Wrecked Harley Inspires Biker-themed Wedding, and Perseverance
A deer strike, broken bones, and stitches couldn’t stop this Harley-loving power couple from tying the knot.
A Harley-riding couple from Lake Tahoe, California, tied the knot in a biker-themed wedding. According to the Daily Star, the ceremony came just three weeks after the couple collided with a deer during a ride.
Justin Reid, 36, and Victoria Hemenes, 31, met in March 2017. In October 2018, Reid popped the question, and the couple had been planning a motorcycle-themed wedding ever since. Both are avid motorcyclists.
They had initially planned to ride their motorcycle down the aisle, but Mother Nature had other plans for the couple. Three weeks before the wedding, while riding with a group of friends to show them the wedding venue, Reid and Hemnes rounded a corner to find a deer in the middle of the road.
Reid recalls a beautiful sunset and a dark ride home. When his headlights illuminated the deer, it was too late. After colliding with the deer, the stricken bike veered off the side of the road into some tree.
Thankfully, the couple was wearing their helmets, but their bodies were still injured in the crash. Reid’s left arm was sliced open, and he required surgery and a skin graft from his leg. Hemenes, meanwhile, required eight stitches in her knee.
At first, neither was able to walk. Still, they were determined to go through with their wedding, even if they had to be pushed down the aisle in wheelchairs.
‘We will be back on that bike, there’s no other bike that’s quite the same.’
Determined to make it work, the couple did have their biker-themed wedding as planned. Both Reid and Hemenes walked down the aisle, with Reid’s left arm in a cast.
Bobby Real, a friend of both Reid and Hemenes, officiated the ceremony, asking each party of if they took the other as their “ride-or-die.” At this point, it was merely a formality – it’s safe to say that they had already proved their undying love for each other just three weeks before.
The couple plans to get back to riding as soon as possible. In fact, Reid plans on buying the bike back from the insurance company and fixing it himself.
“When we’re riding together, it feels intimate,” Hemenes tells the Daily Star. “We will be back on that bike, there’s no other bike that’s quite the same.”
Photos: Daily Star
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