Shirly Barron's three-wheeled Harley Davidson wears a pink-string bikini top across the windshield. A hot-pink boa is twisted around the front of her bike and underlines the word CURE emblazoned in sparkles under the swimsuit top.

The 80-year-old woman from Castleford is a sight to behold as she races down the road in a brilliant pink shirt with bejeweled buttons, black leather chaps and a purple-flamed helmet. Another pink boa, tied to her suitcase rack, flies out behind her like the tail of a kite.

When she finally slowed down and came to a stop on Monday morning, Barron smiled as she removed her helmet and adjusted her scarf - which matched her shirt color perfectly.

The decked-out bike isn't how Barron normally rides around town. But she's getting ready to join a group of women bikers and two men, known as the "cabana boys," in a two-day ride from Twin Falls to Shell, Wyo., on Wednesday morning. The Women Who Ride Conga IV are revving up their bikes around the nation and meeting in the middle for a long weekend of breast cancer survivor speeches, auctions, fundraising for breast cancer research and friendship.

Barron went last year on the Conga ride and said meeting women who have breast cancer or have survived made her want to return again this year. The ride was named "conga" as a way to show that anyone can join in along the way, not unlike a conga dance line that starts small but grows to encompass everyone in the room.

Last year the conga ride raised $36,000. This year, women in Canada and the United States are trying to raise a collective $50,000.

"It just started out as a fun thing but then you realize that these women and their mates are amazing. They may not be able to ride this year because of breast cancer but they are planning on being there next year," Barron said.

Barron bought a motorcycle after her husband Tom's death and started riding seriously in 2007. She's always had a fascination with the large bikes but said the couple led a very conservative life of farming. After 47 years of marriage, she threw caution to the wind and started to dream of riding on the seat of a powerful machine to places she'd never gone before.

"When I became a widow, I went through a period of mourning and then you go through a period that makes you ask, what do you want to do with the rest of your life?" Barron said. "We were very conservative, simple farmer folk. Now I play as hard as I can play."

The older women with bright blue eyes and a warm laugh chose to buy a custom-made bike with three wheels after she tried to ride a normal, two-wheeled bike with varied results. Sturgis, S.D., was the first stop checked off her bucket list, but riding in the Conga ride has made her be very aware of living life to its fullest.

"Every day you start out this way," she said, pulling at her cheeks to make a smile. "You see these women with their bald heads and they have these big smiles on their faces. You meet people who are really struggling and that makes a difference."

Amy Huddleston may be reached at ahuddleston@magicvalley.com or 735-3204.