Story and photos by

Andy Cohen/Kristen Swanson

From the minute I pulled up in front of the quaint house in Baldwin Park, California with the custom Harleys parked lining the street I could tell this would be no ordinary day.  For about two weeks preceding today’s photo shoot Alicia (known to her friends and riding group as Zep Girl) and I were e-mailing back and forth trying to schedule a photo shoot with a group of female Latina riders.  I should have been scared but curiosity (which, by the way killed the cat) got the best of me.

Now you might be thinking how did an editor from Dual Sport Bike Test (the resident old semi-fat white guy) hook up with a group of female only Latina Harley riders?  I was replaying the events of meeting them on MySpace in my mind while I rode with them to our shoot destination and watched as these women took control of their bikes and the road in an effort to enjoy the day and keep everyone together and safe.

To tell you that the ride was anything but a full blown spectacle would be a lie, as we rode through the sleepy town of Baldwin Park and into Azusa in two by two staggered formation the girls drew a lot of attention, men stared, ogled and drooled.  Kids stopped in their tracks and women scooped up small children in an attempt to shield them from the female wild bunch rumbling through town like a freight train.

Sunday started off with tacos at Zep Girls house with an introduction and insight into a world few get to see, fewer yet if you are a male of the species.  Don’t get me wrong, we aren’t talking lesbian biker chicks gone bad (a story for another day perhaps) we are talking about a tight knit group of friends who happen to be female, happen to be Latina and happen to love to ride.  The cross sectional demographic is an ad agencies dream, construction worker, teacher, grandmothers, mothers, sisters, daughters, friends and mentors.

All the women spoke easily about bikes, sports, current events, family and some about how they came to own a bike in the first place.  I should warn the men reading this article who are married and own bikes, have you ever heard the expression “what’s mine is mine and what’s yours is mine”?  Think about that for just a minute, has that sunk in yet?  Indeed a few of the girls inherited (liberated?) their bikes from former spouses, who says men aren’t good for anything? 

Custom Rides

Don’t let the perfectly manicured nails, makeup and hair fool you, these ladies work on their bikes and there is plenty of custom work to catch the eye unless it’s sunny out and then light reflecting off the chrome will blind you.  To simply state the pride shown by these women for their bikes is nothing short of fanatical; to watch them fawn over them and listen to the mods that each one has performed herself will send chills down your spine.  By the time I got to the third bike I was already overwhelmed by the amount of custom work.  Only a few bikes were even close to stock as you will see from the photos and video.   

To be “schooled” by these women was indeed a humbling experience and by the end of a long hot day it was evident that these chicks could take care of themselves.

for the rest of the of the photos click here:

http://s87.photobucket.com/albums/k154/finishlinewest/Latina%20Biker%20Women/

Sidebar

There were a few bikes that had small bells on them hanging down low to the ground, when I queried one of the girls about it I was told that the bells were for good luck and while running down the road the noise keeps away the gremlins that could ruin your ride.  A bell is given by one rider to another never purchased for yourself lest it doesn’t do its job.

Reprinted by permission:

This description was borrowed from www.gremlinbells.com

Have you noticed that some riders have a small bell hanging off their motorcycle frame or handlebars?  Have you wondered what the purpose is?  Well, you have come to the right place.  That little bell is more than decoration, it serves a very important purpose – it wards off gremlins, also known as evil road spirits.  

You see, there are motorcycle gremlins that LOVE to ride, but they are also mischievous little devils and they cause all sorts of problems for you while you are riding.  Some say they are responsible for that old lady in the minivan not seeing you and cutting you off in traffic.  Or, you may be having trouble shifting smoothly, your battery goes dead, your turn signal suddenly refuses to work, an oil spill appears out of nowhere, you hit a patch of black ice, etc – you get the idea.  Those little gremlins look for trouble and try to steer your bike towards it. 

Now, once you get a bell on your scoot – it wards off these attacks from the little gremlins, not allowing any more to get onto your bike.  If you already have some gremlins riding with you, they will get trapped in the hollow of the bell, and the constant ringing will drive them insane – causing them to lose their grip and fall to the roadway. 

Do you have the protection of a gremlin bell?  If you buy a gremlin bell of your own, the power works.  If you receive the gremlin bell as a gift – the powerful magic of the bell is doubled.  Do you have a friend who does not have a gremlin bell yet?  Why not be the person to give them one, they'll thank you!  The bell, and a good preventive maintenance program by the bike's owner, will help eliminate the gremlins.

The ride

The women represented the sport of motorcycling in a very professional way, it was interesting to be the fly on the wall watching them joke and tease each other until it time to mount up and ride.  Before leaving on our trip a meeting took place and the days leader Zep Girl went over the hand signals to make sure everyone was ready, there were signals for debris on the road, police, unsafe drivers and in the event someone had a problem there was not only a tail bike but a car as well carrying tools and water.  Each time we came upon a stop sign two riders would stay in the intersection to keep the formation moving so that everyone could stay together.

The ride itself was uneventful and once we got on the freeway it was fun watching the occupants of the cars we went by leering with trepidation about the sixteen bikes with female riders moving as one at 70MPH.

As masculine as the girls acted while on the road once we arrived to start shooting it was easy to see that the ladies were still girls at heart, talk about hair and makeup now dominated the conversation as I started shooting bikes and chicks.  Not an ugly one in the bunch (bikes or girls) but when it came time to photograph them it was easy to find their feminine side.

I was a lucky guy to spend time with a bevy of beautiful, smart and talented lady riders and for that I thank them for taking it easy on me.  Keep in mind the next time you see a female rider she is somebody’s mother, sister, daughter or grandmother and be respectful, would you treat your family any other way?