This June 13, 2012 photo showd Harley-Davidson representative Dana Wilke, left, assisting Lizzy Dabczynsky, 22, of Salt Lake City, Utah, in test riding a motorcycle in New York. The number of women motorcycle riders in the U.S. has increased slowly to about 7.2 million of about 27 million overall in 2009, according to the latest survey by the Motorcycle Industry Council. Dozens of female-only motorcycle clubs have joined more established groups like Women on Wheels. The makers of bikes and gear are reaching out to women like never before through special events and marketing campaigns that include Harley-Davidson’s “No Doubts. No Cages.” program. (AP Photo/Charles Sykes)LEANNE ITALIE
NEW YORK (AP) – Cris Baldwin was 7 when she commandeered her brother’s minibike on their Wisconsin dairy farm and first felt the wind in her face. More than 250,000 miles and 42 years later, it’s still two wheels and a gas tank for the school administrator.
Baldwin is an assistant dean at Washington University in St. Louis, but that’s just one part of her. She’s also past president and a chapter founder of the 30-year-old Women on Wheels, one of the country’s oldest and largest motorcycle clubs for women at about 2,000 members.
“It really is freeing from your day to day obligations, enjoying the moment, not thinking about bills or sending kids to college,” Baldwin said. “I wouldn’t trade it for anything. It’s my two-wheel therapy.”
The number of women motorcycle operators in the U.S. has increased slowly to about 7.2 million of about 27 million overall in 2009, according to the latest survey by the Motorcycle Industry Council. About 1 in 10 owners are women, said Cam Arnold, a vice president for the trade group.