| eventually moved up to quad racing, and
then she became interested in street bikes.
Christine’s derives inspiration comes from the
women in her family. Christine puts it like this.
|
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“Gender
blurring is a necessity in the Alaska bush – to
survive everyone has to be able to do the task at hand.
A stereotypical family could not function in the remote
areas of Alaska and it is more the women doing what
would be perceived as men’s work than it is the other
way around. If
you are female and your family fishes, you fish.
The same holds true for canneries, logging and
even the oil fields. |
| I take strength in the fact that I can
trace my maternal roots back through seven generations. My Great-Great Grandmother ran a, lets say, “boarding
house” so the entrepreneurial spirit is in my
genes”. |
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It was out of
necessity that Christine learned to work on motorcycles.
One
of the first things Christine did with her first bike was
to take it apart. When she asked her Father and brothers
to help her put it back together. They told her, ”you took
it apart you can put it back together”. It has been a
learning experience for her ever since.
A high school graduate and almost two years of collage but
with no degree behind her, Christine has never been good
at learning by watching or listening. You can interpret
that as a good or a bad thing, but the way that Christine
learns best is by jumping in, getting her hands greasy and
doing…
Having no formal mechanical or
fabrication training Christine has honed her bike building
skills by trial and error. Bring able to learn by doing;
normally she does not repeat her mistakes.
Starting with nothing but the idea, in 2004,
Christine decided to start Wicked Women Choppers.
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Christine knew that with out
access to parts, her business would go nowhere. Therefore,
she formulated a plan to start with the largest suppliers
first. Christine recalls, all of her initial letters to
the suppliers where answered and all were favorable.
Many company Owners and Presidents called
to |
 |
| pledge their support. That was quite an
accomplishment, considering at that time, Wicked Women
Choppers met none of the normal requirements. |
Christine Stated.
“Brett Smith of S&S called me personally
and invited me to Daytona to attend an event they were
sponsoring so he could meet me and introduce me to his staff.
We have had the same type of response, on a smaller
scale, from all of the vendors. If you can get support from the
big guys, the others will follow their lead.”
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Now with four full time employees,
several part time employees and a painter who paints
exclusively for her, Christine plans to staff up and
start small line of signature parts once production gets
going and she get comfortable with the production bikes.
Being the only women in a male
dominated industry Christine has received absolutely no
dissension from her male counterparts. She has always
been made to feel more then welcome and cannot say
enough good things about them.
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Frustration brought Christine to her decision to make
Motorcycles for women. Having to slide forward to reach
forward controls is not only uncomfortable but also
unsafe. Having
to balance the bike on the balls of your feet when
stopped is the same. |
| To make the motorcycle more comfortable
and safe to ride, Christine, when building her own
motorcycles, had to fabricate her own parts. She
addresses all of those issues when building a bike for
her valued customers.
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One
such bike in production is the “Shady Lady”
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The Shady Lady is a
“Chopper Style” bike and comes stock with a Polished
96 Cubic Inch S&S engine – a 107 and 113 inch
motor is available as an upgrade.
The
frame has a drop-seat for easier reach to the ground
without sacrificing ground clearance.
Everything on the bike is painted, polished or
chromed. The
bars have internal wiring for a real clean look and the
clutch is hydraulic for easier use with “comfort”
style levers to accommodate smaller hands.
The
rear tire is an Avon 250 on a chrome billet 18-inch
wheel. The
front tire is a 120 Avon on a chrome billet 21-inch
wheel. We
choose a larger front tire to give better handling
characteristics.
The
bike come standard with an enclosed primary belt drive
though you can upgraded to a Primo/Rivera Brute IV open
primary for an additional cost.
The
Shady Ladies design is with the optimum amount of trail
to provide a safe ride at all speeds.
These bikes are designed to turn heads and made
to be ridden.
The “Shady Lady” comes stock
with what most other companies charge as upgrades, but
we do have some upgrades available.
Our dealers will be able to order the bikes
fitted out with what they feel they can sell.
Individual customers can request any changes they
want and we will work with them from start to finished
product and build a bike to their specifications… |
The First Woman
Being the first woman in a male dominated industry is
sure to draw some attention.
All of the major motorcycle magazines have
approached Christine expressing interest in doing
feature stories. She has a segment published in Cycle
World, as well as SisterCycle, Canadian Biker Magazine,
Women on Wheels and feature stories in all of the local
papers. |
Radio and television are taking notice as well,
even the Discovery Channel asked her to send an audition
tape. In
addition, the Sturgis Motorcycle Museum and Hall Of Fame
contacted Christine and they want her to be a part of a
2-year display they are doing on "First
Women", Christine being the first woman commercial
motorcycle builder. |
 |
When
asked if she would build for a man, Christine answers,
definitely.
“I don’t want anyone to
buy a Wicked Women Chopper because it is made by a
women. I
want them to buy my bikes because they are innovative
and a great value for the money.
The fact that I am a women does give me insight
into the needs of the women rider, but my skills as a
designer and builder is what I want people to look at,
not my gender”.
“Wicked Women Choppers being
the name of my company may keep the men away, but anyone
looking for quality and value needs to give us a look.
Strangely enough, most of our inquiries to date
have been from men (go figure)”.
Christine remains committed to
her vision and a part of that vision is to remain small
enough to be personally involved in every bike produced
by Wicked
Women Choppers, LLC.
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