Wrenching and Fabbing: The Iron Angels

On Wednesday nights, a team of high-school aged girls gather in the Harley-Davidson University building in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to build a flat track racing motorcycle out of a commercial bike. Sponsored by Xena Workwear, this team, called the Iron Angels, is one of 14 teams in the Build Moto program, which gives students an opportunity to learn about careers in skilled trades and practice technical skills through motorcycle fabrication.

There are multiple competitions throughout the season where the Iron Angels go head-to-head with the other teams on engine performance, design, speed, and even have a pit challenge day. In May, the Iron Angels won the People’s Choice Award at the Harley Davidson Museum when their bike was voted as the top choice by attendees.

The girls, outfitted in their stylish steel-toed Xena boots, lead the project planning, marketing, and technical work for the build, but mentors in the motorcycle industry are integral to program. The all-women team of mentors create a safe space for the girls to learn and help them understand what they are capable of.

Each of the mentors come from very different backgrounds – from engineering to database management to human resources, they all bring a unique perspective as they guide the girls and teach them valuable life lessons through this project. Five of the mentors share their perspectives on the program:

Caitlin Braithwait

“I think one of the big lessons the girls learn is how to problem solve. Often times when we were putting the bike back together, we had issues or things that did not go to plan and we had to pivot to find a different way to solve the problem.”

“My favorite part of being a mentor is watching them learn things and not be afraid to get grimy and dirty and just reach in and start trying stuff. At first, they don't really know what to do, but by the end, they are finding the correct tools and understanding how to approach the bike. It's been cool to watch the progression throughout the year and see them grow and learn new skills they didn't know before.”

Caitlin has a Harley Soft Tail Low Rider ST motorcycle.

Caryssa Hermanson

“I hope what they take out of this is to stay passionate about anything they learn and not give up even when it gets tough. Some things take a little hard work, but that makes it worth it, and I hope we Inspire them all to stay passionate about this, because obviously they love this in some way, shape, or form.”

“As a mentor, I believe our job is to accentuate what they're passionate about. I hope they continue to either do this as a hobby and maybe become a mechanic, own a dealership, or go into engineering or something. It's cool to have taught myself all of this stuff and now I'm at a point where I'm teaching the next generation.”

Caryssa is a design engineer and the technical mentor for the team.

Leah Orloff

“The lessons that I see them taking away is the confidence to actually step up and feel comfortable using the tools and the skills that they've acquired and be able to bring those to be a part of this team.”

“My daughter has special needs, so having her come in and see other women engineers that are like me, but not her mom, is a great way to show her things that other women can do. I also love seeing two of the freshman in this space who have been riding bikes, but have learned everything from the men in their lives. They are used to being shown things, rather than getting their hands dirty and doing it themselves. It’s special to have them in an all-women's space.”

Leah is an engineer, a racer, and a mechanic.

Roxy Bluhm

“The girls who have been in the program for more than a couple of years are definitely taking away confidence through the experience and a love of the sport that they were able to develop over time.”

“My favorite part of mentoring is the opportunity to engage with female riders in the sport who may still be trying to figure out if this is something they're interested in. Then I get to watch them take the lessons they learned – whether social, networking, or actually wrenching and fabbing – and see how they take what they've learned and grow it.”

Roxy has a Harley Davidson Softail Slim and a Honda CRF 250L

Shanna Beanan

“The program is really well rounded. The girls are learning things from keeping a budget to building relationships within the community. They're learning about marketing, sponsorships, and project planning. Those are things that they're going to take into any career they go into, whether it’s technical or not.”

“I have also been learning from them. So, not only do I get to give them some insights into what I do in my daily job like planning and building relationships in the community, but I also get to look to them and learn a lot about what this program is and the technical skills they've built throughout the program.”

Shanna has her motorcycle license and is thinking about getting her own bike.

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Checkout The Iron Angels official website and follow their Instagram channel!