Hitting the Road

Marah C. Stith ’02 can zip from her Quincy House residence to Littauer in record time. This government concentrator prefers alternative modes of transportation, cruising around campus on a 1994 Suzuki Intruder 800 motorcycle. “It’s black with blue flames, and it’s got a lot of chrome on the bottom. It’s so beautiful,” she says.

After scouring want ads for several weeks, saving every penny she could, and taking a motorcycle safety course, Marah bought her Suzuki two months ago for less than $3,000. “I’d starve myself saving money for it, and it’s been entirely worth it,” Marah exclaims. She waited until she had purchased, registered, and insured her motorcycle before telling her parents. “They were not thrilled,” she reports, “but by the time I get home, they’re going to be begging for rides!”

Marah’s parents aren’t the only ones Marah expects to be pleading for rides. “My goal is to get my adviser, Harvey Mansfield, to ride with me. I’m giving him time to warm up to the idea. He’s going to want to ride very soon. He had me drive around a parking lot to show him. I’m working on it,” Marah explains.

If Mansfield refuses, Marah’s always got her friends. “They started out worried, but most of them have overcome that, and now love it. I think they’re all latent bikers–they just don’t have the money right now,” she says.

Marah knows of only two other students with motorcycles. She believes that more Harvard students don’t have motorcycles not only because they’re expensive, but because students aren’t risky enough. “I don’t think people here have been brought up to be very adventurous. I think they’ve lived very sheltered lives, and on the whole, were pushed towards education of the mind or towards organized athletics. It’s a dangerous sport, and it’s not a very smart sport. You have to accept the risk if you love it enough,” she says.

Riding her motorcycle is a wonderful way for Marah to escape the pressures of Harvard. “You go out on the road, and it’s just you and nature. You are in total union with the environment,” Marah says.

While Marah is fortunate enough not to have hurt herself, she recognizes the dangers of motorcycling. She’s not surprised there are so many motorcycle accidents because it doesn’t take much effort to secure a permit in the United States–you need to answer correctly only 14 of 20 relatively simple questions. Armed with merely a permit, you can drive during the day without passengers. Most motorcyclists only have permits, but obtaining a license (for full riding privileges) is considerably more difficult because you must pass an actual driving test. One of the reasons Marah purchased a cruiser instead of a sportbike is because sportbikes tend to be driven much faster and she knew she wouldn’t be temped to speed. “My kind of bike is made for easy, laid back kind of driving,” she says. Marah also won’t participate in any competitions in order not to damage her body. “During competitions, you have to be completely reckless and not care about anything else. You’re bound to break a leg. I prefer to watch the competitions,” Marah says.

Marah has had her share of novel motorcycling experiences. While traveling through Germany this past summer as a research writer for Let’s Go, Marah rode a bright red motorcycle thanks to the kindness of a stranger. She met a man on the street who offered without any hesitation to loan his bike to her free of charge as she completed her itinerary. “I’ve decided he was an angel. He made my life so much easier,” she says. And in the upcoming weeks, Marah plans to take up an invitation to ride alongside Harvard University Police Department officers on Harleys.

When not in use, Marah’s motorcycle rests undisturbed in the Quincy courtyard. She does not worry about theft because it has an ignition and it’s not a Harley, which typically goes for fifteen or twenty thousand dollars. “My Suzuki just doesn’t have the same prestige in the bike world. Harleys are special. They have a specific attitude,” she says.

Aware of that Harley attitude and the stereotypes surounding bikes, Marah admits that it’s uncommon to see women driving motorcycles. But she hasn’t felt out of place in the male-dominated motorcycling world.

Growing up in Indiana, she and her male friends would dirtbike in the cornfields. “I’ve been surrounded by guy friends all my life, and I get along with guys really well,” she says.

Because of the rapidly approaching New England winter months, Marah’s motorcycling days are numbered. While she is busy writing her thesis on political theory, Marah’s motorcycle will sit the next few months out in storage. Once spring rolls around, though, you can be sure to spot her cruising in style around fair Harvard and beyond.