Wedding ride for Red Knight

By Danny Buttler
SOME women dream of their white knight getting down on bended knee, but Narre Warren’s Liz Cian had to make do with a Red Knight.
In a touching moment from an already emotional day, CFA firefighter and Red Knight Motorcycle Club member Damien “Damo” Baker proposed to his girlfriend Liz in front of fellow emergency service volunteers.
The occasion, the recent farewell in Pakenham to riders taking part in the Ride Beyond Road Trauma, might have seemed a strange setting at first, but Damien said it ended up being the perfect time and place.
“It was an emotional time anyhow, because we were talking about road trauma, but the organisers thought it would be a good idea to lighten the mood,” he said.
“A lot of the people there are my friends, I’m in the Red Knights chapter and this was a ride that we were associated with.”
While many people would be fearful of a very public humiliation from a very public proposal, the 40-year-old Narre Warren brigade third lieutenant was confident that he was on safe ground.
“We’d already bought the ring together, so I was just waiting for a good opportunity,” he said.
“I knew it was a good chance, at our age and all that, we don’t need any more surprises.”
The risk that Damien took was forcing Liz onto such a public stage for their big moment.
It turned out to be a risk worth taking.
“She was very shocked, she is not a very public person, but afterwards she was thrilled how it went down,” she said.
“I wanted to show my love for her in a public place so she was pretty pleased.”
The Red Knights, which is a group of motorbike enthusiasts from CFA brigades from around the state, could also feature on the couple’s wedding day.
While a date and location for the big day is yet to be fixed, one thing is certain – motorcycles will be involved.
“I’d love to ride a motorcycle to my wedding wearing the Red Knights colours,” Damien said.