Motorbike 101

There are 5 cars on Cat Ba Island. Maybe more, but so far, I’ve counted five. In addition to these few four-wheeled oddities are a variety of tourist vans and local busses. Traditional taxis? None. Zip. Nada. Some of the roads are too narrow to support a car anyway. So getting around the island happens in two ways: on your feet or on a motorbike. The second you walk out of a guesthouse, restaurant, shop etc. you are immediately preyed upon by the Xeom (motorbike) drivers asking you if you need a lift. At first, I used their services to get around town and out to Butterfly Valley where Slo Pony has a large limestone crag developed for rock climbing. However, the xeom drivers race around like bats out of hell and I’m wasting money every time I jump on one after a good 2 minutes of negotiating the price, which gets exhausting. So I finally realized that motorbike = freedom and decided to take charge and learn how to drive one of these things myself. (Sorry, Dad)

 Slo Pony owns a few bikes and lent me cute little green number that Pete patiently taught me how to drive. It’s pretty darn simple. Breaks are on the right side….right hand for front tire, right foot for back tire. The gas is controlled by the right hand turning the handle. The left foot shifts the gears…you let off the gas and kind of jam your toe forward to shift up. To shift down, I have to actually lift my foot up and shove my toe down on the back pedal to push it down. I imagine some people can do this with their heel, but not me! It’s pretty easy, however, because unlike a manual transmission car, you don’t have to down shift when slowing down. The motorbike won’t stall if you stop it in 4th gear, for example.

My motorbike and sassy red helmet

The most difficult part for me to learn, actually, was steering. It’s kind of like riding a bicycle…where you lean toward the turn. But when operating a motorized vehicle, I really want to turn the steering wheel. This is a very bad idea on a motorbike. It’s quite sensitive and needs very little true “turning.” It’s like the bike is somehow attached to your eyes. Wherever you look, that’s where you’re going to go. Now for someone (i.e. me) that likes to enjoy the scenery while driving an automobile (problematic in itself) this became an issue because beautiful scenery abounds in Cat Ba and every time I looked up to enjoy it I felt like I might drive off the road. Furthermore, when you’re driving a car and an obstacle appears in the road, usually you look at the obstacle and steer around it. However, when on a motorbike, if an obstacle is in the road and you stare at it, chances are good you will run right into it! You must look toward where you want to go and that’s where you’ll end up. Hmmm….interesting concept. Keep your eyes on the road. Perhaps I should apply this to my automobile driving life when I get home.


After a few weeks of practice it now feels like second nature and I’m enjoying my newfound freedom immensely! It’s kind of life changing, actually, and I wish I’d learned earlier in the trip since motorbikes are the common mode of transportation in SE Asia. And there is little that gives me more pleasure than riding through the relatively unoccupied roads of Cat Ba. Rest assured, dear parents, that I drive like a grandma and am receiving a bit of friendly ribbing because of it.


The other day Pete and Corlie zipped by me on the way to work….they really left me in the dust….and when I got to the shop I commented on his impressive speed to which he replied in his charming South African accent….”yes, Heather, I thought my vortex might actually knock you over.” I’ve gradually picked up a little bit of speed…although I’m still puttering along….and recently commented to Pete that I was feeling more comfortable and driving a bit faster and he said, (insert South African accent here) “is the wind actually blowing through your hair now?” Ha ha.


I also beep the little horn quite a bit to shoo the chickens, dogs and goats out of the road. And to let anyone walking along the narrow lanes know I’m coming. One day, the sweetest kid in the world who works at Slo Pony, Zach, was riding on the back of the bike with me and I was honking away as I rounded the corner and saw some folks walking along side the road. Zach said….”ummm…I don’t think you’re really moving fast enough that they need much warning.” He was totally serious.  So I’ve established my reputation as the granny and I’m feeling pretty good about it. I’m in no hurry.