Jessica Leyne

“I’ve said it many times, and I will say it again. I’ve had iced visors, knee-deep mud, soft sand, countless breakdowns, even more crashes, people laughing at me, tire punctures and I’ve been sleep deprived with headaches and sore muscles for days. And still, I have never had a bad day on a motorcycle. Every day, every experience has taught me something I am deeply grateful for. Because of these so-called difficult moments, I have grown accustomed to sleeping where ever, whenever and maybe even more important of all, accepting the kindness of strangers.” – Jessica Leyne

Jessica started riding a 50cc supermotard when she was 16 years old; she planned to master all the skills she’d need to get her license the day she turned 18. “One of my goals was to legally ride a motorcycle at my eighteenth birthday, so I did everything I could to have my final riding exam on my birthday. I passed and became for a while the youngest person with a motorcycle license in Belgium. My parents supported me all the way, and their present for my first step into adulthood was a brand new Cagiva Raptor 650cc.” During the next two years, Jessica managed to clock up 77 700 mi / 125 000 km through Belgium and France. “That little bike gave me almost all my ‘first’ experiences in motorcycle riding, my first trip, my first crash, my first wheelie, my first knee down, my first track day, my first kiss on a motorcycle, my first fine,… and I could go on for a while. In hindsight, I couldn’t have wished for a better motorcycle to start with than that one.”

“I’ve had a car, and it depressed me immensely. The reason I got a car was that one day I got home from school in the snow riding the Raptor while completely frozen and shaking. And my mom said ‘That’s it. This is the last time you’re getting home like that!’ So she made me take my driving license, and my grandmother got me a cheap Renault. I didn’t want to put any more money into a four-wheeler than necessary. Now, so many years later, I know that they shouldn’t have spent the money on a car, but instead, we should have invested in decent gear, heated grips, motorcycle muffs, thermo clothing and a decent helmet.” The car got sold in 2013 as a consequence of it only being used three times a year with Jessica choosing to ride her motorcycle all year long without any other options. “It’s indeed a challenge to have the right gear, and sometimes it takes some organization during spring or fall because at those times it can be hard to predict the weather from day to day. With my current gear I can either ride for 800 km in temperatures around 17.6°F / -8°C without being cold, ride for hours in the rain without getting wet or ride in temperatures up to 95°F / 35°C without a sweat. Not all with the same suit and gear of course.”

Last year Jessica celebrated her tenth year on the road with an average of around 34 200 mi / 55 000 km covered per year. “I’m pretty safe when I say that I’ve ridden over 310 700 mi / 500 000 km since 2007. Most of the countries I’ve ridden in are in Europe, all of them together with my husband, Bart. (The other half of Motomentals.) We started traveling very modestly, the northern of France, Great Britain, and the Netherlands. In those years I traveled with a Suzuki GSX600R, which wasn’t well suited for the roads that Bart took with his R1100GS. When I got my BMW F650GS Dakar and got better at off-road riding, we went to Scandinavia, the Alps, and Eastern Europe where we learned so much about living on the road. I was lucky enough to get involved with the Ducati Globetrotter 90° event and traveled solo across Japan and California with a Ducati Multistrada Enduro. This experience hardened my will to ride everywhere in the world.”

Before Jessica started riding off-road, she’d competed on track with other race bikes. “I’ve always been mesmerized by friendly competition, to help and aid others to get further, it seems like a good way to spend your days. That is why I love the GS Trophies that much. It features the whole lot, riding, friendship, camping, eating and drinking and telling stories. My first entry into the Belgian GS Trophy was on an invite of Annelise, to get other women into the competition and to show by example that the Trophy is an event that a GS rider can’t miss out on.” These events also bring out skill sets not often known. “When I was riding my F650GS Dakar everyone told me that I would never be able to ride the R1100GS properly off-road. But when I eventually took my chances and just bought one, I realized how wrong everyone was. Riding this bike was second nature to me. Everything about him just fitted perfectly as if we were breathing in sync since the very first moment. I regret listening to others for so long.”

I wanted an R1100GS like my husband because of the engine characteristics. I love the ‘grandpa’ way of riding with it, in low rpm especially with the short rear drive. It is a joy to ride technical sections with. So when I had some money to spare I went looking online and found a beautiful yellow one not too far away from me. He was a little bit pricey, but when you know, you know. I heard his voice. ‘I’ll show you the world.’ I know it sounds cheeky, but it’s the truth. I fell in love with that old rusty yellow thing, so I took him home. Hyperion as Jessica named him is a “rough character.” “The whole bike shakes around when he’s in idle and reminds me of the horse I used to ride when I was younger. Bart and I also know every part of the 1100’s. With our eyes closed, we can renew the clutch, install other gears, final drives, do maintenances or fix issues. Hyperion is from a generation when things were built to last. He’s got 167 800 mi / 270 000 km on the clock and is now getting prepared for a world trip!”

Most of the work on Hyperion has been done by Jessica and Bart. The most drastic change to the yellow beast was fitting a Bakker frame designed by Bert Duursma. It allows the mounting of a KTM EXC front suspension which provides better maneuverability and handles off-road stretches more capably than the OEM set. Hyperion now runs on a 21” front and 18”rear wheelset from the master wheel builders at Woody’s Wheel Works in Denver, Colorado. “I think it is highly important to be able to completely trust your set of wheels and to be able to mount tires of your liking.” Jessica also runs 320mm brake discs from MotoMaster with four-piston calipers up front. Fuel filtration is provided by the Italian company Guglatech. “Neither Hyperion nor I am a fan of polluted fuel, so this keeps the system completely free from dirt and even water.” They’ve also been working on changing the gearbox over to the R1150GS models hydraulically operated clutch. “I’m so looking forward to that, it will be so much smoother for my left hand.” Hyperion is also completely serviced by Jessica. She’d wanted to become a mechanic since she was 16 years old but as expected her parents didn’t think this would be an appropriate job for a female. “But I made a bargain with them. I would follow the teacher course during the day and mechanics school during the evenings. I did this for three years, and at the end, I got both degrees. A teachers degree in mathematics and theoretical physics and my mechanic’s degree. So I can say that I’m good at mechanics, I can change gearboxes, do maintenance and perform diagnostics. I also find this very important while traveling because being able to fix problems on your bike is priceless. Being independent is very important to me, I can accept any form of help, but I like to know my motorcycles like the insides of my pockets.”

“I prefer maps, and I love to get lost, then trying to find where I am on the maps. But sometimes when one doesn’t have that much time, GPS can be very useful. During travels, I try to map out where I want to go on paper maps and then for more detailed things check out the GPS. I can talk for hours about the magical things that have happened to me while being on the road, whether riding solo, together with my husband or in a group. But there is one thing that will always be the most special part of riding for me. It’s that moment in the evening when you stop in the middle of nowhere and decide that this is where you will spend the night. The sun is setting either over a lake, mountains or grasslands and you know in some hours the stars will be shining brightly over you. It doesn’t matter then in which country you are, the only thing that matters is that you are there, alive and well, being able to absorb every positive vibe of it into your soul.”