Ms. Herr On Two Wheels: The Importance of a Mentor | Episode 7
Last Updated: March 4th, 2024
Ms. Herr On Two Wheels: The Importance of a Mentor | Episode 7
Heather: I’m on my way to see my friend, and one of my mentors in the motorcycling world, Bruce, for a long overdue garage day. Gonzo is going to get some TLC, and these garage days are food for my soul too.
So when I was preparing to buy my first bike, I’d taken the class but I really had no knowledge on how to evaluate motorcycles. So it was really important for me to find someone who had a mechanical background and who I could trust to go with me to check out bikes, and make sure I wasn’t buying something that was a lemon that the owner just maybe had failed to disclose something that could be harmful to a new rider as they get behind the controls.
With Bruce’s help in teaching me how to understand my bike mechanically, I have much more confidence, more peace of mind that every time I go to start it, Gonzo will start right up. Whether I’m just headed to work or I’m on a thousand mile road trip, and it’s the fifth gas stop along the way.
Bruce: A mentor to me is watching somebody grow…watching somebody become more confident and independent. If she’s out on the road for instance, and she has an issue and there’s a tool kit on the bike, she might be able to deal with it. You know she might have the confidence to deal, to event attempt it, where as without, you know, the learning and the mentoring and so on and so forth, she might not. Knowledge to me is powerful. The more knowledge you have, the more skills you have, that’s just…CONFIDENCE.
Heather: Ta da!
Bruce: This is all I do Bill. I hand her the tools and furnish the occasional muscle and she does everything.
The qualities that make up a good mentor are, of course, knowledge and experience. When I look for mentors and what I consider good mentors, I’m looking beyond that, I’m looking for patience, I’m looking for communication skills; being able to communicate is I think very important, and perhaps even a little compassion for the journey that the person you’re mentoring is on. A lot of intangibles I think in being a good mentor.
Heather: It’s been another great day in the garage right?
Bruce: Absolutely! Heather: Alright, I think we spent half our time talking, and then half the time actually working, but I’m ready to roll on out of here. And I can guarantee Gonzo is in a lot better shape now than when I rolled in here.
“We spent half our time talking and half our time working.” Well, that exactly describes my experience with Bruce as he mentored me through a valve clearance job on my Yamaha Super Tenere. What a wonderful mentor he is! Working with Bruce is what motorcycling is all about. Can’t say enough good about him. Glad to see this video made the HH series experience. Well done!
He is a heckuva guy!
Bruce is the best. His knowledge on the zrxoa is greatly appreciated.
He is a heckuva guy!