Laura Austin |

Not to sound overly feminist, but I love it when ladies take on something that is male dominated, notice missed opportunities, make it their own... and better. I’ve seen it all over photography, the culinary world, now in motorcycles. Following that trend of women kicking ass and disregarding gender stereotypes, I introduce you to Strange Vacation. Brand founders, Jenny Czinder and Kelly Wehner (click their names to see their Instagrams... they are legit), became frustrated when trying to find functional moto gear for ladies that also looked good. Realizing this gap, they took things into their own hands and started Strange Vacation. They make everything from tees, to beer koozies, to their premiere leather jacket “The Original Jacket”... all made in the USA I might add.

It was their leather jacket that sparked an incredible idea for a photo show. They sent the jacket around the country to 18 of their favorite photographers including the likes of Asher Moss, Ray Gordon, Corey Smith, Hattie Watson, and Norman Reedus (of The Walking Dead fame) and let each person shoot the jacket however they wanted. These photos culminated in a photo show at See See Motorcycles in Portland. I was lucky enough to be included in the reputable list of artists.

My image that was featured in the show.

I’m not going to pretend I ride a motorcycle (although I’d really like to learn if anyone wants to teach me). So instead of shooting a half-naked woman on a motorcycle for the show, I decided to have fun with the concept and integrate the jacket into a two-wheeled mode of transportation I was more familiar with… bicycles. I recruited my friend and fellow photographer, Linnea Bullion, to hop on my lovely Crest bike and shoot her around Los Angeles as if she was riding a motorcycle… helmet and all. The result was a quirky series of images and a fun afternoon. The photos in this post are from this day as well as a few I shot on myself in Big Sur.

Guy or gal (moto guys I know you want the girl riding on the back of your bike to look just as good as you do), I highly recommend you go check out Strange Vacation’s stuff. They make high quality gear that works as well on a bike as off of it. And stay tuned as I think they are planning to host one of these shows in Los Angeles as well.