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Janet Davidson was probably the first woman to ride a Harley-Da

  • July 2010 Asylum Mobilitarium

    Blue Elders Faithful. This article was written in mid 2009. It was directed to the female riders in Panther Creek, who make up a large segment of the Chapter. Since we will have gals riding their own bikes at some point, I thought I would repeat it here. I know this is a Law Enforcement club, but realize this was written to the whole PCH, which is made up of riders in all sorts of careers.

    I wrote awhile back about the founders of Harley-Davidson had an aunt named Janet Davidson. She is famous for the fact that she hand painted the logo “Harley-Davidson” on the gas tanks of the first products that the founders produced. Later, she would obtain Harley stock that made her a wealthy woman, but never being married or having children, I wonder where her stock went?

    What is arguable is the fact that some historians figure that Janet Davidson was probably the first woman to ride a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. This is not documented, but one could suppose that this might have happened.

    Women make up the fastest growing segment of the HD community. 11% of all Harley sales are sold to women. Women figure prominently in the current world of Harley cult and culture I like to call it. If you watch the new catalogs coming out from the company, women’s clothing takes up more pages than men’s. One finds women riders and passengers all over motorcycle magazines nowadays.

    No more are women relegated to grainy photos of usually too drunk to know better “biker” girls flashing their assets at obscure rallies that end up on the internet. They are out on the open road, riding with and without men. Throttle twisters indeed. They are masters of their own destiny.

    Back in the early part of the century, women pioneers riding motorcycles often made the news since it was not a common sight to see ladies riding their own bikes. Women such as Vivian Bale, known as the “Enthusiast Girl,” who rode 5000 cross country visiting HD dealers promoting the company. Typical of the ultra conservative founders of Harley (see cheap,) the only sponsorship that they supplied to the intrepid woman was two sweaters. She even met President Hoover on her journey. It didn’t hurt that she was a good looking girl which made her a poster child for the company.

    Della Crew had her fifteen minutes of fame in 1915 for her famous “Snowy Adventure” that made all the papers.

    Bessie Stringfield was an avid woman motorcyclist, who just happened to be Africa-American. She rode during the 1930’s all over the country and continued just prior to her death in the early nineties. Because of her race, she was often denied rooms at motels, and HD dealerships sometimes refused to work on her motorcycle.

    We all have seen Brigitte Bardot’s poster of her sitting on a Harley with a couple of strategic buttons on her shirt undone. What is not known in this country is that she is considered an accomplished singer in Europe. In the 1960’s she had a hit song about Harley-Davidson that was all over the radio in France. Loosely “Je Me Donne A Qui Me Plait,” translated from French to HD in some way. She is forever linked to the Orange and Black.

    Jean Davidson is the granddaughter of one of the founders and has written several books on her life and with growing up Harley-Davidson.

    Elizabeth Taylor was giving a purple Sportster by her sometime boyfriend Malcolm Forbes back in the nineties.

    Hazel Kolb “The Motorcycling Grandma,” did much to elevate the status of women riders.

    The Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson is reportedly a fan of our favorite company. On two business trips to Wisconsin, she has visited the Juneau plant and shopped for HD apparel at dealerships.

    There are many motorcycle rallies that cater exclusively to women. One of the largest is the annual Leather and Lace rally. The AMA also has an annual event that caters to women in motorcycling.

    Truly, women are here to stay in the world of motorcycling.

    Where we live says a lot about who we are. It’s where we live and we believe that we can raise a family in relative safety, in the bounds of course of how much money we make. People that live in the Park Cities refer to their area as “The Bubble.” Some folks never leave the bubble except to go to work, and it’s a straight shot downtown. In other parts of the Metroplex, there are other “bubbles.”

    The good news about riding a motorcycle is that you are always going to new places and meeting new people. The bad news is that you are always going to new places and meeting new people. When leaving your own personal “bubble,” be aware of your surroundings and where you are. There’s the old saying that if you see coaches and refrigerators on front porches, keep your guard up. That may be a false generalization, but there is a grain of truth in it too.

