When I was growing up, my father liked to listen to 1010 WINS news radio, covering New York City, New Jersey, and Long Island. I loved its slogan, “You give us 22 minutes, we’ll give you the world.”
When I “met” Motorcycle Mary at DOC NYC over the weekend, I did not make the connection. When I “met” her again Monday night, it occurred to me Mary McGee tells her whole life story with total joy in exactly 22 minutes.
A taut 22 minutes, for sure. Making her directorial debut, filmmaker Haley Watson introduces audiences to McGee, whose life story compels the listener. And while McGee’s beautifully expressive face could move mountains, you must watch “Motorcycle Mary” for full effect.
Mary McGee was born in Juneau, Alaska, during World War II. Together with her brother, she was sent to live with her grandparents in the Midwest.
Hearing McGee matter-of-factly talk about the risk of a Japanese invasion in Alaska during her childhood stopped me cold. Oddly, I never seriously thought about this, given how much I have heard about Pearl Harbor.
Still, Mary’s mother reunited with her children in Harper’s Ferry, Iowa, about a year later. The whole family then relocated to Phoenix, Ariz., while Mary was still young.
Mary’s older brother Jim influenced her in a key way: His love of car racing inspired her to take up the sport, too. She raced in a Porsche Spyder and a Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, among others. Her first motorcycle was a Triumph Tiger Cub.
Making her mark in both motorcycle road racing and dirt-bike racing was no small feat back then. Both were male-dominated sports. To wit, when the actor Steve McQueen convinced her to start desert racing, she gladly accepted this challenge.
Not only did McGee accept the challenge, she also became the first person—male or female—to ride the Baja 500 solo. As an announcer lays it out it here, the Baja 500 is “a high-speed contest against fatigue, mechanical breakdowns, and a road that isn’t really there at all.”
Listening to McGee describe this singular achievement will captivate you, especially when she crashes into a cactus.
Listening to her explain how a man driving a car across the same course earned the Valvoline Iron Man Award while her more significant achievement took the back seat, well, that was 1975.
Fifty years later, more than a handful of far less accomplished men continue to receive promotions, honors, and awards they clearly do not deserve.
But Motorcycle Mary’s Motorcycle Hall of Fame ring is inscribed with these words: “Drinks gas, spits nails.” Her participation in life inspired me, as it will you.
Motorcycle Mary passed away last week at her home in Nevada.
