The first woman to race motocross in the United States, the first to compete in an international motocross competition, and the first to receive sponsorships from major brands, has died at 87.
Mary McGee, known as Motorcycle Mary, was born in Juneau on Dec. 12, 1936 to parents James Holmes and Mary Dorcas Holmes (born Atkinson) and became the most influential woman in the history of motorcycle sports.
“Mary embodied resilience, grace, and optimism,” her family wrote on Facebook. “She was a historic athlete and a motorsports pioneer who embraced life’s challenges, cared deeply for others, and made time to brighten the lives of those around her. While we are deeply saddened by this loss, we are comforted knowing that her light will continue to shine in everyone she touched.”
She moved as a child to Iowa to live with her grandparents during World War II, because Alaska was at risk of being invaded by the Japanese. The family later settled in Phoenix, Arizona, where she met her husband, Don McGee, who was a mechanic. Don introduced her to racing cars, which led to her passion for motorcycle racing, and she inspired generations of women to take up the sport.
Among her firsts, she was the first person ever to complete solo the grueling Baja 500 off-road race in Mexico.
A documentary film about her life, Motorcycle Mary, made its premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York on June 7. Directed by Haley Watson and executive produced by Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton and Oscar winner Ben Proudfoot, it captures the remarkable life of a woman known throughout motocross sports.
The ESPN 30 for 30 film, was shown Thursday on ESPN’s YouTube channel, the day after she died.
Watch it here and listen to the introduction by the director, who talks about her experience working with McGee:
Her last race was in 2012, when she was in her 70s and competed in the Grand Prix of Canada. She died in Gardnerville, Nevada on Nov. 27, 2024, a day before ESPN released the documentary.
The American Motorcycle Association, which inducted her into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2018, has an obituary at this link.
ESPN has another story about Motorcycle Mary’s life at this link.
An awesome person – documentary!
Wow! Baja 500 is impressive.
I spent many seasons attending the SCORE races in Baja helping out the teams from Anchorage and her accomplishment in that race is HUGE!
Bruce Brown should have introduced her in his 1971 film, On Any Sunday.
Malcom Smith, the star of the documentary film, On Any Sunday, died too. How coincidental is that?
On the same exact day and year as Mary.
Nice feature.
Thanks MRA for running this delightful story.
Wow, the Baja 500 solo, that’s a real accomplishment. What makes it even more impressive is the type of bike she probably rode.