The MotoLady website celebrates five years this week- and I’d like to review some of my favorite moments and adventures.
I started riding some six or seven months before I started the MotoLady website, which in the beginning was a tumblr blog hooked up to the url. At the time, I had been working as a graphic designer and social media marketing ‘specialist’ (I don’t know what to call it really), and a makeup artist/wardrobe stylist for various advertising and fashion photoshoots in Portland. Constantly looking for photographic inspiration online, and having finally been able to buy a motorcycle five years after getting my endorsement, I was immersing myself in motorcycle media. Some of the first photographers I found were Scott Pommier and Michael Schmidt. Seeing more and more awesome photos of women riders, I used my marketing background to create and brand MotoLady.
I shared my trials and tribulations with my first bike, a beat up 1980 Yamaha XJ Maxim 650, that would leave me stranded on the side of the road for half an hour just because it felt like it sometimes. Or so it seemed, since I could never chase down that electrical gremlin. I’d take ‘Machafuko’ (yup that’s what I named her) out every day to work when it wasn’t pouring in Portland anyway, taking the long way home most days. I made a lot of friends that way, ending up riding with people on the freeway, pulling off and finding out they know some of your buddies or what have you. The motorcycle community in Portland is strong- and I quickly went from knowing maybe two people who were familiar with the mechanical workings of bikes to having a plethora of resources I could ask for good advice.
Soon after I started the website, I got hired at MotoCorsa to work on e-commerce web design and data stuff. Soon I took over the social media platforms and eventually ended up doing a lot of stuff there including helping with events, photography (see MANigale below), and graphic design. Working at MotoCorsa I met sooo many people- from big deal folk like Dave Chappelle, Roland Sands, and Steve Jones (Sex Pistols), to pillars of the Portland motorcycle community and industry like Tom Young, and some of my best friends to this day as well. I learned a lot about motorcycles, and thanks to Arun Sharma (MotoCorsa GM), got my hands dirty with the Monster Project.
After a couple years at MotoCorsa I moved on to working for myself and trying the whole MotoLady thing (and freelance photography/graphic design) full time. It became apparent I needed to be able to at least work out of Southern California if I wanted to really make it work. So I made the move to San Diego for a while, then in Ventura for a while, ending up with a ‘base’ out of Orange County now. Because of a bunch of really cool people along the way believing in me, and understanding what I was trying to do with the website- feature a wide variety of motorcycling women from across the world, while also offering helpful information about events, gear, rides, etc- I’ve been able to do some really awesome stuff. From riding the best motorcycle roads in Northern Ontario with What A Ride, working with the Yamaha Champions Riding School, to the recent STAR Motorcycle School with Jason Pridmore. I truly can’t express what a dream come true all of this has been for me, and I don’t think I could ever say thank you enough to every person who’s lent a hand, word of advice, and submit stories and photos over the years. I’m always amazed at how awesome the motorcycle community can be.
So, with that, I’d like to share some of my favorite moments and projects from the last five years. These are in (roughly) order of date, from the start (January 12, 2011) to present.
Meeting Sofi Tsingos (and riding her cafe racer)! I’ve been featuring her on MotoLady since the beginning basically- and we finally got to meet. Then we hung out at the MotoLady four year party when she got the MotoLady of the Year award, and again when we rode to BRO 3.
Thanks for reading along and helping make all this possible. <3
“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming ‘Wow! What a Ride!'” – Hunter S Thompson
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.
Congratulations! Who’da thunk? Been following you since nearly the early days. When I discovered your blog, I recognized the mix of personal story telling, good writing skills and great photo work, so I went back and read all the previous posts to the beginning. I was sorry to see you leave Portland, since I have family there and visit, but you did introduce the scene there to me, and riding year round in SoCal can’t be all bad! Keep up the great work.
You are super cool! Congratulations on 5 years, I’ve been reading you for almost as long. <3
Congrats!! Great post, and an even greater story behind it! Keep up the good work and another 5 years of MotoLady!
Congratulations! Who’da thunk? Been following you since nearly the early days. When I discovered your blog, I recognized the mix of personal story telling, good writing skills and great photo work, so I went back and read all the previous posts to the beginning. I was sorry to see you leave Portland, since I have family there and visit, but you did introduce the scene there to me, and riding year round in SoCal can’t be all bad! Keep up the great work.