Saturday, February 27, 2010
PETE'S GARAGE
Monday, February 8, 2010
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Tuesday, February 2, 2010
For Immediate Release: Coast-to-Coast Motorcycle Cannonball Fills All Rider Slots; Photographer Michael Lichter to Document Event
Contact: Felicia Morgan, Director of Communication
(916) 777-6263 office; (916) 307-3606 mobile
Sturgis, South Dakota, February 2, 2010 – Some 70 official entrants are set to ride pre-1916 classic motorcycles coast-to-coast in the Motorcycle Cannonball set for 17 days this September. Also, according to Lonnie Isam, Jr., the event’s promoter and owner of Jurassic Racing in Sturgis, South Dakota, internationally renowned motorcycle life-style photographer Michael Lichter will accompany the Motorcycle Cannonball in order to document the entire transcontinental trip.
“We’ve passed a major milestone in getting commitments from such a large and very high-quality field of vintage bikes along with many, many riders who are well-known in the vintage motorcycle world,” Isam said. “And having Michael Lichter on board is a major coup; we’re very excited. Michael is well known as the premiere motorcycle life-style photographer of our era. His participation is an honor and guarantees that Motorcycle Cannonball will be well documented with the utmost professionalism.”
Motorcycle and commercial photography assignments have taken Lichter across North America, Europe, and Asia. He has published over 1,000 articles on motorcycling and custom bikes. He has also photographed annual reports, product photography, advertising, brochures, posters, and has worked for commercial clients, including Indian Motorcycles, Wiley-X Sunglasses, Harley-Davidson, and Nikon Cameras. Lichter has recently exhibited photography in public institutions, including solo shows at 15 galleries and museums. He has been featured in photography, motorcycling and other magazines as well as television shows.
Isam reported that Lichter will photograph the Motorcycle Cannonball riders in period dress along with their classic motorcycles, reminiscent of the beachfront launches of past historic rides. Lichter will also take individual portraits of riders and motorcycles at the ride start point. He has assignments with international publications, including Scandinavian and French magazines, as well as domestic publications (go to www.lichterphoto.com for more information).
Isam reported that registration for the Motorcycle Cannonball is closed, with 70 official paid entrants and a small waiting list of riders who may be added later. The 17-day event starts in Kitty Hawk, NC on Friday, September 10 and terminates 3,325 miles later on Sunday, September 26 in Santa Monica, CA. The event has drawn entries from around the world and all walks of life, including motorcycle museum owners, authors, bike collectors and restorers. Complete information about the Motorcycle Cannonball, including route details and some rider profiles, is available at www.motorcyclecannonball.com.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Two Sisters Out to Change the World – On Motorbikes
In 1916 Augusta and Adeline Van Buren weren’t your average society girls. The sisters, decedents of former president Van Buren, were the first women to ride motorcycles coast-to-coast across the U.S., which in those days was no easy task. However, it wasn’t just a casual Sunday ride for these sisters; they were on a mission to prove that women were far more capable than society gave them credit for. Gussie and Addie wanted to prove that women could successfully serve in the armed forces. As part of the National Preparedness Movement in the buildup to WWI, the sisters wanted to show that women could serve as skilled dispatch riders delivering communications on the war front. This would prove that women could participate in the war effort, which had been used routinely as a reason to deny women voting rights.
The Journey Begins
On July 14, 1916, the women set off from Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn and headed west through Chicago and Omaha on their Indian Power-Plus motorcycles. At the time they were some of the best motorcycles made, but ninety-three years ago motorcycles were very crude, dangerous, and uncomfortable machines. The fact that they would travel almost exclusively on dirt roads didn’t make matters any better.
West of Chicago they were arrested many times. Not for speeding or riding dangerously, but for wearing men’s clothing (women’s motorcycle gear wasn’t invented quite yet). While passing through Colorado they decided to make things even more exciting by climbing Pike’s Peak, a 14,000-foot mountain that had never been climbed by any vehicle before. Not even a car or truck.
After surviving many crashes, breakdowns, mud holes, dehydration, and treachery of one form or another, they finally arrived in San Francisco on September 2, 1916. Not content with their journey, they traveled to Los Angeles, followed by a jaunt across the border into Mexico to round out the trip.
A Bittersweet Arrival
After completing the phenomenal journey, Adeline’s application to the army as a dispatch rider was rejected. But it wasn’t enough to keep these women down.
Adeline eventually earned her law degree from NYU and Augusta became a pilot, flying with the “99s” women’s flying group founded by Amelia Earhart.
These relatively unknown heroes might not have known it at the time, but they played a significant role in the women’s rights movement. And they did it the old fashioned way—with true grit and determination.
Whenever I see a woman riding a motorcycle these days, I can’t help but feel a little pride for the two pioneering sisters from New York.
The Van Buren sisters were inducted into the American Motorcyclist Hall of Fame in 2002 and the Sturgis Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2003.
Photos: Van Buren Family Archives
