Holy rider

Pastor Terry Murphy is known for more than just his charismatic preaching. He has a passion for motor bikes and goes on long road trips in his leather jacket, vest, and gloves whenever he gets the chance. His hobby has allowed him to share his faith, but has almost put him in dangerous situations, one of which nearly killed him.

The 60 year old pastor and family man has been interested in motor cycles since he was 16, and has always had a passion for them.

“I always liked riding bicycles when I was a kid, I rode them all the time,” he said. “Just the novelty of being able to ride a bike with a motor on it just kind of fell naturally in line for me.”

Pastor Murphy, who leads a evangelical congregation of 400 In Regina currently owns a

When he’s not out on his 1,634 cc Victory Kingpin Motorcycle, or when it is far too cold for him to do so, Pastor Terry Murphy spends his weekdays preparing sermons for his congregation, and his Sundays Preaching at the Regina Victory Church, Pictured here at 1815 Rupert street in Regina.
Photo by Alec Konkel

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“It’s a 100 cubic inch V twin cruiser. It is quite a powerful big bike,” Murphy said. He was first drawn to this brand of motorcycle because of the religious significance of the name, “I was first drawn to them because I’m the Victory church Pastor, and so I looked at the bike, and I really liked it, and it has proved to be a good bike.”

Murphy’s motor biking hobby has taken him all over the country and even into the U.S., going as a far as Denver Colorado. He has also ridden out to the Black Hills, and Yellow Stone national park. Murphy described his first trip, which took him to Denver Colorado, as an adventure. He now often rides with groups of fellow motor biking enthusiasts, including a number of fellow pastors.

“You feel like you’re going on a military expedition with some other guys. You ride your motorcycles in a group formation,” he said.

His hobby nearly cost him his life once. “I was cut off on a double-lane highway by a guy who didn’t even know I was there,” said Murphy. “I had to react quickly so I put my bike into a bit of a slide and managed to get out of the situation without going down. He drove away, he didn’t even know he almost killed me. That is the story for most motorcycle accidents. It’s people not seeing you.”

Murphy, a father of 4 children, is a short but stocky man, with a fiery Irish temperament. He became a Christian in the 1980s while he was traveling around Australia in an epiphany he calls a “personal encounter with Christ”. He first became interested in becoming a pastor in 1993 when he went to Bible College. Murphy is currently pastoring the Regina Victory Church, which is both charismatic and evangelical. Murphy’s Church adheres strictly to the teachings of the Bible, and Murphy himself is a firm believer in daily readings and encourages such activates.

When on biking trips the biking pastor takes the opportunity to share his faith when he gets the chance. “The time I went to Denver with three other guys on motorcycles, we got stopped by a state trooper in Wyoming, and he was kind of skittish. Four guys riding motorcycles? I don’t know if he thought we were a gang or not. We had a little mechanical issue, and so once he talked to us and found out that we were Christians and that we had been to a Christian conference in Denver, the Promise Keepers conference, he warmed up to us right away. The trooper took us back to the nearest town to help us get a part that we needed, and when the town policeman came to see why the state trooper has got these four motorcyclists following him, we ended up with the state trooper witnessing to the town cop, and led him to the Lord.”

Murphy’s next trip is set to take place in New Orleans at the end of April. “We are planning, several of us pastors to fly down, and rent motorcycles, and spend a few days riding around with our wives.”

For Murphy the thrill of motor biking can be summed up simply. “For all the hours you are on a motorcycle you can’t talk to anybody. So you have lots of time to think, and to me it’s just a lot of fun.”

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