The Floss Boss Bike-ettes: Real Women Ride
A pillion is a pad or cushion on the back of a motorcycle for an extra rider… so you better get comfy back there because the Floss Boss Bike-ettes prefer to spin their own throttles. Each with her own 600CC powerhouse, Candra Best, Shari Yearwood and Geri-ann Ince are proving that street bikes are not just toys for boys. All past students of the Deighton Griffith Secondary School, these girls found out that they also share a common need for speed.
Adrenaline Sun couldn’t hit the brakes for a second as we went to Oistins, Christ Church (Barbados) where we finally caught up with the Bike-ettes.
When did you start riding?
Shari: Can’t remember the exact year, but it was probably in 2005 or so when I got on a 90CC Scooter and it was only recently in March 2011 when I got on a 600CC bike. I currently ride a Honda CBR 600RR
Candra: I was a pillion rider before but I passed up that and I said I would no longer ride on the back of any guy’s bike I want my own. I started riding in April-May 2011. I got my bike in early October 2011 and it’s a Suzuki GSXR 600. We were taught to ride by Marlon Weekes.
Geri: I started learning in July 2011 and I ride a Suzuki GSXR 600 and I got it on the 8th of November 2011. My passion for riding started when a friend of mine took me out and I was hooked from there.
How did you girls get into riding?
Shari: For me it wasn’t necessarily the speed at first, it was the sound of them and the look of them. I love to see how a bike looks.
Very cool.
Shari: No not cool, it’s sexy.
Candra: Yes the street bikes are sexy. Sexier than the (Moto) Crosses.
Geri: They are even sexier with ladies on them 
.
Have you ladies made any modifications to your bikes?
Candra: The only thing that I really did was put my nickname on it, which is Harajuku Barbie and lowered it.
Shari: I changed the levers to shorties, windshield, frame sliders, the bar end and the spools and I’m rolling deep on Michelin Pilot Power 2ct tyres. I also put on a Hyper Flo Exhaust. It’s one of the best on the market.
Geri: My bike is pretty much standard. It does however have a Two Brothers Exhaust on it. It is also lowered because I find that lowering a bike gives you a little bit more control.
Candra Best
Tell me about your gear.
Geri: I have a Scorpion Jacket, Shift Gloves and Gaerne boots and I have a Scorpion Helmet.
Shari: I’m a Shift girl. Shift Jacket, Shift Shoes, Shift Gloves but I have a Scorpion Helmet.
Candra: I’m an ICON baby. I have the ICON jacket, my boots are on their way in they will be Sidi. I have Alpine Star gloves and my helmet is an AGV.
How often do you girls ride with Floss Boss.
All: As often as possible
Are people surprised when you step off your bike and see a woman taking off the helmet?
Geri: Yes they are.
Candra: Definitely.
What is the usual reaction?
Shari: I would over hear guys saying “Can I get a ride on that?”
Geri: I agree. That’s the most popular comment. Apparently most guys would like to ride on the back of our bikes
Geri-ann Ince
Has a guy ever ridden on the back of any of your bikes?
Geri: No, not for me.
Shari: No way.
Candra: I don’t even have a seat back there.
How is it when you girls are riding to work?
Geri: Traffic is no problem .
Candra: At my work place everyone ceases what they are doing to watch me leave. I’m a very simple girl and I don’t like all of that attention but they are starting to get used to me riding. They also ask when next am I riding to work. I would like to ride to work more often but I do it when I can.
Shari: When I ride to work not everybody sees most of the time. But the first day that I rode, there was an after work party and they gave me a standing ovation. Now they just ask me how the riding is going. It’s not that big fanfare anymore.
Geri: Where I work is a very popular area in Barbados, so on the first day I rode in, persons got up from their desk. It was almost like some sort of fete was going on they were just lining the streets which made me very nervous, of course. But when I was leaving, I tricked them and left without saying a word. But like with the girls, my work colleagues are always asking me how the riding is going. Everybody seems to be concerned for my well-being.
What is the best part about riding?
Shari: Cornering. For me the adrenaline comes in the corners.
Geri: Riding gives me a sense of freedom. I feel so light when I’m on my bike. And my favorite stretch is the Belle (St. Michael, Barbados).
Candra: I’m now getting accustomed to the cornering. I’m actually leaning my bike and I’m very proud of that. Actually when I ride even if the slightest thing is bothering me I always feel free and at ease.
Shari Yearwood
How many female riders are there in the Barbadian Bike Community.
Shari: A lot. There are so many women riding bikes every single day. People always forget about the post women who mostly ride bikes. There are women riding Scooters, Harleys and Crosses and recently with the Street Bikes there have been us and I bet there will be a lot more.
Any Last Words.
Geri: I find that motorists don’t really have any respect for persons on two wheels. Some bikers have made it bad for the rest of us because of the deemed nonsense that they do on the road and I would like that perception to change.
Shari: I’m also asking the bikers to be a bit more considerate on the road because some of them actually do nonsense at times and it should be a level playing field for all road users. If we show respect for the drivers then they should equally respect us as bikers.
Candra: And if the motorists don’t have respect for others they should at least have respect for us because we are ladies .
