In 1911, aged 15, she began her passion for motor vehicles by riding her brother's Matchless motorcycle, travelling around Osterley, west London, with her collie dog in the sidecar. She was cited for a motoring offence and appeared in Hounslow police court, where the magistrate dismissed the charges, fined her court costs of 6 shillings, and banned her from riding the motorcycle until she was 16. In 1920, she purchased her first car, an Enfield-Allday, and was prosecuted many times for speeding, including three days running at Bow Street Magistrates' Court.