BWI Family of Brands

Women Riders World Relay on a Ducati Scrambler

Women Riders World Relay 

79 countries, 3,528 registered guardians, 333 days on the road, 102,223 approx km.

By: Ducachica

 

Time flies. 4 months have gone by since I participated in the Women Riders World Relay on my Ducati Scrambler. On Sept. 14, 2019, I left Vancouver and rode my bike across Canada, with 262 other women riders all coming from different parts of the country. 

 

The Women Riders World Relay

The Women Riders World Relay (WRWR) is a worldwide motorcycle relay, founded by Hayley Bell in August 2018, with the goal of encouraging women in motorsports. 

The first edition of the WRWR encompassed nearly 85 countries reaching and inspiring over 20,000 women from all over the world. The relay aims to raise awareness of women across all spheres of motorcycling. The event officially started last 27th February 2019 and continued across the world via a hand-carved baton passed from woman to woman and country to country.

When I first heard about the relay, I thought: “Wow! What a wonderful way of promoting women in motorsports”. I wanted to participate in this famous event so badly, for two reasons: 1. I was looking for a new motorcycle adventure and 2. I wanted to do my part and help to promote women riders. 

 

  

Source: DucachicaPhoto: Ducachica, Day 1, Vancouver, Canada.

How to Get Ready for a Long-Distance Trip

When it comes to long motorcycle journeys, wearing the proper gear and ensuring that your bike is comfortable enough and long-distance-trip ready, is of paramount importance. Think about it. It’s only going to be you and your bike on the road for days, so might as well be well-prepared for the adventure.

Ducati Scrambler

Source: Ducachica – Photo: Ducati Scrambler Icon 2017. 

 

The Gear

When packing my Ducati Scrambler for the relay, I had a very specific goal in mind: bring the very minimum. 

That being said, for this 10-day trip I did stick to my goal and brought the very minimum, which I am very proud of considering the fact that I often tend to bring too much gear with me when traveling. In order to achieve my goal, I first gathered all the things I wanted to bring. Then I cut the pile into two halves, and then cut one of the halves into 2. What was left is what I brought: 1 motorcycle jacket, 1 pair of motorcycle pants, 1 raincoat, 2 sets of gloves, 2 base layers, 3 t-shirts, 2 pairs of pants, 1 pair of shoes, 7 pairs of socks, underwear for 10 days, along with my filming gear and electronics, and some other small things (First Aid kit, chain lubricant, zip ties, tuck tape, and so on).

The bare minimum was definitely minimal

But guess what?

It worked out perfectly.

Ducati Scrambler WRWR

Source: Ducachica – Photo: Ducachica Getting Ready, Day 1, Vancouver, Canada.

 

The Bike

I rode the relay on my 2017 Ducati Scrambler Icon with great pride. I know, I know, some of you will probably think that riding close to 10,000 kilometers with a “commuter” was a crazy idea, but actually it wasn’t that bad. I did it with my Scrambler for two reasons: 1. It’s the only bike I own(!) and by the time I thought about renting a different bike or having a bike sponsored for the relay, it was almost time for me to pack my bags.  2. I wanted to see how far I could go with a Ducati Scrambler without ending up with a sore back or a sore buttock. 

I’ll be honest with you. In my opinion, no matter what motorcycle you ride, after riding 150-200 km you’ll want to stop for a break and stretch your body a little before hitting the road again anyway.

Prior to taking off, a few modifications on the bike were required. Among the few modifications, I’ve installed a new and wider windscreen, new handguards, lowered the suspension a notch, and added a few accessories and gizmos. The goal was to make my Ducati Scrambler Icon more long-distance travel-worthy, while keeping it as light as possible.  

GIVI 7407AS Windscreen With “78” Serigraphy

One of the first things I did, is change the stock windscreen for a wider and higher windscreen. The stock windscreen on the Ducati Scrambler is quite small and does not really deflect the wind, unfortunately. It looks stylish and compact on my naked bike, but it is just a tad too short. 

