The Litas are the latest female motorcycle group to rev their engines and make noise in the motorcycle community. By our estimates, The Litas are creating new chapters and acquiring members at a record rate, a pace never before seen in the history of women and motorcycling.
Members of the Salt Lake City, Utah, chapter of The Litas ride in Big Cottonwood Canyon near Salt Lake City. (Photo by Jun Song)
This all-women motorcycle group, conceived last September by Salt Lake City, Utah, rider Jessica Haggett, has already expanded to 12 countries and 62 cities. The Litas give this
new generation of women riders an incredible worldwide network of support, empowering them both on and off their bikes.
“Women like the idea of having a network around the world, and locally so they have a team rooting for them on and off their bikes,” says Haggett. “It can be hard to find good friendships with other women and this just makes it so simple and fun.”
Haggatt credits the group’s Instagram and Facebook accounts for The Litas international growth that boasts more than 300,000 fans worldwide. “Social media has helped spread the word around the world. There’s no way we could have grown the way we have without that.”
The Litas' Instagram account has nearly 40,000 followers with each chapter having its own page.
The Litas currently have more than 1,100 female members and are showing no sign of slowing down. Curitiba, Brazil; Melbourne, Australia; Montreal, Canada; Paris, France; and Hawkes Bay, New Zealand are just a few of the most recent international Litas branches.
The Litas’ tag line, “Raise Hell, Babes,” is what the group stands for says Haggett: raising hell by breaking social norms and creating a new culture of riders who stand for something bigger than themselves. Additionally, The Litas are all-inclusive meaning any woman on any type of bike is encouraged to ride along and call herself a Lita.
“I want to change tradition and create something new and uplifting for women riders to be part of,” says Haggett. She has managed to do exactly that. “I’ve formed friendships that will last a lifetime and I know I would have missed out on those friendships if The Litas were ‘exclusive.’ Women have a responsibility to build each other up, and not put each other down."
The Litas founder, Jessica Haggett, has been riding for six years and currently owns a 2001 Harley-Davidson Sportster Custom. She works for a tech startup as the operations manager. She says, “I’m very detail-oriented and love process so that is what has made it so easy for me to build up this network. Putting everything into place was really such a fun experience. I continue to learn and grow every day, though there has been so much learning from building The Litas."
Haggett started The Litas as just a local branch with no intention of growing beyond that. “It was something where I saw the need here and kind of realized that the need was actually everywhere. And how fun would it be to have sisters to meet up with and swap stories with in our travels?”
Tandra Steiner, Kim Jacobsen, and Riley Ridd are three of about 60 women now in the founding chapter of The Litas in Salt Lake. (Photo by Jun Song)
A branch starts with three women who share The Litas’ values and have a driving desire to impact their local motorcycle community. In just a few months, some branches have grown to more than 70 members.
The groups’ planned activities include going on rides, camping, meeting up for brunch, bars, and wrench nights, according to Haggett. “Once you’ve been riding together for a couple of seasons you form friendships and begin hanging out on a regular basis.”
The Litas following on social media consists of both men and women who admire the rarity of women seeking two-wheeled adventures and empowering one another. “The Litas are defying social expectations in this vastly male-driven community, all while giving fellow women riders a reliable network to reach out to and consider their tribe,” says Haggett.
Women riders interested in riding with The Litas or starting a local branch should visit The Litas website at
TheLitas.co.
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