Dot Robinson
2001, Honorary
The "First Lady of Motorcycling" is the designation most often
given to Dot Robinson. Dot, who is the daughter of Jim Goulding
who manufactured the famous Goulding sidecar was born in Melborne,
Australia in 1912.
In 1930 Dot won her first trophy in the Flint 100 Enduro men's sidecar
class with a score of 1000 points. Dot always competed against
the men, as there was no womens class in these events until the
1960's. Once when asked how she felt about beating the men, she replied
"I didn't think in terms of men and women. I was always determined
to finish the events and I always wanted to win first place. This
could be a perfect statement of the essence of "women's lib" in the
1930's, forty years before it became a social movement.
During the 1930's Dot placed or won in over 50 endurance runs. One
of her most enjoyable wins came in the late 1930's when she was the sole
female entrant in a 12 hour Thanksgiving Day event out of Columbus,
Ohio. Her dad, jim Goulding was the sidecar passenger. A group of competitors
were laughing and one of them asked, "What chance does a girl and an
old man have in a tough run like this?" Well, Dot and "the old man"
proceeded to win the sidecar class with a score of 100 points higher
than the 2nd place sidecar. SOME OLD MAN! SOME GIRL!
In 1940 Dot helped her lifelong friend, Linda Dageau, in founding
the Motor Maids of America. Dot was the first president and remained
in that position for 25 years.
Today, the Motor Maids are still a strong, outstanding organization. They
are dedicated to upholding what is best for the sport of motorcycling.
Between 1928 and 1990, Dot has put on well over a million miles on 35 new
Harley Davidsons. her "First Lady of Motorcycling" title is quite secure
indeed. Dot Robinson passed away October 8th, 1999 at the age of 87. A celebration
of life service was held October 30, 1999 in Orlando, Florida.
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