75 Years of WIMA

I had a detailed schedule of events in my tank bag, but little idea of what to expect on arriving by motorcycle at Agassiz Village in Poland, Maine, for the Women’s International Motorcycle Association’s international rally, my first.^[1] I put down my kickstand and walked toward the entrance of the large log-cabin-style dining hall to check in. A woman approached me and complimented my red, white, and blue Honda Alpinestars jacket. I later realized she was Hayley Bell, the 2019 American Motorcyclist Association Motorcyclist of the Year, who organized the Women Riders World Relay to connect women riders around the world.^[2] Bell was the first of many women giving a warm welcome at the 75th Anniversary of the founding of WIMA. And she was just one of a veritable Who’s Who of women motorcyclists giving talks during the week-long event. I was thrilled to join them as a speaker, feeling an immediate sense of community and connection.

In 1950, after nearly two decades of long-distance motorcycle riding, event organizing, stunt performing, and winning best-dressed competitions, western New York native Louise Scherbyn founded WIMA. Her perseverance, despite the challenges she faced, is truly inspiring. Co-author of Iron Horse Cowgirls [reviewed here], Kate St. Vincent Vogl, explained in her talk about Scherbyn and the creation of the organization that recognition for women motorcyclists from the male-dominated AMA did not come easily.^[3] Scherbyn’s relationships with other women riders were also fraught with tensions. Her vision of what a women’s motorcycle association should be differed from that of the Motor Maids, a 300-member AMA auxiliary group for women riders, which Dot Robinson and Linda Dugeau, friends of Louise, had founded a decade earlier.  Scherbyn was kicked out of the Maids for behavior deemed “unbecoming” of a lady. That term carried new meaning in the redefined gender relations of 1950s America.

Rejection stung, but it also motivated Scherbyn to reach beyond the confines of what her American friends had accomplished and seek networks with women outside the US. Her nascent group became truly international in 1952 when Scherbyn convinced British motorcyclist Theresa Wallach, who had ridden from London to Cape Town in the 1930s, to support an independent global organization for women riders. Wallach was able to extend WIMA’s reach to women in Europe – first Belgium, the Netherlands, and Czechoslovakia – and expand the English-speaking membership from the US, Canada, and the UK to include Australia. WIMA grew, mainly because of its international memberships, which climbed to 100 by 1958 and included the likes of Anke-Eve Goldmann^[4]. The European division of WIMA held an international rally in the Netherlands that year. Scherbyn sent five trophies to honor competition winners, “in an organization designed for women–not girls, not pals, not tag-alongs, not maids.”^[5] In other words, through WIMA, women enjoyed a space where they were not subordinate to men as they had been in other organizations.

Sheonagh Ravensdale, former WIMA World president, and Michelle Lamphere, current WIMA USA president and principal organizer of the Maine rally, led a discussion of the process of creating the WIMA International History Book. A collaborative effort by several WIMA members, the collection brings together rally reports, photos, correspondence, and member features in a bound volume. In a later conversation with Ravensdale, I learned that WIMA is now updating its website and plans to digitize archival materials to make them available online.^[6] The History Book will also be available for sale and to view on the website. Ravensdale and Lamphere emphasized the significance of the international rallies in the association’s history and were especially pleased to be able to share this collection at the 75th anniversary rally. “Preserving and sharing the history of the organization and of women motorcyclists is not just a mission, but a responsibility we all share,” commented Lamphere.

It thus makes sense that a special celebration of the life of Mary McGee, whose remarkable career in motorsports recently gained wider recognition because of the film Motorcycle Mary, was a centerpiece of this WIMA rally.^[7] Ruth Belcher, who had been a close friend of Mary’s – Mary passed in late 2024 – and herself an accomplished motorcyclist, rode to the WIMA rally in Maine from her home in the state of Washington to launch the Ride4Mary campaign. The ongoing movement, which aims to honor Mary’s legacy and inspire the next generation of women riders, encourages women and men who knew Mary McGee or who have been inspired by her to share their own stories.^[8]  Along with Michelle Lamphere, former AMA board chairperson Maggie McNally, and motorcycle industry insider Sarah Schilke, Belcher learned about McGee through her nephew, who told them he “had an aunt who used to ride.”^[9] The women quickly understood that Mary was more than an ordinary lady on a motorcycle and began uncovering her story and supporting her bid to be inducted into the AMA Hall of Fame, which they accomplished in 2018.^[10] Rally attendees were treated to their personal stories of Mary and two screenings of the short film.

