Mind Over Motorbike: How to Tame Fear and Build Riding Confidence
- Michelle Hatcher
- May 1
- 4 min read
Updated: May 6
It’s May 1st 2025. The day the motorcycle engines hum a little louder. The roads feel a little more open, a little more welcoming. And the spirit of the biker community from this day forward, grows a little stronger.
Today marks the official launch of the Bike n Brew event — an extraordinary initiative from the motorcycle mental wellbeing charity Make Your MARK. And today, more than ever, I feel the need to speak from the heart about something we all often carry behind the visor: fear.
Fear, we know, isn’t always a scream into a cushion or a swing at a wall — it’s often a whisper in the ear that drills deep down and refused to leave.
Sometimes, it’s the quiet voice in your helmet that says,
“Don’t go out today.” “Don’t take that corner.” “Don’t believe you’re good enough.”
What I haven’t realised up until now is that motorcycling is really about life. It’s about taking the chance, facing the challenge and being present on the road of life and saying — yes, I am here and I matter.
And if you’re anything like me — riding later in life, wearing L plates with trembling hands and disliking the red L on my front end — fear doesn’t feel like a passing emotion. It feels like a full-time pillion, forever hugging you tighter the faster you want to go.
I remember the first time I took my Ninja 125cc, on a dual carriageway just outside Swindon. My hands were locked around the throttle so tightly they cramped before I reached the second junction. I ended up willing the next services to be closer than 10 miles away. My mind was racing with what if I fall off. What if I stall? What if I crash? What if I hold someone up and they become so irritated that they nudge me off for the fun of it?
But somewhere between my fear and that roaring road, something shifted. I started to ride through the fear — not around it. Life is just like that. You take each bump in the road and you find a way to overcome it. It’s what we can all hope for.
Fear and the Open Road: A Mental Health Journey
Motorcycling is not just about mechanics or machines. It’s about a mindset that can help you overcome the toughest of life’s hurdles. It’s one of the very few things I’ve discovered in life that allows you to face fear head-on — and win.
That’s why today’s Bike n Brew launch is so meaningful. It’s not just about getting stamps in a passport or visiting biker cafés —although I will admit, the cake does help. It’s about connection. With each other. With the road. With ourselves.
Make Your MARK is a charity rooted in a beautiful truth: motorcyclists can be warriors for wellbeing. Whether it’s through Motorbiker Acts of Random Kindness (MARK), mental health first aid training, or just showing up for someone at a biker café and saying “you’re not alone” — this community rides with purpose.
If You’re Nervous About Anything, You Belong Here
This piece is for the rider who’s still stalling at junctions. For the one who’s passed their CBT but hasn’t dared ride alone. For the man or woman who has always wanted to ride but couldn’t or anyone who feels like they have missed their chance to ride — but can’t stop dreaming about it.
You belong here. You are not late. You are not alone.
Motorcycling is for the brave, yes — but bravery isn’t about being fearless. It’s about riding while you’re still scared and doing it anyway. And every time you do, you reclaim a little more of your confidence. Your voice. Your life. Your passion.
3 Ways to Tame the Fear and Ride Anyway:
Acknowledge the fear.
Don’t fight it. Talk to it like a friend. “I see you. But you’re not driving me and my head today.”
Take micro-steps.
Ride to the corner shop, supermarket or petrol station. Practice in a car park. Build trust with your machine — slowly, kindly.
Join the community.
Whether it’s through Bike n Brew or local Facebook groups, connection is the antidote to self-doubt. We rise when we ride together and the more of us on the road, the safer we will be.
So, as the miles unfold beneath your tyres this summer, I hope you collect more than stamps in your passport. I hope you collect moments of power, pockets of peace, and memories that remind you who you really are.
And if you’re looking for a guide along the way, my upcoming book Full Throttle Full Heart is your companion in courage. Because £1 from every copy sold goes straight to https://makeyourmark.wales helping more bikers get the support they deserve.
So, take a breath. Release the clutch. Quiet the noise. And ride like you mean it.
Your journey starts now.
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