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Meet the Women Who Pioneered Motor Sports
If you’re a cyclist living in Alabama, odds are you’ve heard of the Glassner Autumn Challenge, one of the state’s biggest annual cycling events! According to Ride Director Robert Traphan, the challenge draws as many as 500 cyclists of all ages and abilities to Montgomery each year. And since 2012, they’ve all worn LynnPro T-shirts. “My wife and I found LynnPro when we took over as ride directors,” Robert says. “The previous directors were using local vendors, but it seemed like the pricing was getting more and more expensive every year. We wanted to see what other options were out there, and we discovered LynnPro during an internet search. They’ve been doing our ride T-shirts ever since.” The Glassner Autumn Challenge dates back to the early 1980s, making it one of the longest-established rides in the cycling world. Back then, it was simply called the Autumn Challenge, but it was renamed in 2002 in honor of bike club member Dr. Jim Glassner, who was killed in a collision while cycling. Now, one of the event’s objectives is to raise awareness for the importance of sharing the road. During the ride, participants can choose from multiple routes for leisure riding, ranging from a 5-mile route for families and beginners, to an epic, 126-mile double metric century ride. Every rider who registers on time gets a ride shirt printed by LynnPro, and, over the years, Robert has also ordered out embroidered hoodies, caps, and racing bibs. THE GLASSNER AUTUMN CHALLENGE CUSTOMER SPOTLIGHT: JANET GUTHRIE Janet Guthrie had her sights set on the stars from day one. A skilled aerospace engineer, she began her racing career in 1963. After taking home two class wins in the famed 12 Hours of Sebring endurance race, Guthrie became a well-known figure among racing gurus. In 1976, she became the first woman to compete in the NASCAR Cup Series when she finished 15th in the Coca-Cola 600, then called the World 600. To date, Guthrie’s storied career has landed her in the International Women’s Sports Hall of Fame, the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, and the Automotive Hall of Fame. While Danica Patrick and Courtney Force are well known as modern faces in motor sports, they’re far from the first women to cross the finish line. Since the early 1900s, women have been a constant fixture of automotive racing, including the following three who each left their marks on the sport. SHIRLEY MULDOWNEY Shirley Muldowney is professionally known in the drag racing community as “The First Lady of Drag Racing.” In 1973, she was the first woman to earn a Top Fuel license from the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) and, despite backlash from competitors, went on to win the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series an unprecedented three times. Twentieth Century Fox documented her trials and accomplishments in the 1983 biopic “Heart Like a Wheel.” Muldowney famously loathed her own characterization but still lauded the film as required viewing for anyone interested in the sport of drag racing.
DOROTHY LEVITT Dorothy Levitt is known for her driving skills on both land and water, setting the first water speed record and an early women’s world land speed record. Her motor racing career started slow in 1904 due to illness and various car troubles, but Levitt eventually went on to garner a reputation for her speed and earn the nickname “The Fastest Girl on Earth.” When she wasn’t racing, she spent her time writing. In her book “The Woman and the Car,” Levitt recommended that women carry a small mirror with them for driving in traffic, effectively inventing the rearview mirror five years before it went into production. If you want to learn more about these women and others in motor racing, pick up Todd McCarthy’s book “Fast Women: The Legendary Ladies of Racing.”
“For the last three or four years, we’ve really loved LynnPro’s racing bibs with the registration numbers for our riders. I love that they have the ability to customize those and actually put the rider’s number and name on their bib. It adds another personal touch to the event for people we can register early enough,” Robert says.
The 2020 Glassner Autumn Challenge is set for Saturday, Oct. 24. Early registration tickets cost $25–$50 per person and include a ride shirt, a pre-ride breakfast, lavish shacks and drinks at mid-route stops, and a post- ride lunch. This year, a portion of the proceeds will go toward making the Alabama State University campus more bike-friendly. To learn more about the ride, visit MGMBikeClub.org/Glassner.
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