Every weekend I am obligated to attend a car show or two with my husband who lives and breathes the car industry. I have always loved and appreciated cars and bikes but not in the way that I do now.
This time, it’s different, It isn’t about just having a car just to have it, but now it is about appreciating the history of the automobile and the love that women and men have for one of their most prized possessions and hobby.
How is this related to hair you ask? Well, I received a question from a ‘biker mom’ yesterday and when she told me about her issue of trying to balance looking like a woman and having a badass hobby at the same time, I totally got it.
Her concern was mostly about a style she could rock while wearing a helmet, keeping her hair healthy and at the same time looking great when she took the helmet off.
This is what she sent in:
my hair is naturally wavy but I’ve been putting relaxers on it for years I’m trying to go natural but every time I decide to change my mind and I put a perm on it I am a biker mom so I need a hairstyle that I can wear my helmet over and when I take it off I can still look like a nice woman.
Of course, naturally she had me thinking about all the women I meet on the weekends who ride and who ride around in hot cars with the top down. How do they maintain their hair?
I will tell you what I have noticed about black women who ride, they tend to wear their hair short and natural or they wear wigs still keeping their hair natural.
My suggestion to my reader is you have to look at your situation in the most practical way. Helmets, especially in the Summer time, can get very hot and sometimes when you take it off and you have a perm it is hard to guarantee that your hair will look fly when it was just subjected to wind and sweat.
Let me be clear I have never ridden a bike in my life but I would assume that you will need a way to keep the hair down and keep it down even when the helmet comes off.
This might mean using a gel along with a cute headband to keep the hair neat so that when you take off the helmet your hair still looks cute.
Should she leave the perm alone and rock her natural hair?
Absolutely! I think natural hair works better for active lifestyle because it can endure more. When you are natural you can do a wash and go, slick that baby down hop on your bike and get your ride on. I say give your hair a real chance to show you what it can do while it is natural.
One thing I have noticed about women who are trying to decide between getting a relaxer or going natural is that they tend to be a bit unfair with their trial and error.
In other words, you spend more time being relaxed than you do natural which means you have not given yourself enough time to get over any of the trials that natural hair might bring as you learn to take care of your natural hair.
Hairstyle suggestions:
If you do decide to big chop, rock a tapered cut as your hair grows out. You can put your helmet on and take it off and still maintain the shape of your hair.
Rock your freedom fro
Women these days are moving away from defined curls and allowing their hair to do what it naturally does.
Wavy pixie cut
This style is great if you want to keep your hair straight but at the same time, it is short enough that you can wear your helmet comfortably.
Rock a hot ass wig!
Let me let you watch this little video real quick!
How to keep your hair healthy?
Develop a simple regimen and stick to it, only adjusting it as your hair grows out. Moisture is your number one priority, so deep condition weekly and wear mostly protective styles so that your strands are protected as you enjoy your hobby.
Final thoughts
Gone are the days where you have to get a relaxer to have your hair straight these days you have lots of options for straight hair if you truly desire that. If keep coming back to natural hair at various points in your life, there is a real reason for that and you should give it some real consideration.
Sometimes these things are less about hair and more about mindset, and what you feel makes you look or appear “womanly”. Being a woman starts from within and then all of the other things that we do to ourselves compliment that mindset.
I hope this helped you out miss biker mom give your natural hair a chance and experience the freedom of not having to worry about hair but enjoy your hobby and still look amazing doing it.
