I am woman, hear me roar down the open road

Greg Williams
For The Calgary Herald

Friday, May 02, 2008

Motorcycling isn’t just for men — and Vicki Gray is out to prove it today with International Female Ride Day.

Since the invention of the powered two-wheeler, women have shown an interest in this unique form of transportation.

Take, for example, Augusta and Adeline Van Buren. In 1916, the sisters rode a 1.0-L Indian Power Plus motorcycles from New York to Los Angeles. They were the first women to cross the U.S. on motorcycles.

And that’s the kind of pluck ‘cyclist Gray appreciates.

Gray, 49, is the webmaster of www.motoress.com, an Internet site dedicated to women and motorcycles.

She is also the instigator of International Female Ride Day. Gray — motorcycle racer, instructor and riding coach — hopes all women motorcyclists and scooterists ride today.

The purpose of the event is to encourage women motorcyclists to “Just Ride!” as the campaign slogan suggests. There is no set destination and there is no charity attached.

According to the website, the campaign was created to highlight the number of women who ride and build female rider awareness.

Worldwide participation in the event is expected in countries such as Australia, Canada, Britain and the U.S. This is the second Female Ride Day; Gray initially launched the ride in 2007 as National Female Ride Day. She notes, however, that Canada’s participation was a little lacklustre last year.

“I want women to celebrate the day and make it their own,” Gray says from her Toronto office. “I’ve been hearing from women all over the world, as well as Canada.

And it looks like Canadian participation will be better this year.”

Her Motoress.com site averages 1,000 unique visitors a day, and can generate between 20,000 to 35,000 hits a day.

According to Jo-Anne Farquhar, manager of communications for the Motorcycle and Moped Industry Council of Canada, the number of women showing an interest in riding is on the rise.

 

“There are a lot of women who’ve been passengers and it seems they’re deciding it’s time for them to get their own bikes,” she says. “They’ve decided it’s time for them to control the ride.”

Farquhar adds: “There are no solid statistics on how many women riders there are out there. Our member companies, because of privacy issues, do not collect this data — but we know that there has been a significant increase in female riders.”

Gray is impressed with the amount of corporate sponsorship for 2008, with Harley-Davidson headquarters in the U.S. offering special parking for female riders today, a short ride at noon and a Harley-Davidson Garage Party to end the day. And in Canada, Harley-Davidson offers a Female Ride Day coupon good for $10 off an in-store purchase (visit the motoress site to download the voucher).

“It’s really great to have that kind of corporate support,” Gray says.

© The Calgary Herald 2008