All Saints Tatura Anglican Church priest Simba Musvamhiri is ready to bless anything with wheels on April 3. Photo: Youssef Saudie
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Youssef Saudie
A motorcycle-loving priest is all revved-up for Tatura’s third ‘blessing of the bikes’ on Sunday, April 3.
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By Youssef Saudie
Simba Musvamhiri, the priest at All Saints Tatura Anglican Church, said the event was a way to acknowledge the importance of road safety hazards like severe weather and road rage, and being conscious of accidents when riding in groups or by oneself.
He said the event was also about coming together as a community.
“It's about mateship, camaraderie and friendship; it’s making connections with other people, it's meeting other people that you've never met,” Reverend Musvamhiri said.
The event dates back to the 1990s in the United States, when motorcyclists would go to a church and seek blessings for the start of their riding season.
Now the event has found its way to Tatura, and brings people from across regional and metropolitan Victoria.
A previous ‘blessing of the bikes’ community event brought people from across Victoria to Tatura.
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Rev Musvamhiri said he had “always dreamt” of holding a blessing of the bikes, so when he moved from Canberra to Tatura it was his chance.
“I just have a fascination with motorcycles,” he said.
"I love bikes and I always thought as a priest, it'd be cool to do a blessing of the bikes.“
Rev Musvamhiri said he had always been interested in the ‘biker aesthetic’ of seeing people wearing leather jackets, sunglasses and rolling into town on their motorcycles.
He said this event was the chance to challenge stereotypes of people who ride motorcycles, and how not everyone is a part of a “bikie gang”.
“But no, these are really people that are genuinely doing it for fun, they're riding to seek the freedom of the road, riding in the open air, they're clearing their mind when they ride, all the problems of the world just sort of vanishes.
“As a church it’s really good that we connect with real people out there that probably society don't really get to know.”
Biker Ron Maskell said the event was a chance for reflection on day-to-day life concerns.
“There's hassles with marriage or there's finances or there's sickness and everyone goes through something in their life, and then it stops them in their tracks,“ Ron said.
“It’s for anyone that wants to come to just get to know people in the community and just find out the human in everyone.”
Rev Musvamhiri said the service was another opportunity to have some fun as a family, after COVID-19 restrictions had made it difficult for people to get out as much.
“It's about really uniting all these motorcycle clubs and communities.
“Our town has been lying dormant for the last two years, and we're saying to the community, ‘hey, come out’.”
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