A CACOPHONY of motorbike engines was heard in Wimborne, as more than 100 bikers took to the street in memory of Mia Hankins.
Mia died with a brain tumour aged six, two years ago, and her mum Hannah Rideout and dad Tom Hankins have been raising money for Brain Tumour Research in memory of their daughter.
The bikers all donated money at the start of the ride, which ended up in Blandford at the weekend.
Ahead of the event, dad Tom said he was feeling “anxious” about the ride but was looking forward to “making some noise for Mia”.
Tom added: “It’s fantastic there is still so much support 20 months later. Including offshore donations, Mia has raised almost £35,000 since November 2020.
“There’s a mixture of emotions; there are a lot of different people here, but the support from strangers is amazing and I know Wimborne will be pretty chock-a-block.
“It’s nice to know there are a lot of good people out there. It’s gives us a little bit of faith that these strangers are coming down to support us.
“People are coming up to me saying hello and there’s a group currently fixing my bike before the start. This is what Mia was all about; she helped and supported people. It’s Mia in a nutshell.”
Most bikers wore some form of purple, Mia’s favourite colour. All riders also attached a purple ribbon to the handlebars of their motorbikes.
Describing Mia, mum Hannah said: “She didn’t like loud noises but if you put music on, she always loved it.
“Mia’s favourite colour was in fact blue but suddenly she changed to purple. Funnily enough, my colour is red and Tom’s is blue, and red and blue make purple.
“She wasn’t really a pink girl. She was half tomboy. She would dress up and put make up on, but she’d definitely take it off afterwards. She would love today and to look at all the bikes.”
Read more: 100 bikers ride through Wimborne for girl who died with brain tumour
More than 100 bikers turned up to show their support, a lot of them only knowing of the ride through word of mouth.
One motorcyclist said he wanted to show “support and respect” to Mia and her family.
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