São Paulo – A specialist in dental implants, Moroccan dentist Amal Bennis spends most of her day in a dentistry clinic, in Casablanca. When she gets home she dedicates herself to her daily chores and to her two children. None of this, however, stops her from revving up her Harley Davidson from time to time and speeding down the country’s highways. She is not alone: another 19 Moroccan women aged from 21 to 56 accompany her down the country’s roads on their Honda, Suzuki, Harley-Davidson and Yamaha motorcycles. According to Bennis, they are all also members of the first Arab women’s motorcycle club in the Arab world: Miss Moto Maroc.
The club was established in October 2011 by Dalila Mousbah. Passionate for motorcycles, Mousbah decided to set up the group after returning from a trip along Route 66, which crosses eight North American states and a distance of 3,500 kilometres.
One of the reasons causing Mousbah to establish the club was something the women all had in common – their desire to ride powerful motorcycles. However, no matter how powerful the motorbikes may be, the club has a rule: they never exceed the 100 kilometre per hour speed limit during their trips. This speed limit does not reduce the pleasure. After all, says Bennis, being on two wheels “is a powerful feeling of well-being”.
The dentist admits that when all motorcyclists in the group get together, on Saturdays, they attract attention of those nearby. However, they are not at all concerned about the looks. “In truth, people are surprised when they see us, as they are not used to seeing women on powerful bikes. However, they [the others] give us a sense of encouragement,” said Bennis.
The motorcycle club is still new and has many projects, but the motorcyclists have already travelled together. From Casablanca, they visited Telouate, 370 kilometres away, and Ouarzazate, 440 km away, in January. Now, they are inviting all women who own motorcycles to travel the 240 kilometres from Casablanca to Marrakech with them, next Sunday (18), to celebrate the International Women’s Day, which is officially celebrated on March 8th.
Men are not allowed into the club but, according to Bennis, some travel with them to “supervise” the route. Groups of male motorcyclists are also welcome to travel alongside the women.
Be it in the company of other motorcyclists or not, what the members of Miss Moto Maroc really want is to cross the country and even help foster tourism. Bennis, however, points out: "I would like to travel Rota 66 on a bike and also Faro [route], in Portugal."
*Translated by Mark Ament
