Matt (Wookiee) Merry
Green Laning
I rode off-road bikes in my early teens and I am starting to get back into it. Living in Devon is the best place to explore for some epic off-road adventures.
Work
Working at Bridge Motorcycles in Exeter I get a lot of amazing opportunities including getting up close and personal with Triumph’s epic Moto2 prototype.
Sport
I am a big fan of all things racing. The pinnacle of which was getting paddock passes to the MotoGP race at Silverstone. Yes, I took this photo!
About
I joined the Royal British Legion Riders Branch when I was 17, before I even had my licence. My first bike was a Yamaha XT350 Canadian import, not the most reliable but lots of fun when it got going. Sadly, a decompression problem saw the end of the XT. However, just around the corner was my road licence and a beautiful (although restricted) blue Suzuki SV650. The SV was a great bike to learn on, although our first trip was very eventful.
6 weeks after passing my test I set off on a ride from Cambridgeshire to Cornwall. It rained most of the ride down to Cornwall but I loved it all the same! However, the return was not quite so enjoyable. I had rear damper issues (issue was it was leaking oil) and I returned home resembling what I could only imagine looked like Tigger bouncing up the road; as I rode purely on the spring. The SV served me well but when my 2-year restriction was up I looked for something bigger.
My next bike would be the one that I am still riding today. The story of my Honda Fireblade goes back further than me just purchasing this absolute weapon. I was 14 years old at a village fair where my local bike club (Sawtry MCC) had a few of their bikes on display. Sat in the line-up as a stunning Repsol Honda CBR929rr-Y. I asked the owner if I could sit on it and take a picture and he said yes. It was at this point I turned to my mum and said “One day I am going to own this bike” (a little cheese I know but it is the truth) and, with a roll of her eyes, mum said “yes dear”. Well fast forward a few years and I was sat in the pub talking about what bike I would be getting next and the owner of the Blade said, “I am thinking about selling it”! Well I needed no further prompting and before long I was a proud owner of the Fireblade and it has given me many fantastic journeys with still life in it yet.
The other bike I currently own is a Yamaha YZ426 and in the past year I have taken up riding off-road again. Although the YZ426 is a bit more aggressive and front end happy compared to the XT350, it is heaps of fun!
