Initially I didn’t even want to mark the moment as, to be honest, my first thought was “what is there to tell? I haven’t achieved anything worth telling the world! And what if people realise how little I have done in a year? Am I going to disappoint my community?”

But then it struck me that I should follow the motorcycle “lessons” I’ve been preaching: suppress negative thoughts and don’t give a f…ck about external expectations. Focus on why you want to ride and all the positive emotions it brings to your life. So I started listing what made me smile, what made me proud, and why I started FreeW in the first place, while also reminding myself of where we’re heading towards. Ive picked my favourite ones to share with you today.

Despite the challenges of starting a business, and doing it in the middle of a pandemic, we collectively managed to bring joy in the lives of many women. And just for that, it’s all worth it.

Here are some highlights:

• 30 women riders were interviewed across the world, especially in Asia, to shard their experience and inspiring stories (Check them here)
• 25 women were trained to ride bikes or improve their skills, and many others were introduced the world of motorcycling
• 8 women were sponsored for motorcycle classes, 4 of which thanks to external sponsors from kind hearts who believe in FreeW’s mission
• 4 events were delivered and allowed women riders and aspiring riders from different backgrounds to connect with like-minded spirits, learn from each other and have fun
• 16 days of leadership training to Cambodian woman were funded through our online events in partnership with Queen Cherry Bomb (1 USD donated per registered participant to B1G1) 
• 4 women-led motorcycle road trips were designed (Nepal, India, Myanmar, Iran) (Check them here)
• 1 community-based motorcycle tour in Malaysia was organised with Women of Will and another one conceptualised with Natives.
• 1 Future Females special price was won at the hackaton sponsored by Reapra.

And the most important ones were delivered with amazing people we wish to thank here: 

It started with Sushant from ultimate adventure nepal, Jai from MoWo, Anne (Myanmar pure travel), and Mahsa  from Notjustatourist. They believed in FreeW’s mission, shared my vision, translated it into meaningful riding experiences, and helped me stay motivated despite the fact we had to postpone our tours. Then of course the famous Oh Kah Beng from MFG who guided me on the coaching path and gave me a first place to feel at home, and Jep Elli from SOKD who is probably as excited as me about organising the first women track day in Malaysia! And now Leah from QCB who is co-leading our online women riders nights to bring #sisterhoodacrossborders to life.

A big thanks to the people who have been offering to volunteer their time to support FreeW’s mission: Yvonne Lim and Marcus who are always up to give a hand to help FreeW grow, Ahmed from Ghana, Baktigul from Kyrgyzstan, and Maftuna from Uzbekistan.

And of course a big shout out to Teng Lim for her super cool videos, including this one! 🥰

CHECK IT OUT HERE!

Enjoy!