Member story: Isabel Marble
When Isabel Marble from Ball Ground, Georgia, saw her dadâs new Harley-Davidson® Fat Boy®, it was love at first sight
Everyone remembers the day you completely fall in love with something or someone. For me, it was the day my dad brought home the motorcycle he purchased. It was a 1997 seafoam green and white Harley-Davidson Fat Boy. I immediately knew I had to learn to ride it!
After several months of trying to persuade my parents, they finally agreed. I received a Honda Rebel for my 17th birthday so I could learn to ride. I got my motorcycle permit and spent many, many hours with my dad as he taught me the riding basics. Riding bikes together quickly became our thing. After I mastered riding the Rebel and took an advanced rider course at Southern Devil Harley-Davidson®, I âgraduatedâ to riding the Fat Boy. My dad and I rode our two Harleys (he had an H-D® Street Glide®) all over the North Georgia mountains.
I was scheduled to go on a trip to Germany the summer after COVID-19 hit, but it was postponed until the summer of 2021. After the trip was postponed again, I canceled it. In its place, my parents and I took a motorcycle trip to the western U.S.: We rented an RV toy hauler and drove to Colorado Springs, Yellowstone, and Sturgis and rode the motorcycles there. My dad said riding up Pikes Peak with me was one of the best days of his life. It was my senior trip and the trip of a lifetime (route here: https://maps.harley-davidson.com/share/rides/4NPskmny2)!
On June 15, 2021, I was involved in a car accident that cost me the lower half of my right leg. After months of recovery, I received my prosthetic leg. One of the first things I did was sit on the motorcycle to see if I was still able to hold it up. Less than a week later, I was riding around the neighborhood. And a little over a year after the accident, I was back riding with my dad.
Itâs still our thing we do together, and it makes me whole again after a bad day. I ride as avidly as I did before. Off the bike, Iâm a student at Mississippi State University studying toward a pre-med degree, while also working on earning my pilotâs license.
Riding my Harley® is what I truly enjoy. Thereâs nothing better than being on the open road with the wind blowing in your face!
First published in Vol. 106 Issue 03 of The Enthusiast®.
Tags:
Read more tales from the Harley Owners Group!
Realising the dream of visiting the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee
A couple from Burgos achieved a lifelong dream by making the pilgrimage to the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee.
Taking the long way aroundâ¦
A trip to see old friends turned into an epic trip across the country for Harley Owners Group member Arnold Evanson.
Harley-Davidson’s racing history: Part two
In this second round-up of highlights from the Motor Companyâs racing history, we meet some new rising stars who carry the brandâs success into the 21st century.