the self taught racer so good, that within 7 years of learning to drive, she nearly beat De Palma, and caused male racers and the AAA to ban women drivers, because they felt that threatened. I present, Joan Cuneo

She was banned from ascending the road up New Hampshire’s Mount Washington. The American Automobile Association, AAA, who sanctioned the race, deemed the ascent up the steep and winding carriage road “too dangerous” for the woman driver, likely as a result of complaints delivered by her male counterparts. 

At the time, driving a car required considerable strength, and racing required a vague indifference towards bodily injury; that a woman could drive as well as a man was emasculating and crushed the egos of the male racers. Fast Forward to New Orleans:

same car, Knox Giant, above and below

With the big Knox Giant racer.

In early 1909 she ran this car to numerous victories at the New Orleans Mardi Gras celebration, at one point nearly beating the famous Ralph De Palma. She was named the National Amateur Champion and claimed five trophys.

Not long after her stunning victories in New Orleans, and despite the fact that Mrs. Cuneo had been a member of theirs since 1905, the American Automobile Association (the organization that sponsored most of the big events) banned not just women drivers from their events, but women passengers as well.

Many writers of the day felt it was because too many men drivers would stay away if they were consistently beaten by a woman.

Joan Cuneo did not protest; she just more or less retired from racing. She bought a duplicate of the Knox Giant from the factory and continued to run non-AAA sponsored tours, and setting track records in exhibitions.

In the March 1908 issue of Country Life in America she wrote an article titled "Why There Are So Few Women Automobilists" that is still quoted today in histories of early woman drivers.

In the 1908 Glidden Tour, Cuneo drove a 1908 Rainier touring car while representing the Chicago Motor Club 2 team, and despite the numerous hardships encountered during the race, managed to finish with a perfect score of 1,000 points. More impressively, Cuneo had driven the entire tour herself, while other entrants, too tired to press on, called for the services of relief drivers.

http://www.viewsofthepast.com/topics/fr-automobiles.htm

For her efforts, Cuneo received a silver cup from the other entrants for her sportsmanship and “pluck,” as well as a gold medal from the AAA and a second cup from the Chicago Motor Club for her efforts on its behalf.

In 1914, she told Country Life magazine that she had already owned eighteen automobiles.

She moved to Vermont in 1918 and eventually to Ontonagon, Michigan where she died in relative obscurity in 1934.

http://www.shorpy.com/node/12978#comment-136792

Elsa A. Nystrom, a professor of history at Kennesaw State University, has written the definitive book about Joan Cuneo:
http://www.amazon.com/Mad-Speed-Racing-Newton-Cuneo/dp/0786470933/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1454993735&sr=8-1&keywords=Mad+for+Speed+%E2%80%93+The+Racing+Life+of+Joan+Newton+Cuneo.

"The story of this auto racing pioneer is essential reading for anyone who appreciates motorsport or is intrigued by the role of women making their mark on American culture. Elsa's thorough research and breezy writing style insures the time you spend with this engaging biography will be a great investment in not only your education but entertainment as well."
--Mark Dill, former Vice President, Marketing, Indianapolis Motor Speedway

It's not often you get a look into a garage of 110 years ago

http://www.velocetoday.com/mad-for-speed-book-review/

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2013/11/19/racing-heroes-joan-newton-cuneo/#&gid=1&pid=4

In 1911, Cuneo would set a woman’s speed record of 111.5 MPH behind the wheel of a Pope Hummer on the Long Island Motor Parkway, but the bulk of her racing glory was behind her by then.

A little more than four years later, by the end of 1915, her marriage to Andrew Cuneo would be over, and in 1917 she would turn her back on New York for a rural life in Vermont. Even this relocation was temporary, as in 1922 she followed her son and his wife west, settling in Ontonagon, Michigan. Joan would marry James Francis Sickman there in 1928, but would die just six years later, in 1934, at age 58.

http://www.firstsuperspeedway.com/articles/joan-cuneo-new-orleans

her 1905 White

http://www.viewsofthepast.com/topics/fr-automobiles.htm

https://new.liveauctioneers.com/catalog/91786_rare-sports-and-historical-memorabilia-#page=2