I've been riding motorcycles for over 30 years, and I'm still very much enjoying the ride.
Motorcycling has become such a huge part of my life that I can honestly say it shapes how I spend much of my free time.
Three years ago I completed my Advanced Riding qualification, and since then my involvement in the biking community has grown enormously. For the past two and a half years I've volunteered with Blood Bikes Scotland, a role I absolutely love because it allows me to give something back while doing something I'm passionate about.
I've also joined the Royal British Legion Scotland Riders Branch, helping to raise funds for veterans, and recently started volunteering on the committee of my local IAM group.
Alongside that, I'm a member of both Curvy Riders and the Perthshire Ladies Motorcycle Group. One of the most rewarding aspects of these groups is encouraging newer women riders and helping them build confidence.
There is something special about riding with people who understand what it's like to start out and who are committed to making sure nobody gets left behind.
Motorcycles are woven into my everyday life too. I regularly commute around 50 miles each way to work by bike, and some of my favourite rides are the unplanned ones—simply heading off alone and seeing where unfamiliar roads take me.
Over the years I've owned a variety of motorcycles, including a Tiger 900 with all the modern technology that comes with it. Recently, however, I've found myself enjoying a return to simpler bikes with traditional analogue dashboards. My old Honda CBF and Yamaha Fazer remind me of where my motorcycling journey began over three decades ago.
As I've crept into my fifties, I've discovered that I no longer enjoy spending entire days soaked through or battling freezing temperatures quite as much as I once did. Heated grips and heated gloves have become some of the best motorcycle accessories I've ever purchased!
While I also drive a car, I much prefer having a couple of different bikes in the garage, each suited to different conditions, journeys and moods.
My relationship with motorcycles hasn't always been straightforward.
Following a violent attack many years ago, I developed severe PTSD and spent long periods in hospital over the following two decades. There were times when life felt incredibly difficult, and periods when I stepped away from motorcycling altogether.
Like many things in life, bikes could be either positive or negative depending on where my head was at the time.
Thankfully, through a great deal of hard work, support and determination, motorcycling gradually became a force for good.
Today, riding represents freedom, friendship, purpose and healing.
The purple phoenix on the back of my Royal British Legion Scotland Riders waistcoat symbolises that journey perfectly. For me, it represents resilience, recovery and the positive impact motorcycling now has on my life.
It's also a reminder of why I volunteer and why I enjoy helping others whenever I can.
Motorcycling has given me so much over the years: lifelong friendships, unforgettable experiences, opportunities to help others and a community where I feel I belong.
Like my dogs, motorcycles help keep me sane, make me smile and remind me to keep moving forward.
More than thirty years after I first started riding, I'm still excited by new roads, new bikes and new adventures.
And if you get me started talking about motorcycles, be warned—I can happily chat about them for hours.