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4 min read
RIDING ISRAEL: The Nova Festival Victims Memorial with members of the blind & deaf community
I am taking the time that we are sitting at home because of the Iran war to write the last article that I am owing the blog, from one of my last rides.
This is going to be a different post - it will talk less about the way, and a little more about the event and the place. This article is more of a presentation for the video I recorded of this event, and an explanation article, and less of a trip log.
This is going to be a different post - it will talk less about the way, and a little more about the event and the place. This article is more of a presentation for the video I recorded of this event, and an explanation article, and less of a trip log.
The Nova Festival Victims Memorial
Let's begin by the place: the Nova Festival Victims Memorial, or the Noval Massacre Site, is the place at the South of Israel where the Nova Music Festival was happening on October 6th-7th, 2023 when Hamas and Gaza people invaded Israel, killing everyone they found on their way. 378 people that were there for dancing to the music were killed at the site, 44 people abducted or taken hostages, others managed to flee the place and either arrived safely home or were killed on their way or while hiding at the bomb shelters.
The place, situated at the Re'im Recreation Parking Lot in the western Negev desert, near road 232, has become a memorial site for the people killed there. There is a field with pictures of all the people that died there, and lately a forest was planted there in honor of these victims.
Let's begin by the place: the Nova Festival Victims Memorial, or the Noval Massacre Site, is the place at the South of Israel where the Nova Music Festival was happening on October 6th-7th, 2023 when Hamas and Gaza people invaded Israel, killing everyone they found on their way. 378 people that were there for dancing to the music were killed at the site, 44 people abducted or taken hostages, others managed to flee the place and either arrived safely home or were killed on their way or while hiding at the bomb shelters.
The place, situated at the Re'im Recreation Parking Lot in the western Negev desert, near road 232, has become a memorial site for the people killed there. There is a field with pictures of all the people that died there, and lately a forest was planted there in honor of these victims.
The event
The event happened on January 30th, 2026. It was organized by the Africa-Twin Motorcycle Club together with the Israel Motorcycle Club, and with Keren Or Ofir (an organization for the creation of new leaderships in Israel), the Purple Homefront (an organization that provides assistance to people with disabilities during emergency times in Israel) and Shirley Pinto (an Israeli Deaf social-political activist, who served as Member of Knesset for National Unity).
The idea of the event was to give blind and deaf community members in Israel two unique opportunities: visit the Nova Memorial site, a place to which their access would be very difficult, plant there some trees in memory of the people killed there, and get there through riding motorcycles, an experience very far from everything they were used to do.
Around 80 motorcyclists registered to the event, and around 30 people with disabilities came. The disabled were grouped in groups of two, every person that was deaf and blind was matched with someone who was deaf but could see, and these were their interface to the experience, and explained to them by "touching sign language". To each pair like this, two motorcyclists were assigned, and they took the obligation of travelling together, one after the other, parking side-by-side for facilitating the encounter between the two after they get down from the motorcycle.
It was an interesting experience also for the motorcyclists. I can tell for myself that before the trip I was in doubt regarding how could a blind person enjoy a motorcycle ride, and even how secure that could be for this person... after carrying with me a gentleman who was both deaf and blind, I changed my opinion. In terms of security, it took him two minutes to get completely adjusted to the riding experience. After that, he was more stable at the motorcycle than most people that ever rode with me. He intuitively understood in seconds the movement, the inclination on the curves, etc, like as if he was a natural rider. Talking to him later (with the help of a translator), I understood that this was part of the experience, they actually feel the ride in a completely different way that we do: the wind, the vibration of the engine, the noise, the acceleration and braking, it all creates a pattern of the ride in their minds, they understand it completely and can experience and enjoy the ride just as we do. It was a pleasure hearing him ask, at the end of the day, "When are we doing it again?".
In summary, it was a very interesting experience for all: a very sensitive place with very sensitive people, and at the end the feeling that you have done good to someone.
Here is the video of the day.
The event happened on January 30th, 2026. It was organized by the Africa-Twin Motorcycle Club together with the Israel Motorcycle Club, and with Keren Or Ofir (an organization for the creation of new leaderships in Israel), the Purple Homefront (an organization that provides assistance to people with disabilities during emergency times in Israel) and Shirley Pinto (an Israeli Deaf social-political activist, who served as Member of Knesset for National Unity).
The idea of the event was to give blind and deaf community members in Israel two unique opportunities: visit the Nova Memorial site, a place to which their access would be very difficult, plant there some trees in memory of the people killed there, and get there through riding motorcycles, an experience very far from everything they were used to do.
Around 80 motorcyclists registered to the event, and around 30 people with disabilities came. The disabled were grouped in groups of two, every person that was deaf and blind was matched with someone who was deaf but could see, and these were their interface to the experience, and explained to them by "touching sign language". To each pair like this, two motorcyclists were assigned, and they took the obligation of travelling together, one after the other, parking side-by-side for facilitating the encounter between the two after they get down from the motorcycle.
It was an interesting experience also for the motorcyclists. I can tell for myself that before the trip I was in doubt regarding how could a blind person enjoy a motorcycle ride, and even how secure that could be for this person... after carrying with me a gentleman who was both deaf and blind, I changed my opinion. In terms of security, it took him two minutes to get completely adjusted to the riding experience. After that, he was more stable at the motorcycle than most people that ever rode with me. He intuitively understood in seconds the movement, the inclination on the curves, etc, like as if he was a natural rider. Talking to him later (with the help of a translator), I understood that this was part of the experience, they actually feel the ride in a completely different way that we do: the wind, the vibration of the engine, the noise, the acceleration and braking, it all creates a pattern of the ride in their minds, they understand it completely and can experience and enjoy the ride just as we do. It was a pleasure hearing him ask, at the end of the day, "When are we doing it again?".
In summary, it was a very interesting experience for all: a very sensitive place with very sensitive people, and at the end the feeling that you have done good to someone.
Here is the video of the day.
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