The motorcycle rider with “It’s my birthday today” written on his back was celebrated by the drivers in traffic.

Motorcycle rider Burcu Yıldıran drew great attention when she set out on her motorcycle on her birthday with a sign on her back that read, “Today is my birthday. Honk to celebrate.” Some drivers who saw the sign on the motorcyclist’s back honked to celebrate her birthday, some gave her chocolate, and others gave her birthday money. Images from those moments also drew interest on social media.

Burcu Yıldıran, a motorcycle rider living in the Pendik district of Istanbul, set out on her motorcycle to celebrate her 30th birthday with a sign on her back reading, “Today is my birthday. Honk to celebrate.” While Yıldıran was stopped at a red light, drivers behind her noticed the sign and honked their horns to congratulate her on her birthday. Many drivers celebrated her birthday both while she was stopped at the lights and while she was riding on the road. Some drivers honked their horns to celebrate her birthday, while others gave Yıldıran 20 TL as birthday money, and some gave her chocolate as a gift. Burcu Yıldıran, who creates content on her social media account, shared the footage from those moments, which went viral on social media. Yıldıran stated that she did not expect to receive such attention when she set out with the sign on her back that read, “Today is my birthday. Honk to celebrate,” and shared her experiences with İHA.

Burcu Yıldıran said, “I did the same thing two years ago, but I didn’t have a motorcycle then. Now that I love motorcycles so much, I wanted to do it on a motorcycle because it reflects different energy. I could see that from people’s reactions. I didn’t do it for a purpose; I did it to make myself happy. I am going through a tough time, and since riding a motorcycle is good for me, I am just looking at how I can combine my entire life with motorcycles. After I left the house, I received an incredible reaction at the first traffic lights. I thought maybe one or two people would congratulate me, and it wouldn’t matter much to people, but when 9 out of 10 cars honked their horns at the same time to celebrate my birthday, I was surprised. I could see the energy in people. A gentleman congratulated me by giving me a small amount of money. Someone in traffic gave me chocolate. I ended up collecting 20 lira. I am a cabin attendant, but I am not working right now; I have a different job. I did this because I just wanted to do something that makes me happy. I don’t know what will come to my mind next year, but I am sure it will be something different. It will still be related to motorcycles,” she said.

Yıldıran stated that she did not expect the footage to gain so much attention on social media, saying, “I thought it would get 1-2 million views at most on my own page, but I was surprised when it got fewer views on my own page and more on other pages.”