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Yvonne Montgomery is an Irish road racer who swapped horses for horsepower at 47 and became one of the most beloved characters in the dangerous, male-dominated world of road racing—tearing up tracks like the Ulster Grand Prix and the Isle of Man on vintage machinery until her retirement in 2023.

EARLY YEARS

Before she ever threw a leg over a motorcycle, Yvonne lived a completely different life as an equestrian competitor. Horses were her thing—buying, selling, competing. It was a life she knew well, one that required guts and grace in equal measure. But at 47 years old, everything changed when she took her first ride on the back of a motorbike. There was no second-guessing, no slow burn of curiosity. She was smitten instantly. Two wheels became her new obsession, and the woman who’d spent years mastering one kind of speed was about to chase an entirely different kind.

OTHER INTERESTS

When she’s not road racing, Montgomery is a writer—a proper one. She runs a website called “Writer in the Garret,” where she crafts stories and essays with the same sharp attention to detail she brings to cornering at 135 mph. As she puts it herself, she’s spent years trying on identities while creating characters, blending aspects of herself with the people she observes. There’s something poetic about that: a woman who writes fiction by day and lives out something stranger than fiction on race weekends. She’s also described herself as an “adventure motorcyclist” with a serious techie streak and a growing interest in photography. In other words, she’s one of those people who can’t sit still—physically or creatively.

EARLY SUCCESS

Montgomery didn’t set out to race. She got her motorcycle license simply for “a bit of independence,” as she later told documentarians. But once she got the license, she bought herself a bike—and then another—and before long, independence turned into competition. She made her debut at the Manx Grand Prix, earning a 12th-place finish in the Ultra-Lightweight race and a 59th in the Newcomers C race. Not bad for someone who’d never even sat on a bike until middle age. Her first actual race? She hit the ground. But that didn’t stop her. Within a year, she was back out there, racing hard and learning fast.

NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS

• 2009-2010: Competed in the Manx Grand Prix, finishing 12th in the Ultra-Lightweight class and 59th in the Newcomers C race[1].
• 2017: Achieved a personal best at the Ulster Grand Prix racing her 1989 Kawasaki ZXR400, which she described as the highlight of her career to date[2].
• 2017: Featured in the documentary “Queens of the Road,” which followed her journey at the Cookstown 100 and Ulster Grand Prix alongside fellow female racers Melissa Kennedy and Veronika Hankocyova[3].
• 2018: Regularly competed at iconic Irish road racing events including the North West 200, Tandragee 100, and Cookstown 100, often on her 1989 Kawasaki ZXR400 and 2007 Suzuki GSXR 600[4].
• Career: Averaged speeds of 100 mph and topped out at 135 mph while racing “between the hedges” on some of the most dangerous tracks in the world[5].
• 2023: Announced her retirement from road racing following the Armoy Road Races, just shy of her 66th birthday[6].

INSPIRATIONS

Montgomery’s inspiration wasn’t a person—it was a feeling. That first ride on the back of a motorcycle at 47 flipped a switch. She didn’t need convincing or coaxing. She just knew. The speed, the risk, the raw physicality of it—it all clicked. There’s no record of her citing a specific racer or mentor, but her actions speak louder: she’s a woman who followed her gut into one of the most punishing forms of motorsport on earth, and she did it without a safety net or a pedigree. That kind of courage doesn’t come from watching someone else do it. It comes from somewhere deeper.

REPUTATION

In the tight-knit world of Irish road racing, Montgomery became known as the fearless country girl who showed up on vintage bikes and raced with heart. She wasn’t the fastest, but she was consistent, gutsy, and beloved. Her presence at events like the Cookstown 100, Tandragee 100, and Ulster Grand Prix was a given—fans and fellow competitors looked forward to seeing her line up. She earned respect not just for racing at an age when most people are thinking about retirement, but for doing it on machines like a 1989 Kawasaki ZXR400 while the boys were on newer, faster bikes. She crashed—famously at Skerries, where she was knocked out and fractured her pelvis in four places after doing the splits on impact—and came back racing within months. That’s the kind of toughness that makes you a legend.

FUTURE GOALS/PLANS

Montgomery retired from road racing in 2023, closing the chapter on a late-blooming but unforgettable racing career. In a podcast appearance shortly after, she reflected on her decision, noting she was approaching her 66th birthday and ready to step away from competition. These days, she’s focused on her other passions: writing, adventure motorcycling, technology, and photography. She remains deeply connected to the road racing community, but now she’s watching from the other side of the fence—telling stories instead of making them at 135 mph.

REFERENCES

[1] Yvonne Montgomery Isle of Man TT Race Results – iomtt.com
[2] Age no Barrier for Yvonne – Cookstown100.org
[3] Queens Of The Road – video Dailymotion
[4] Yvonne Montgomery still tearing up the script and the roads – Irish Times
[5] Yvonne Montgomery still tearing up the script and the roads – Irish Times
[6] Yvonne Montgomery Retires From Road Racing – TBNI.Blog
[7] yvonne montgomery racing – Road Racing News
[8] Writer in the Garret | A writer living one word at a time
[9] Road Riders: A White Knuckle Documentary Out 6th November
[10] Yvonne Montgomery (not Ward) – Commentary Corner – UK Podcasts