Motorcycles and mental health

Just thought I'd put pen to paper and say thanks to a number of people that have helped during lockdown. For reasons I won't go into here (dull, boring) I suffer quite a bit with depression and anxiety. Now, I'm luckier than most, but I do sometimes find my head dropping and I rely on my friends and family to keep my spirits high and keep myself busy to keep the big, black dog at bay. With Covid-19 lots of my support network disappeared or I couldn't visit the people I wanted to - obviously.

Phone calls and the like were great, but my main interest is riding bikes. Most of my mates are bikers and yet we were told to stay home.

I began to fiddle with and fettle my Honda VFR800, just adding a few accessories and keeping up with maintenance - but I'm not a good spanner-man. Thanks to Facetime I could be talked through a few simple tasks by my good mate Dave Collins. This, I found, would really help.

Other friends who I would normally go ride with, Pete Rogers, Frank Smalls, Elaine Smalls and others knew what I'd been through and were there with support, texts, phone calls and the like. I want to thank you all.

Eventually I could finally get out on my bike for the first time in many weeks and - at a safe distance - meet up with a biking pal.

I can now say with complete conviction that motorcycles, motorcycling and motorcyclists have been perhaps the most positive force in my life, after my immediate family. So stay safe and ride safe, brothers and sisters! Peter smith

Bertie says: "Spoton there... There ain't much better than a good bike ride, is there? And no better people than bikers."