Jordan Sprott

Posted in Europe, UK | 12 comments

Hello and welcome to the first interview in the Global Women Who Ride series! Our very first rider in this inaugural interview is Jordan Sprott from the UK. This young rider is witty, insightful, and extremely passionate about motorcycling. I’d say that she reminds me of me when I was 19, but I can’t remember having done anything remotely significant with my life at that age. Jordan in the meantime has already owned three motorcycles, toured England and Scotland, and is better at fixing her bikes than most motorcyclists I know. When she speaks about Simba, you’d be forgiven for thinking that she’s talking about a beloved pet or a sibling, when in fact she is referring to her gold Suzuki SV650S. So get a cup of coffee, sit back, and get to know this amazing British rider and learn a little bit about riding in the United Kingdom. [Rashmi Tambe, Editor] 

 

Please introduce yourself. My name is Jordan. I’m 19 and I’ve suffered from depression and anxiety since a very young age. I never fit in at school, was always picked on, bullied and always felt out of place. My anxiety got so bad I was actually signed off of school and had panic attacks if I left my house. As I was slowly getting better a couple years later, I could go out but couldn’t take public transport. I could talk to people but it was only basic polite conversations.

My Dad got me my first bike at 16, so I could ride places I needed to go. This also caused me to meet my first serious boyfriend.

I found my passion for motorcycles over took my shyness and I could talk to people better.  Plus everyone I met through motorcycles was always so nice! When I need to go back into my bubble I just put my helmet on and go. I’m untouchable on a bike and nothing else matters. Bikes have totally changed my life and even with my depression… while I’m on that bike, I’m free. I’m normal. I fit in.

What is your first ever memory involving motorcycles? When I was 6 my dad brought me home a quad bike. We used to go to a field not far from us. He would walk the dog and I would ride round giggling like mad. We would go to bike/quad shops to look at gear like helmets for me. I remember seeing bikes and thinking how much I wanted one! I would also try on every boot, helmet and glove I could. Even now I can’t just look at bike gear without trying it on!

Do you have a motorcycling achievement that you’re particularly proud of? My proudest motorcycle moment was riding around England and Scotland with my two best friends Shannon Annabelle Zara Grealy and Jonathan Walsh on my first motorcycle tour. Two weeks of nothing but bikes, camping, laughs and beautiful places. It was heaven.

We weren’t greatly prepared so we just took a regular 4 person tent. We took dry frozen food, portable stove, a whistle kettle, two sleeping bags, clothes and very very basic eating utensils. We took that on two sets of pannier bags and a large rucksack that I wore on my back.

Tell  us a good story. It was the first time I went to Snake Pass. It’s a road near me that is a huge steep climb, country roads, hair pin bends, no pot holes, just miles of winding beautiful tarmac. The first time I did Snake Pass was an accident and I got lost going somewhere. I got to the top, and there were tonnes of other bikers. Little did I know this was a very well known road round here. I got to the top, got a cup of tea and looking down, it just took my breath away.

Does being a motorcyclist make you feel like an outsider or a cool insider? Being on a motorcycle is the only time in my life that I feel I belong. It’s in my blood to ride, and I will do it till my last breath. Growing up my two sisters were a lot older so they were always out together. Parents were busy and kids didn’t normally like me. I was always bullied and kids never allowed me to partake in their games or things. So when I’m in my gear and on my bike the bike community is one place I finally feel like I belong. :)

What is your favorite type of riding? I love country roads! Sunny days on a bendy strip cannot be beaten. But I am hoping in March to do my first track day and hopefully get into racing which is my all time dream. So for now road but maybe in the future track.

Is your motorcycle your “fun vehicle” or do you use it for more than that? My bike is my only vehicle but even if I had a car I would rarely choose a car over a bike. I would only choose a car if it was really bad weather. And that’s only cause I wouldn’t want to right off my bike, not for my own safety.

Are you a solo rider or do you like riding with others? I LOVE riding with others. My two best friends are riders and I love riding with them. We toured the UK together and I couldn’t have asked for two better people.

Do you do track days? I haven’t yet but I will be soon! I can’t wait and I’m dying to see what my baby is capable of on a track!

Tell us more about your current motorcycle. My SV650S is called Simba. He is a bike I never looked at. My dad bought him as a surprise for me. I always looked at black or red bikes. Mostly CBRs and Daytona’s. I have never ever looked at getting an SV for myself let alone a gold one! I saw it and I fell in love. Simba was supposed to be mine. I went and picked him up and it was just right. He is a person to me, we’re a team. I’ve spent so much on that bike I could have bought another bike by now. I don’t want anything else. My bike is perfect.

Did you have to modify it in any way to make it fit better for you? Yes, I lowered Simba by 40mm and fit a restrictor so I was restricted to 250cc for the first two years.

