DC's cycling gender gap

[ny biker]

The Washington Area Bicycling Asssociation held a women's cycling forum. Sounds like it was interesting.

http://www.tbd.com/blogs/tbd-on-foot...ome-13926.html

[Laguna]

Very interesting article...and I'm a guy.

[ny biker]

I generally don't have problems at bike shops. The LBS I frequent is owned by a married couple, and from the beginning they have always catered to female customers as much as men. They also welcome all kinds of riders -- racers, commuters, mountain bikers, people who want to do centuries, people who want to cruise around the rail trails with their kids, etc. They just want you to have fun riding your bike, regardless of who you are.

[rubysoho]

I have yet to run into rude shop employees. But I am not in DC. However I am not far away either!

A1 Cycles (in Herndon)
Spokes (in Fairfax)

and another one I am forgetting at the moment...

All three have been very friendly with good staff. They each had one person I'd probably not go to with questions but I have yet to find a cyclist or store staff who has treated me poorly.

Are bike stores really a problem in DC? Or is it the insecurity of entering a "new world" when buying the first bike. I guess that part or the article has me scratching my head. And if they are such a problem, I encourage people to give online ratings to those stores (if they haven't). I am pretty sure any manager would want to crack down on poor treatment of customers.

I also don't like the idea of promoting cycling without helmets (to save our hair). I know they talked about having safer routes so helmets would be needed less... but I just believe in protecting my head every ride. It comes from my horseback riding background.

But, I do like encouraging more women and young girls to ride!

ETA: I do think that some men try to hard to be helpful but their lack of knowledge might mean the woman ends up with a poorly fitting bike. That is the biggest deterrent I can think of. Every time I talk to someone about their last bike ride (as an adult) they always say how horribly uncomfortable it was. It hurt. Etc... This applies to both men and women.

[meganm]

The term "gap" annoys me. I think it's used to attract attention to the story, and I'm not convinced there is a story here.

Rubysoho, you mentioned A-1. When I lived in DC (and frequently still visit), they are the go-to shop for me. Great staff and great selection of bikes and bike stuff.

[ny biker]

Evidently WABA thinks it's an issue, otherwise they wouldn't have had the forum.