Therefore, I installed the GIVI 7407AS Windscreen With “78” Serigraphy, available on TwistedThrottle.ca, for approximately CAN212$, including the mounting kit. 

Source: Ducachica – Photo: GIVI 7407AS Windscreen With “78” Serigraphy

Installation instructions were also included in the kit and honestly, it probably took me around 30 minutes (top!) to securely install the windscreen. After mounting it on my Scrambler I went for a test ride and immediately noticed a tiny little gap between the bottom of the windscreen and the front light. This seemed to cause some sort of a rattling noise at medium-to-high speed. In order to fix this, I simply added a tiny piece of foam in between the bottom of the windscreen and the headlight. If you look at the picture, the piece of foam is barely visible, and honestly it made all the difference in the world. My bike now had a bigger, larger and higher windscreen.

Did it make a difference in the end? Definitely!

Not only the difference between the two windscreens is noticeable, but my bike also looks cooler with a larger windscreen. Throughout the relay, I’ve had numerous people approaching me because of the bike I was riding and also because of that big fancy GIVI windscreen I had mounted on the Scrambler. 

Verdict? The new GIVI 7407AS Windscreen With “78” Serigraphy properly deflects the wind above my helmet and makes the ride smoother.

Barkbusters Handguards 

Some people spend hundreds of dollars on motorcycle accessories but somehow underestimate important items, such as handguards. Handguards are very useful when it comes to deflecting the wind, rain or flying debris, and they also keep your hands safe. I went for the Barkbusters handguards for my Ducati Scrambler. The Barkbusters handguards come with a metal frame, which is very good in my opinion as it protects the clutch and brake levers if or when your bike goes down and hits the ground. 

Ducati Scrambler

Source: Ducachica – Photo: Barkbusters Handguards

The Barkbusters handguards and mounting kit are sold for ~CAN287$ altogether, on TwistedThrottle.ca. Installing the handguards on the Scrambler was also a somewhat easy task. It took me about 20 minutes to mount the two pieces, which isn’t bad at all considering I had never installed handguards before. 

Did it help deflect the wind and rain and protect my hands as expected? Absolutely!

The first 2-3 days of the Women Riders World Relay – Canada were cloudy, rainy, and windy. I did bring a second pair of gloves in case of heavy rain but in total honesty the handguards did a very good job at deflecting the wind and most of the rain, which definitely helped in keeping my hands safe and dry for a long period of time. 

Women Riders World Relay Canada

The famous WRWR baton finally made its way to Canada, on Sept. 13th, 2019, and I was READY. Ready to leave my people, house, and 2 dogs, for an exciting bike trip across Canada. Ready to partake in this wonderful motorcycle event, and above all ready to shout out to manufacturers that we, women riders, exist!

I rode the relay from Vancouver, Canada, all the way to Montreal for a total of 4910 km. I then spent a few days in the province of Quebec, after which I rode another 273 km to New-Brunswick on my own. Then, I rode back to Vancouver and added an extra 6556 km to the odometer for a grand total of 11466 km.

Source: Ducachica – Photo: Cochrane, Alberta

 

Along with the WRWR ladies, I’ve crossed 7 provinces and ridden nearly 5000 km within 10 days on my Ducati Scrambler. Some ladies joined the relay at the beginning, some in the middle, and some near the end. But all together we made it. The baton was successfully delivered to the USA ladies on Sept. 24th, 2019.

The whole relay is about friendship, sisterhood, sharing a passion, and living the moment. After riding nearly 5000 kilometers with the WRWR ladies, I can only confirm the latter assertion. The Women Riders World Relay is definitely a wonderful way of making new and lifelong friends.

 

 

Ducachica is a female rider and journalist, living in Canada. She’s been surfing in the motorcycle industry for about 9 years and launched the motorcycle website ducachica.com 2 years ago. She enjoys traveling and going to places no one goes. She also enjoys learning about the world and its and different cultures and languages, and above all, she absolutely loves riding her Ducati Scrambler Icon. You can follow her on Instagram or Facebook, or via the website ducachica.com.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *