A woman driving a huge motorcycle arrives and immediately several men come to help her park even though she doesn’t need it. In the bathroom someone has painted “Machos” and a figure with a mustache on the male door. Some campers decorate their stall with a flag with a sinuous female silhouette in underwear with a bottle of whiskey between her open legs. A little further on, there is a debate about the role of women in the world of motorcycles. Daniela Guillén and Jana Sánchez, motocross champions, chat with the Minister of Equality, Ana Redondo, the president of the Turismoto Club and organizer of Pingüinos, Raquel Arroyo, and Henar Velasco, member of Turismoto and Equality agent. They agree: there is still much to do although there is evolution. The key, visibility.
The roar of the engines and Metallica and Black Sabbath resonating from the speakers require us to speak loudly and listen closely. to thousands and thousands of bikers in the largest winter gathering in Europe and among those registered the total number of women on two wheels increases year after year, no longer just as packs, as the group mentioned celebrates to express from their fronts how they experience the feminization of the motorcycles. Arroyo, 63 years old, has been in the union for 35 years and has been president of the Pucelana association for two months, with the honor and responsibility of coordinating the event. “We are long overdue, society is still sexist and patriarchal,” he explains, also valuing the good reception in the group towards the first female leader. “Look, son, we are the first to come to Pingüinos and we are proactive and we are always offering ourselves while they drink coffee,” she adds, highlighting the involvement of those who for decades were relegated to clinging to the pilot’s hump. The minister draws on popular memory: in the past it was “indecent” to see a woman with her legs open, even if it was on the vehicle, and “paternalism” frustrated her parents or husbands from allowing it. During the Franco regime they needed male permission to get on one. , who also points out that women have less free time than their colleagues because they add more hours of family care to their jobs, taking away leisure for routes or walks.
Two of the most important women in motorcycles in Spain attend. They nod, share their experiences and, above all, hear about experiences that their generation has received diluted, although they continue to beat. , double European champion of European Nations motocross, several times Spanish champion and official GAS GAS rider. They will not see their face on large commercial brands, cars, sports brands or any object that can be advertised. “It’s a question of visibility, the sponsors contribute less and everything goes to the boys, we don’t have space in the media either,” laments Guillén, who suffers the grievance against the men: they have 21 events in the championships and expenses paid, including income ; them, six careers and making a living to make numbers. The schedules are worse, making it difficult for the public to get interested and grease the wheels of money and patrons. Carlota Solana, who represents her before sponsors, sighs: “It is difficult for everyday brands to have female ambassadors beyond cosmetics, especially in minority sports, outside of football.” Fights with bosses bring some promises and few facts.
Jana Sánchez, 21 years old, nods. European Motocross Champion of the European Nations in 2024, several runners-up in Spain and official Yamaha rider. Authorized voice. “In it paddock “We girls are separated from the World Cup and the boys are seen more,” she protests against the snub. Both champions ride in all-female categories, but until they reached them they fought in mixed events, where they learned from a young age the extent of machismo, especially in their parents because the kids were more interested in the circuit than in gender. “Once, as a child, I overturned the motorcycle and a father helped me lift it because it was heavy, but he wouldn’t let me start until his son passed by,” Guillén recalls, in a serious tone. Both have heard countless times adults bellowing against their children, “A girl is going to beat you!”, which is an offense of blood and dishonor and family exile. The two young women were born far from that male oppression and older colleagues have passed on to them this backwardness that Sánchez believes has improved: “Before, girls asked their parents for a motorcycle and they wouldn’t let them, now parents want their daughter to be a biker.”
Leather sucks, skids, smoke, adrenaline, kegs of beer, bacon sizzling on the grill, loud music and growing women. Penguins are feminized, this interdisciplinary team applauds. Velasco assumes that “there is a lot left to do” and calls for sponsors to get involved. The head of Equality points to the president of Turismoto, who evokes “the feeling of freedom” when shortly after giving birth to her son she was able to recover the parked motorcycle in the final stretch of pregnancy, and cites that Arroyo, as president, demonstrates women They have the same training as men although they can barely exercise it: “The discrimination hurts me.” The laws contribute, he insists, but changes in mentality mark development. The champions dream of devoting themselves professionally to their passion, something easier among men, and that it becomes normal to see women driving.
The small group walks around the premises and other anonymous women speak. Sofía Villalba, 35 years old and from Teruel, is the biker who was attacked by her male colleagues to help her without requiring it. A classic that does not censor: “I take it well because they have good intentions, but it is machismo.” Sabrina Vergonet, 28, with Dutch roots but from Alicante, laughs: “You come across everything, they welcome us very well but there are some comments that it is a man’s world.” Woman, blonde, with a tremendous Ducati, so “sometimes the guys almost get blown up by staring at me.” Her male colleagues, between beers and a ham behind them, take the weight off: “You look good! We guys are very basic.” She has been a tester of Indian motorcycles and when some hunk comes to her with a dismissive “That’s a lot of motorcycle for you” she hits him with “Whenever you want I’ll explain how it works.” Quarrels aside, a lot of sisterhood: “It’s really cool when mothers with daughters ask me for photos.”
