Mary McGee is a pioneer in American motorcycle racing, thanks to her untamable determination and a spirit as warm as her smile. Her excitement for motorcycling, especially racing, is contagious even in her eighties. She was the first woman to receive an FIM racing license in the United States, first woman to complete the Baja 1000, and the first woman to race the Baja 500 solo. These aren’t her only firsts, either. She was also the first woman in motocross and road racing in the States. McGee was rightly inducted into the AMA Hall of Fame in 2018.
It’s one thing to see stunters doing this, or racers who can get so low in corners they could scrape shoulder- but to see a retro custom like this, rider dragging hand in a parking lot… man, that just makes me all tingly inside.
Photo of Jasin Phares by Adam Wright photography.
Posted on November 8, 2012 in Motorcycles by Alicia Mariah Elfving