Numerous additional talks and seminars allowed rally-goers to learn and compare perspectives with other women riders. My talk focused on the role of visual social media in motorcycle culture. I emphasized that while platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube open the possibility for riders to share their own stories or experiences of riding with more motorcyclists – traditional media mostly avoid motorcycle content – their algorithms favor old stereotypes and reinforce negative images.^[11]  I argued that we can do more to educate riders to engage in critical thinking when using social media and that we can offer our own good examples on these platforms. I was thrilled that my discussion questions – I stepped into my professorial role – initiated a lively conversation that continued into the following days.

Motorcycles and Misfits podcaster Liza Miller and her friend, mechanic, EMT, and iron-butt competitor Wendy Crockett offered sessions on motorcycle maintenance, first aid, safety, and travel.^[12] Several adventure riders and tour leaders, such as Sue Bossley, Lee Traveler, Linda Bick, Donna Wiegle, and Louisa Swaden shared experiences from their travels near and far across the globe. Finally, Erin Sanzone of the volunteer-staffed adventure riding group SheADV led a group of ADV-riders (and one brave woman on a Suzuki SV650) through drills on a dewy soccer field.^[13]

As is the case at many motorcycle rallies, there were also opportunities to go on rides – WIMA volunteers put together detailed maps and GPS coordinates for riders wishing to venture out of the camp. And anyone who stayed behind could also enjoy the private lake, visit the store and WIMA silent auction, play games, or just hang out on the veranda and talk bikes and gear. Lamphere noted that this year’s attendance was lower than in the past, but more than 160 women and a few men ventured to Maine from 19 countries.^[14] Many Americans and Canadians arrived with their own motorcycles, while most of the participants from outside North America arranged for rental motorcycles or used Riders Share.^[15]

On my way out of the Agassiz camp, I stopped to snap a photo with new friend Ruth Belcher and, as I rode away, my head filled with all the faces and voices of women from all sorts of motorcycling groups, countries around the world, and life experiences. For a week, we were all brought together under the WIMA umbrella to honor a tradition of women motorcyclists that dates back to Scherbyn’s first rides in the northeastern United States and that will continue in the spirit of her legacy.^[16]

^[1] The Agassiz Village, a summer camp, dates to 1935 and serves children from under-resourced communities. Funds collected through the rally supported the events but also the camp. Women could donate their $20 sleeping bags to the camp at the end of the week.

^[2] For more on the past and upcoming Women Riders World Relay see https://womenridersworldrelay.com/ and on Bell see The American Motorcyclist https://americanmotorcyclist.com/hayley-bell-named-american-motorcyclist-association-2019-motorcyclist-of-the-year/

^[3] See my review of Iron Horse Cowgirls https://thevintagent.com/2024/05/16/book-review-iron-horse-cowgirls-and-superbike/

^[4] See Paul d’Orleans piece about Goldmann https://thevintagent.com/2017/09/07/anke-eve-goldmann/

^[5] Linda Back McKay and Kate St. Vincent Vogl, Iron Horse Cowgirls: Louise Scherbyn and the Women Motorcyclists of the 1930s and 1940s (Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, 2023), 275.

^[6] The current WIMA website is available here and includes links to national groups: https://wimaworld.com/

^[7] See https://thevintagent.com/2024/11/30/the-vintagent-selects-motorcycle-mary/

^[8] You can participate in the Ride4Mary at https://www.ride4mary.com/

^[9] Maggie McNally was the first woman to be elected Chair of the Board of Directors for the AMA. She now runs the Motorcycle Safety Foundation training school at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, New York. Learn more about Sarah Schilke at the Feroce podcast featured on Women Riders Now https://womenridersnow.com/feroce-podcast-for-motorcycle-enthusiasts-features-wrns-sarah-schilke/

^[10] Biographies of AMA Hall of Famers are available at http://hof.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame

^[11] I cover social media in chapter five of my forthcoming book Connected by the Street: The Myths and Realities of Motorcyclists in the US and Italy.

^[12] You can listen to Liza Miller at https://motorcyclesandmisfits.com/ and learn about Wendy Crockett’s 100,000 mile adventure at https://pushingmiles.com/

^[13] Learn more about SheADV at https://www.sheadv.com/

^[14] WIMA-Germany hosted an international rally in Wilnsdorf in August, with 325 women from 23 countries in attendance–closer to the usual US figures. There was speculation that the US rally had lower attendance this year because of political and economic uncertainty.

^[15] Note that Riders Share is not available in all US states https://www.riders-share.com/

^[16] It also got me thinking about questions of gender, exceptionality, and motorcycle history that will be the subject of future research.