Last Update: 27 November 2022
In just a couple of weeks, the “Sisters’ Centennial Ride” will kick off. The ride follows the same route two sister’s rode in 1916. The Van Buren sisters were the first women to travel across the United States by motorcycle. Their journey took place in 1916 aimed at taking on the challenge in hopes of showing the U.S. Army that women could serve as motorcycle messengers.
The Van Buren Sister’s Centennial Motorcycle Ride will take place July 3rd – 23rd, and loosely follow the same route that the sisters took 100 years before. A number of motorcycle manufacturers, including BMW Motorrad USA (presenting sponsor) and Indian Motorcycle are lending their support and taking part in the cross-country ride. The ride is to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Augusta and Adeline Van Buren’s trek across the United States in 1916.
Ride Commemorates 100th Anniversary of Augusta and Adeline Van Buren’s Epic 1916 Journey across USA
It took roughly 62 days for the sisters to travel from New York City to Los Angeles. Three years later, a military convoy sent to demonstrate the need for an interstate system would manage to beat their time by only a few days.
The Van Buren sisters had a greater purpose. Their gruelling journey aboard two 1916 Indian Powerplus motorcycles helped to shine a light on the women’s suffrage movement of the time. Remember that women did not receive the full right to vote until 1920.
Two charities will be funded as a result of the Sisters’ Centennial Motorcycle Ride’s event efforts: Women’s Coalition of Motorcyclists and Final Salute, Inc. The Women’s Coalition of Motorcyclists is an organization providing funding for motorcycle train-the-trainer scholarships that will help enlarge the number of female instructors and coaches for road, dirt and track.
Final Salute is a national women’s veterans’ organization that provides temporary and permanent housing for the over 500,000 homeless female veterans in the United States.
The Van Buren sisters were inducted into the American Motorcyclists Association Hall of Fame in 2002 and the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum Hall of Fame in 2003.
The Sisters’ Centennial Motorcycle Ride begins July 3rd in Brooklyn. Other stops along the route include Latrobe, Pennsylvania (July 7th), Pickerington, Ohio (July 8th-9th), Anamosa, Iowa (July 11th), McCook, Nebraska (July 13th), Colorado Springs, Colorado (July 15th), Pikes Peak, Colorado (July 15th) and San Francisco (July 23rd).
Visit the Sister’s Ride Website for more info. VanBurenSisters.com
1 comment
We are so excited. 4 Canadians from Ottawa Canada. We’ve been signed up since 2015. This is epic!!!