I didn’t have posters of NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, or Brittney Spears in my room as a child (okay, I was obsessed with the Spice Girls, but that’s beside the point). Lining the walls of my bedroom were signed photos and posters of CSBK racers, motocross and freestyle stunt riders, and a few custom motorcycles I liked. Looking back, I realize there was only one thing missing from this perfect bedroom of mine: iconic motorcycling women. Everything on my walls was achieved by a man. Motorcycling is still male-dominated, and although women riders are much more prevalent now, we still don’t see too much about iconic women in the sport.

My first female motorcycle icon was Jolene Van Vugt, a Canadian motocross champion who also rode for the Nitro Circus freestyle team alongside Travis Pastrana. She pushed the boundaries of Freestyle motocross and was the first woman to land a backflip and a front flip on a full-size dirtbike.

Have you heard of Beryl Swain? She became the first woman to compete in the Isle of Man TT in 1962. Swain lost top gear on her 50 cc motorcycle but was still able to achieve an average speed of 48.3 mph. The race organization couldn’t pull Swain’s licence before the event, so instead enforced a minimum rider weight, one that she struggled to meet, having to gain almost 10 kg. After the race, the FIM organization determined it was too dangerous for women and banned them from competing in the TT. It wasn’t until Hilary Musson raced the TT in 1978 that we saw other women compete in the event.

Then there is Anne-France Dautheville, the first woman to circumnavigate the world solo on a motorcycle. Dautheville originally took a trip from France to Iran, then continued to Afghanistan, and then to Pakistan. Once she returned, she wrote about her travels. Media outlets claimed that it was a hoax and that she didn’t really ride. Dautheville was furious and decided to prove them wrong. In July 1973, she left Montreal, riding around the world and returning to France in November. She wrote her second book, Et j’ai suivi le vent (And I Followed the Wind), about the incredible trip. 

How about Ana Carrasco Gabarrón? She made history in the Supersport World Championship series recently. She first made history in 2017, racing the inaugural season of the Supersport 300 World Championship, taking home first place in a race, making her the first woman to win an individual world championship motorcycle race. In 2018, she made history again, this time taking home a world champion-ship title in the World Supersport 300 class, the first world title claimed by a woman. But the 2018 season was not without struggle; regulations changed for the class halfway through the season regarding the minimum weight of rider and bike, and she had to scramble to add an additional 14 kg to the bike to ensure she could race.

Jutta Kleinschmidt is most notable as the first woman to race in the Paris-Dakar Rally in 1988. She later raced and won in her class in 2001 by car, the first woman to do so. Kleinschmidt paved the way for women in rallysport, like Patsy Quick, Laia Sainz, Cristina Gutiérrez, Sarah Price and Dania Akeel.

Another all-round legend is Mary McGee, the first person to ever finish the Baja 500 solo, which she did in 1975. McGee was the first woman to hold an FIM race license in the United States. To receive the license, the American Federation of Motorcyclists made her take a test to ensure she could ride (they didn’t do so for men). She passed the skills test, doing so wearing a pink polka-dot helmet.

Debbie Evans is famous for her stuntwork. Lillian Farrow was the first woman to own a Harley-Davidson dealership in 1912. Valerie Thompson has multiple land speed records. Bessie Springfield was the first African American woman to ride solo across the United States. Liane Langlois, the first Canadian woman to set a FIM land speed record. Sadie Grimm, the first woman to win a motorcycle race against men in Canada. Katja Poensgen is the first female to score points in the 250 cc Grand Prix World Championship. Kayla Yaakov, first woman to podium at the Daytona 200. Louise Scherbyn, founder of the Women’s International Motorcycle Association (WIMA). The list is endless.

On top of the incredible racers and travellers, there are also incredible initiatives and groups to bring women together through motorcycling. May 2 is the 20th edition of International Female Ride Day. You can find more info at motoress.com. There’s also the Women Riders World Relay. Visit womenridersworldrelay.com for more information.

These people not only pushed boundaries despite hurdles, but they also moved the sport forward as a whole. Take the time to look up women in any facet of motorcycling you’re interested in. There are many great books and movies about these women mentioned and so many more inspirational female riders.