    Let’s start with a female rider on her bike, by herself at a red light. There are people who look for potential targets of opportunity out there. How many times have you sat at an intersection, and felt like there are dozens of eyes on you. This has happened to all of us guys at one time or another, but imagine a female, which to the non-bike riding world, is still a unique thing. If this potential predator is looking for a certain type of target, in both cases it’s easy to size you up.

    Be aware of your surroundings. From the book, “The Gift of Fear,”God has given all of us all this “gift of fear.” Pay attention to it. If something doesn’t seem right, or your gut feeling says this isn’t good for you, get away.

    This is presented to increase the likelihood that you will believe that it is at least possible that you or a loved one will be a victim of violent crime at some point. This is the key element in recognizing when you are in the presence of danger. That belief balances denial, which is powerful and cunning enemy of successful predictions.

    Let’s say that after going through the red light, and you pull over for gas, what if a total stranger pulls up and asks you about your bike? You’re southern niceness says be polite, but your gut is putting up red flags such as the hair on your neck standing up. Your “female intuitions” are telling you something’s just not right.

    But what if you momentarily forgot that your personalized plate or helmet has your name or biker name on it and the guy calls you by that name. In seconds, your brain is going through its files wracking your head wondering if you know this guy. He has already made inroads with you by simply knowing your name. And he is sizing you up. His brain is going ninety to nothing too. Is this person an easy target? Can I get somewhere with this?

    It’s an impossible task to know what particular words or phrases that you might say to set the predator off. And maybe he is just one of those guys that hit on every female he sees that strikes his fancy. They have no pride and don’t care about rejection. This idiot thinks that if hits on a certain number of women, the law of averages say that something will “click,” with one of them. The trouble is that you don’t have long to size this guy up either.

    Be aware and take ten seconds to take in your surroundings. Then take ten seconds to evaluate the guy in front of you. Hopefully the gas station is well lit, with lots of people around. And if your instincts are still going haywire, lock your bike and simply walk away.

    Don’t fight that gut feeling.

    Remember too, there are charming guys, and guys who simply try to “charm” you. Like this one at the gas station. Ted Bundy was a very charming guy. He sometimes wore a cast on his arm to evoke sympathy from women, or at least a conversation starter. It’s like guys who walk dogs to meet women, an instant conversation piece. Ted Bundy killed over thirty women.

    What if you break down alone while riding. Most women would have no problem attracting guys wanting to stop and help. But consider this; if you flag down a motorist that YOU CHOOSE, there is a better chance that this person would want to help purely because he sees a damsel in distress! Unfortunately, there is the southern thing, so let’s all be polite, and it’s hard to turn down someone just stopping and wanting to help. Just be aware of your surroundings, and keep your guard up if anything is said that makes you uncomfortable. Even if someone is helping you, if you see a squad car, go ahead and flag him down if only to make you feel better.

    To deny the fact that there are people out there not to be trusted has an insidious and interesting side effect. For all the peace of mind deniers who get by saying that it isn’t so, the fall that they take when being victimized is greater than those who accept the responsibility.

    Denial is a save now-pay later scheme, a contract written to one self, but the fact is that the denying person knows that there is the truth at some level, and it causes constant anxiety.

    Remember, being aware is not being paranoid.

    So, let’s all be aware of the dangers we face every day on two wheels, from the Killer Mommy Van’s on the streets to the predator lurking in the shadows. We, as Harley riders, male and female, like to think of ourselves as %$#-ass. Go to Stroker’s or Duke’s or any other biker hangout every weekend, you will see tons of them posing and making the “biker” scene.

    That is the image that Harley sells, and it sells well. Black leather and chrome. Blasting down the highway as if we are trying to prove something to ourselves, and others I guess too. But it finally comes to this, and I heard this for years while working for DPD.

    It’s who goes home at night that wins every time.

    Bill Croom aka Willie Hank

    Panther Creek Historian

    Blue Elders LEMC Vice-President

    Youths Led Astray 1955

    Cycle tracts will abound in Utopia ( H.G.Wells)