Zoe Rem shows the guys how it's done at Thunderhill.
You can’t pick them out of a crowd. They mingle among us, coming from all walks of life, posing as pharmacists, letter carriers, and lab technicians by day. But come weekends, inhibitions are shed as they pull on tight leathers and head to the local track to feed their need. With implements like the CBR600RR and the Kawasaki 636RR at their disposal, they barrel down straights wide-open before scraping knee pucks tilting into the turns. They also shatter the antiquated mindset that the track is a man’s domain, with more women than ever before sharpening their riding skills at track days across the country. MotorcycleUSA took notice of this trend while attending a recent outing at Thunderhill Parkway with
Pacific Track Time.
Riding fast around a track can be infectious. Just ask Ann Deschenes. She originally came down from Quebec, Canada in 2006 to improve her street riding skills at Freddie Spencers High Performance Riding School. More than two years later, she’s still here.
“I fell in love – with track riding,” Deschenes said.
Ann Deschenes flips us a peace sign as she goes by in a blur.
Her riding resume now includes almost 100 track days, a racing stint in the WERA West 2007 series, and a few American Federation of Motorcyclists (AFM) races in 2008. Today she blurs past our cameraman dragging a knee, one hand on the handlebar as she shoots us a peace sign with the other.
“Every time I get out there, I learn something,” she said.
Kristy Miller was there honing her skills on a race-prepped 2006 GSX-R600. She is a member of NorCal’s Plush Racing, an all-women motorsports organization “which seeks to advance female involvement and success within the motorcycle riding and racing community.” Also known as ‘Slick Kitty’ by her Plush Racing peers, Miller has over 30 trackdays to her credit. She enjoys the safe environment the track provides for her to practice for road races.
Zoe Rem is also there turning laps on her 2005 Suzuki SV650. She has been a dirt rider for six years and competed in Supermoto USA in 2006, followed that up by participating in select ladies’ supermoto races in ‘07. She took up riding on the streets about three years ago and competed in the AFM series in 2008. Rem runs at the front of the pack of her group, leading a cluster of male riders around the track as she tosses her Suzuki side to side.
“I love seeing ladies at the track and I can’t wait until they’re more prevalent,” Rem said.
A silver and black CBR F4 with a ‘
Curve Unit’ sticker on its short windscreen and tropical flower sticker on its side shoots by. The motorcycle is piloted by Desiree Alvarez, who has come to Thunderhill today because “Trackdays are where I can ride my bike to its full potential and at a faster pace. It helps me learn more about my bike.”
Rachel Wallace rips it up on her shiny new Ninja 250.
And while many of the women here bring plenty of race experience to the table, you don’t have to be a road racer to enjoy a day at the track. Rachel Wallace commutes on her motorcycle to her job with the U.S. Postal Service and has noticed a huge difference in her comfort level behind the controls of her 2008
Kawasaki Ninja 250R after only her second experience.
“I’ve been wanting to ride Thunderhill ever since I saw my husband do a trackday there. It looked like so much fun to me,” Wallace said.
We even caught up with a one of our own on the course. Sara Probert, who works in sales for Motorcycle USA’s sister site, the Motorcycle Superstore, was at T-Hill spinning laps on her black Ninja 636RR. Sara was all smiles when we caught up with her after her track session.
Desiree Alvarez enjoys learning more about her Honda CBR F4 every time she takes to the track.
“Trackdays are a blast! The experience is priceless and all the riders are lots of fun. Every time I come out, I notice more and more women, which is great, but we are still severely outnumbered. So… Ladies, let’s ride!!”
Well said, Sara. If the recent turnout at Thunderhill is any indicator, the disparity between go-fast guys and go-fast girls attending local trackdays is dwindling. According to the Motorcycle Industry Council, women now account for 12.6% of all motorcycle and scooter riders, a percentage that has increased a whopping 29% since only 2003. With women like Leslie Porterfield, who recently became the fastest woman on two wheels when she hit 233 mph on a turbo ‘Busa at the Salt Flats, demonstrating that women can wring it out on par with the men, it is a trend that I don’t foresee dying out any time soon.