What other motorcycles have you ridden in the past? I had a Yamaha YZF 125 for my first 125. It looked gorgeous and was very fast for what it was. I couldn’t touch the floor on it though! I dropped it a bunch of times when breaking too hard or stoping on uneven surfaces and it was making me loose confidence so I traded it in for a Honda CBR 125 and I loved that little bike. It was thin and low and I could safely get my feet on the floor. That Bike restored all my confidence and I even got my knee down on those tiny tyres. It made bikes fun again!

If you could design your dream motorcycle, what would it look, feel and ride like? Hmmmm… that’s so hard cause I don’t think I could pick and choose parts from different bikes. The Honda CBR600RR is a work of god, as is the Triumph Daytona 675 and the Ducatie 848! And of course I love my bike, I think it’s perfect. I’m sorry this answer sucks but that is too hard.

A lot of riders have a classic Sunday morning ride. What’s yours?
My favourite ride is either Snake Pass or Cat and the Fiddle. Both are 30 minutes from my house and I sometimes do both in one day. I haven’t been able to do then a lot recently due to weather as they are high up and mega windy. But come spring those roads will be ridden every day for as long as there is sun.

If someone from another country were to visit your city/state, what ride would you love to show off to them?
Snake Pass – Gasslop
Cat and the Fiddle – A537

[Editor: These two roads appear to be ranked amongst the most dangerous ones in the UK. I sense a kindred spirit here.]

What was the last awesome ride you went on? I went exploring recently at night cause it was quieter and I found some great little country roads. I think it was like 3 AM and I couldn’t sleep at all and stuff was getting to me. I just go on my bike and I didn’t plan where to go. I took my sat nav but didn’t put it on till I was getting tired to take me home. That was a very free ride.

What was your first long ride? I would define long as it was the only time I wanted to go home from a ride. It was on my 50 and I lived near the coast. I was riding along and there was NO lighting whatsoever. The wind on the sea front was so strong I was crying in my helmet cause I was sure I was going to come off. I made a detor to a friends house and had a panic attack in her drive. I then took a different way home which took me an extra hour.

Do you have a particularly humorous or embarrassing riding experience that you’d like to share? I once owned this awful Chinese moped I used to use for college. It was so bad I never used the brakes cause they barely worked, so I would just let go of the throttle to slow down. So one day I was pulling into college and I let go of the throttle to park and my throttle stuck and I drove straight into metal fencing in front of about 100 students and I fell off….

Do you wrench on your bike? I have done loads of work on my bike, even taking a motorcycle mechanics course cause I enjoyed it so much. I’ve fitted all new brake systems, discs, bled brakes, oil filters, lowering kits, fit an exhaust and new levers. Anything more extreme I leave to my friend Peter who is a fully qualified motorcycle mechanic. I love fixing things. I also like understanding how things work. When I first read about suck, squeeze, bang, blow I was very confused haha… learning all about engines, chassis, breaks and the physics that goes into race bikes. Its a subject I can’t get enough of.

Do you have any advice for people who want to work on their bikes but are afraid that it’s too difficult or that they might mess something up? The best thing I think you could ever do is buy a really cheap broken motorcycle and fix it up. That way it wont ever matter if you get it wrong. Haynes manuals are REALLY great if you want to learn more about your bike too. So I would start off being the Haynes manual for your bike and also the Haynes basics techbook.

Do you try to attend any rallies semi-regularly? I’m actually attending the BSB open weekend in April at Brands Hatch! I love bike events there is always such a buzz in the air! This is my first time going and I’m looking to get more into the races and but I will be shouting for Suzuki this year because of Simba of course :P

What are track days in the UK like? The tracks here are everywhere you can normally find one maximum 40 miles from where you live. A lot of people use track days as a way of fun and a lot of people use them as practice if they compete. You can do full days or half days for a lower price. You can have all your friends go and watch and make a real day of it. Your local track will also do events for people who are regular. Bigger tracks like Brands Hatch and Silverstone do all sorts of events for bike fans and they are always great to go to!

It sounded like your dad was very supportive of your motorcycling, which is not something every motorcyclist experiences. Can you tell us more about him?
My dad rode a lot when he was younger but that was more joy riding than anything . He built bikes from scratch and he’s the one who taught me how to fix my bike and always gives great advice. He is an engineer for huge power plants all over the world and he was also in the royal navy when he was younger.

Then I came along and he left so he could be around while I was growing up. My dad is just as nuts as me, he’s jumped out of planes and traveled the world. He works a lot and we don’t see each other loads but we are quite similar. He has his bike license and one day I hope I can tour with my dad.

Is there anything in the current motorcycling industry that you would like to see change? The only thing is lower or thinner bikes.

If you could re-design the world to make it more motorcycle-friendly, what would this brave new world look like? More motorcycle gear laws, better care of our roads, bikes have right of way and….. free petrol for bikers!

If you could re-design the world to make it more inclusive of women riders, what would this look like?
More choice of bikes, more motorcycle gear for woman, more advertising using women that isn’t focused on using women to be sex symbols but serious riders.

JORDAN RECOMMENDS