Sarah Schilke

Sarah Schilke is an Oregon native who became one of the most influential leaders in the American powersports industry—not through a professional racing career, but by combining her passion for motorcycling with strategic business acumen and tireless advocacy for women riders.

EARLY YEARS

Growing up in Oregon, Schilke developed a connection to her family’s German heritage early on—so much so that she studied in Germany during both high school and college. Those formative years abroad did more than make her fluent in German; they planted the seeds for a lifelong love affair with motorcycles. While in Germany, she spent time at Fairchild Sports and Hein Gericke, soaking up European motorcycle culture at its source. It’s the kind of origin story that makes perfect sense in hindsight: a young American woman discovering two-wheeled freedom in the country that gave the world the BMW boxer engine.

What we don’t know about Sarah’s early years could fill a book—her exact birthdate, her parents’ names, whether she had siblings cheering her on or rolling their eyes at her bike obsession. What we do know is that by the time she returned to the States, she wasn’t just another rider. She was someone who understood motorcycling as both a personal passion and a cultural force, a combination that would define her entire career.

OTHER INTERESTS

Schilke is the kind of rider who doesn’t just talk the talk—she logs serious miles in all weather, on-road and off. We’re talking sport touring, commuting, track days, dual sporting, motocross, and desert racing. If it has two wheels and an engine, she’s probably ridden it, and ridden it well. Her riding résumé reads like a greatest hits of motorcycle disciplines, the mark of someone who genuinely loves the act of riding, not just the idea of it.

Beyond the handlebars, she’s deeply involved in community service through the Portland New Generations Rotary Club and the International Fellowship of Motorcycling Rotarians. Her volunteer work ranges from local food drives to international humanitarian aid, often incorporating charity rides because—of course—why not combine do-gooding with motorcycling? Since 2005, she’s been an active member of the Women’s International Motorcycle Association (WIMA), attending and supporting international rallies everywhere from Japan to Sweden to Estonia. It’s clear that for Sarah, motorcycling isn’t just recreation; it’s a vehicle for connection, service, and global community.

EARLY SUCCESS

Sarah’s entry into the professional motorcycle world came through teaching, not racing. She became a Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) RiderCoach, a role she held for over a decade, training new motorcyclists and becoming an evangelist for safe riding practices. It’s hard to overstate how foundational this was—not just for her career, but for her philosophy. While some industry leaders come up through dealerships or manufacturing, Schilke’s roots were in actually getting people on bikes and keeping them upright.

From there, she worked her way through virtually every corner of the industry. She put in time behind the parts counter at a dealership, getting her hands dirty with the nuts-and-bolts reality of motorcycle retail. She moved into market research, then advertising and marketing, then strategic alliances. Each role added another layer to her understanding of how the powersports business actually works, from the customer up and the boardroom down.

As an amateur racer, she competed in AMA District 37 desert and motocross events. We don’t have her podium stats or championship tallies, but that’s almost beside the point. Sarah was out there racing because she loved it, mixing it up in the desert with the kind of riders who do it for the pure, dusty joy of it. Her racing was part of her education—another way to understand motorcycling from the inside out.

NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

• 2005: Became original member of FIM Commission on Women in Motorcycling.
• 2005: Joined Women’s International Motorcycle Association (WIMA).
• 2007: Elected as first woman to serve on Motorcycle Industry Council (MIC) Board of Directors.
• 2010: Led marketing for Schuberth North America launch.
• 2014: Named “Powersports Industry Leader” by Powersports Business.
• 2014: Reelected to third term on MIC Board of Directors.
• 2019: Named one of “Top 100 Leaders in Powersports.”
• YEAR UNKNOWN: Named one of “50 Makers of Motorcycling” by Bonnier Motorcycle Group.
• YEAR UNKNOWN: Became Co-Owner/General Partner of WomenRidersNow.com.
• YEAR UNKNOWN: Served as presenter on Advisory Council for three AMA International Women & Motorcycling Conferences.
• YEAR UNKNOWN: Led women’s motorcycle tour in Alaska through MotoQuest Tours.

INSPIRATIONS

The research gives us frustratingly little about who inspired Sarah along the way—no childhood heroes, no racing idols, no dog-eared copies of books that changed her life. What we do know is that her time with pioneering rider Mary McGee deepened her commitment to motorcycling and women’s place in it. Schilke was instrumental in bringing McGee to an AMA Women & Motorcycling Conference and spent time with her at the AMA Hall of Fame. It’s a telling detail: here’s a woman who’d already achieved industry leadership, still seeking out the wisdom of the women who came before her, still learning, still inspired.

REPUTATION

In an industry still overwhelmingly male, Sarah Schilke didn’t just break through—she built. Her 2007 election as the first woman on the Motorcycle Industry Council Board of Directors was a watershed moment, and she knew it. By 2014, when interviewed about the milestone, she was characteristically measured: “It’s pretty exciting, and that’s a hard question because there’s no reason why a woman wouldn’t be on the board. There are so many women in this industry, and women at high levels of business that it’s actually kind of surprising that it hasn’t happened until now, but I think it’s exciting.”

That quote is pure Sarah—acknowledging the significance while simultaneously pointing out how overdue it was. She’s built a reputation not as a firebrand or a revolutionary, but as a competent, strategic leader who happens to be opening doors as she walks through them. Her roles have included heading marketing at BMW Motorrad USA (eventually becoming Aftersales Area Manager), launching and leading SW-Motech USA during its startup phase, serving as Head of Marketing & PR for Schuberth North America, and working as Vice President for SW-Motech USA in Beaverton.

On her work with Schuberth, she emphasized her longtime commitment to safety: “I’ve always been safety advocate the whole time I’ve been in motorcycling, so it’s interesting for me to be involved in a company that’s safety-related, and helmets are certainly a safety product, so that’s part of it. Schuberth strives so much to really push new innovations and create premium products and really work hard to develop the best safety features possible, or new innovations and safety features.”

She’s recognized as one of the most valued members of the powersports community, someone who inspires a new generation—especially women—and reinforces motorcycling’s power to connect people across boundaries. As a lifetime AMA member and original FIM Commission on Women in Motorcycling participant, she’s been at the table for nearly every significant conversation about women’s participation in the sport for two decades.

FUTURE GOALS/PLANS

The available research doesn’t give us Sarah’s current schedule, her 2025 plans, or what she’s building next. What seems clear is that she’s not the type to slow down. Between her co-ownership of WomenRidersNow.com, her ongoing industry involvement, and her decades-long pattern of showing up wherever motorcycling needs smart, strategic leadership, it’s safe to assume she’s still out there—riding in all weather, opening doors, and making sure the next generation of women riders has a smoother path than she did.

References:

Ride4Mary Team Profile
Buffalo Chip Celebrity Profile
WomenRidersNow About Page
Driven to Ride Podcast
Powersports Business 2014 Interview
Liz Jansen Profile Interview
MSF RiderCoach Spotlight
Carla King International Female Riders Month Spotlight