International Vice President, 2002
Doris Ravic joined WIMA around 1981/2. Doris’s husband had retired from work and bought a motorbike for the two of them to tour Europe on. Sadly he died very suddenly, leaving her a widow with three motorbike riding sons. After a while, Doris decided that she would learn to ride a motorbike and go on those adventures anyway, on her own. Her story was featured in the local newspaper, as the local middle-aged teacher who had learnt to ride a motorbike and bought a 500cc bike, a Moto Guzzi V50. Doris was immensely proud of featuring in the local paper.
Doris lived in Romford, near London and helped fellow member Sue Herbert set up local meetings for WIMA members in East London. She was always ‘tail end Charlie’ on runs out, because she liked an excuse to go fast, catching up! Doris met Sue’s other local biking friends and she became one of the founder members, in 1983, of the Imperial Elephant Motorcycle Club.
Doris became active on the WIMA GB committee, serving as treasurer for about six years and she loved to go to the international rallies every year. In late 1985 or thereabouts she met and started to go out with Steve Porter, 15 years her junior, whom she married in December 1986. The photo is of Doris on her Moto Guzzi T3 (Violet) at a WIMA rally in 1986. She loved Guzzis but the last bike she bought was a Triumph.
Doris loved competitions, quizzes (which she took very seriously) and she was highly sociable; always liked to be involved with everything.
In 2002 Doris suspected there was a potentially serious health problem looming but she was absolutely determined to ride to the WIMA International rally in the Czech Republic, regardless. She was voted international vice president and she regarded this as a crowning achievement. She was very well organised and was an enormous help to Sheonagh on the administrative front. Sadly she passed away in October 2002.
(Written by Sue Herbert, 2025)
