Meet Linda Crill
Speaker, Author, Facilitator of Change... Biker
Blind Curves: A Woman, a Motorcycle, and a Journey to Reinvent Herself
After the death of her husband, Linda Crill trades her corporate suits for motorcycle leathers and commits herself to a 2,500-mile road trip down America’s Pacific Northwest coast on a Harley. The problem—she doesn’t know how to ride and has only thirty days to learn.
By heading into the unknown—the blind curve—Linda faces her fears, tests old beliefs, and discovers not only a broader horizon of possibilities to use in building the next phase of her life, but also the fuel to make it happen.
Reinvent Yourself Alongside Linda
Speaker, Biker Babe or Author?
The Speaker
A former Fortune 100 executive, Linda Crill is recognized as a worldwide authority on change management and an expert on driving change. She is a trailblazer in every sense of the word. Linda is a rare talent of business wisdom, relationship brilliance and unwavering optimism. She is engaged in training, speaking and evaluating change projects around the world.
Linda’s passion inspires others to navigate life’s many blind curves, find joy in unusual places and reinvent new ways of being. She has helped thousands of leaders at companies such as JP Morgan Chase, Honeywell International and Siemens.
Her mission, with every audience she meets, is to open their minds about the future, provoke fresh thinking around what’s possible, and inspire them to take action.
The Author
Linda is a masterful author with an ability to influence people through her words and ideas. In her award winning book Blind Curves, she holds readers captive as she takes them on a fantastic journey of reinvention, complete with suspense, drama and insights into the complexities of societal issues and expectations.
Linda is not a “one-size-fits-all”-kind of woman. She traded her corporate suits for motorcycle leathers. Her unusual story of reinvention looks at how to find new meaning when life throws you the unexpected and undeserved. It shows the value of erasing old boundaries and opening doors labeled “not me.” Funny, irreverent and honest, Blind Curves is the perfect read when the current ways no longer work and you’re looking to answer “What now?”
The Businesswoman
Linda doesn’t believe “if you build it they will come;” however, she does consider that believing in your own success, no matter how outrageous your ideas might seem, is integral to achieving it. She credits her success in business to being comfortable thinking her way — and actually executing her way through — the desired outcome. She imparts confidence and faith in others, inspiring them to affect change in their own careers and beyond.
Linda’s colorful and diverse employment background in government, nonprofit and corporate America has helped her gain a perspective that most business owners have never experienced. Her business acumen is centered on how to take a calculated risk without making a reckless decision. She answers “What now?” then moves forward.
The Biker
For twenty years, Linda pedaled 80+ miles on a bicycle weekly. But as a widow she became frustrated by a stalled life. In a moment of rebellion, she signed up for a 2,500-mile motorcycle ride down America’s Pacific-Northwest coast. With less than 30 days to learn, Linda enrolls in a beginner’s motorcycle course at a Harley dealership. Overwhelmed by the complexities of an 800-pound touring motorcycle and unsure if she can work the biker babe persona, she considers bailing on the trip to retreat into a life of quiet widowhood. But neither option – staying or going – offers the comfort she craves. With little to lose she chooses the road trip, hoping she’ll find the answers for rebuilding her life.
Needless to say, she survived the trip. Proving she could do something difficult gave her the fuel needed to rebuild her life. Now on beautiful days, the toughest question is, which bike should she ride?
The Person
Linda was born in Kansas, relocated to 16 states, lived abroad and currently lives in the Washington, D.C. area. Since childhood, she has been the consummate reinventor. She’s learned to shift gears quickly, manage chaos gracefully and face change with resilience — in pursuit of love and career. Her passage to become an authority on change management was predestined.
As a breast cancer survivor, Linda’s persistence, determination and willingness to change is also evidenced by interests that include downhill skiing, trapeze flying, scuba diving and ballroom dancing. After losing her husband to mesothelioma cancer, she signed up for a 2,500 mile motorcycle ride down America’s Pacific-Northwest coast and learned how to ride a motorcycle at the age of 57. This experience sparked the idea for her book, Blind Curves, which tells about this journey to reinvent herself and answer “What Now?”
Linda is the mother of three grown children who wholeheartedly support her nontraditional path to rediscovering a zest for life.
Awards and Recognition
Mouse over each award for more information.
Linda receiving the Tigerlilly Foundation “Inspire Award” from Miss District of Columbia and Miss Virginia.
About the Tiger Lily Foundation
The Tigerlilly Foundation Inspire Award
Linda accepting the Virginia Business Women’s Conference Stellar Woman of the Year Award.
About the Virginia Business Women's Conference
Stellar Woman of the Year
Linda’s book, Blind Curves wins the Best Book of the Year Award from Canada’s largest motorcycle show.
About The Motorcycle SUPERSHOW
Motorcycle Supershow MAX Award
Linda’s story about beating breast cancer and touring the United States won the best breast cancer survivor story at the Mid-Atlantic Women’s Motorcycle Rally.
About MAWMRBest Breast Cancer Survivor Story
