Can Women Join Motorcycle Clubs?

A lady e-mailed me asking if women are allowed to join "traditional" motorcycle clubs.

The answer is "no".

Most three-piece patch motorcycle clubs do not allow women to become full-fledged members. Women are seen as "property of" patched members. A club member's woman can party and hang out with the club, but usually that's about it. The motorcycle club is a man's club.

Some motorcycle clubs have an auxiliary club for women, but do not offer members any priviledges into the motorcycle club itself.

The one-piece patch motorcycle clubs, on the other hand, often do let women join as full-fledged members and wear club patches. They go through the same process of hanging around, becoming a prospect, and then earning their patch.

Riding clubs also allow women to join.

Of course, there are also motorcycle clubs for women that are not associated with any men's motorcycle clubs. Depending on what state they're located in, they may even have membership with the COC.

The reasons for excluding women is largely because of tradition. The clubs that spawned after WWII largely came about as soliders, sailors, and pilots returned from the war and still wanted some kind of club that kept their clicques together. They found motorcycles, and rode together, just like flying planes in a squadron. That brotherhood continued forward as a standard among motorcycle clubs.

There's also a practical reason, and it's that when you allow women to have full priviledges as patch holders, the members jeopardize their brotherhood bond. Women patchholders start romances with the male patchholders, jealously sets in, and then revenge. The club starts fragmenting into smaller clicques.

It's not just an issue with three-piece patch clubs, but in all clubs. It's just that three-piece patch clubs simply can't afford to have these issues.

Posted:   Tuesday, February 19, 2008