge ahead. In front of me Kiki, who had flown in from Portland USA and was riding a rented Harley, also stopped. One by one, all the girls in the group joined us and killed their engines. It wasn’t on our itinerary, but Joli had decided to explore the banks of the River Usk, which we had been riding alongside for a few miles; after several hours under an unusually hot Welsh sun, the river was beckoning us to take a break and jump into the cool waters. We found a secluded pool below a small waterfall; leaving our helmets and jackets on the rocks, we enjoyed swimming, relaxing and laughing together for two hours, reluctant to finish the day and return to the campsite. So how did I find myself riding through the Welsh hills with like-minded women from around the world, letting our plans float away down the river and making space for surprises, spontaneity and adventure as only girls can do? I was attending the first Babes Ride Out event to be held in the UK - a weekend of camping, riding, music and partying in the Brecon Beacons, to which men were strictly not invited. Babes Ride Out is a global community of women with a passion for motorcycling. Born three years ago in the United States, the inaugural event attracted about fifty girls; two years later at Joshua Tree in California, that number had grown to 1200! This year, Babes Ride Out decided to cross the Atlantic and with the support of VC London, an all girls’ motorcycle club, they staged the first UK event .