Epic Women of Motorcycling

SHE RIPPED AND SHE ROARED | EPIC WOMEN OF DESTINY & DETERMINATION

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Circa 1920s– Lillian La France in her early Motordrome riding days. This must be 1924, or close to it. She looks a little green, and that signature smile and exuberant confidence is not quite present.

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“It was the thrill of risking my life that made me to take to drome riding. I was the girl who flirts with death. From childhood I was inspired by wanderlust. I was always alone, dreaming of adventures– how to ride a pony out West, to follow my calling to fame. This was my secret. I shared it with no one.”

–Lillian LaFrance

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In 1894, Agnes was the second of nine girls born into honest-livin’, hard-workin’ Catholic family standards. She christened herself Lillian LaFrance and quickly shook the dust of her Kansas hometown from her boots sometime around 1916, and roared off to create the life she had always dreamt of, carving it raw as she went along. She began Motordrome riding in 1924, and left a blurry, yet brilliant legacy behind that still haunts many who are taken by the images of her incredible spirit staring back through squinty eyes in a copy of a copy of old grainy photos. Incredible.

What will I do today? Nothin’ much, in comparison anyway.

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Great shots of La France– I’m a sucker any day for the aviator goggles, jodphurs and riding boots.

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Lillian La France started riding the Motor Drome in 1924, at the age of 30 yrs old, and was equally adept on a motorcycle or on four wheels.

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Lillian La France sporting a jersey with a skull and crossbones motif– which was quite popular among the stunt rider set of the day. A symbol of rebellion and perhaps a manifestation of an inner, romanticized death-wish.

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Charming, candid shots of stunt rider Lillian La France.

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Lillian La france — The World’s Foremost Lady Stunt Rider — left, with a broken arm.

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Honolulu, Hawaii, Circa 1930– Lillian La France photographed with the Side Show performers she traveled with. Including seven-footer, Johan Aasen, who also enjoyed some stardom in his day.

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Lillian La France showing off with no hands on the treadmill at full rev. She was one of the first, and also one of the most popular, female Wall of Death riders of the 1920s & ’30s.

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“I was never meant to have children, or to be a plain housewife. I saw how my mother lived, so you know married life never appealed to me– to endure what she went through…”

–Lillian LaFrance