Women motorcycle riders' convention coming to Dublin this week

In the early ‘40s, women who rode motorcycles drew disapproving stares and discrimination, including exclusion from competitions. After all, it wasn’t “ladylike.” The founding of the Motor Maids can be credited with helping knock down those barriers.

The idea started with Linda Dugeau, a young motorcycle aficionado from Rhode Island who envisioned a national association uniting female riders from coast to coast and inspiring more women to take up the sport.

Dugeau wrote to motorcycle dealers and other enthusiasts such as Dot Robinson, a well-known off-road racer from Detroit who liked the idea and helped lay the foundation. And so, in 1941, with 51 charter members from 19 states and what was then the Territory of Alaska, the Motor Maids of America was established.

The organization changed its name after 20 years to Motor Maids, Inc. to include Canadian members. Since then, membership has snowballed, according to Motor Maids historian and rider Sue Mikicic.

“We currently have 1,228 members across the U.S. and Canada. They come from all states and provinces. There are 63 members in Ohio,” she said, noting the oldest and youngest members are 98 and 18, respectively.

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The Motor Maids’ inaugural convention was held in Columbus in 1944, where it returned in 1953, 1965 and 1990. Seventy years later, they’ll convene in Dublin from July 9-11. Members must ride to Dublin from their homes and back — with riders coming from as far as California and Ottawa — to count as an attendee.

In addition to a business meeting and timed run, the convention features a parade scheduled to rev up at 2 p.m. July 9 from the parking lot on the northeast side of the Mall at Tuttle Crossing.