Booth Babes @ Interbike

[zoom-zoom]

Unfortunately most of the guys I know who bike (or ski) don't understand why I find it so offensive.

Fortunately most of the guys I hang out with are just as perplexed as I am about the skin showing up at these conventions. I noticed in the negative comments around the net re: the WTB dunk tank chick that even most of the guys were turned-off by that sort of marketing.

[Amira]

Yeah, you know...I think that's what gets me--that none of these booth babes appear to be actual cyclists. I know some very sexy, attractive women (and men--why only have female babes?) who are seriously accomplished athletes. I think I'd be much less annoyed if real riders were hired and paid to catch people's eyes, but also talk up a product and know what they are talking about from personal experience.

Exactly. One of the reasons I love the Athleta and Title 9 Sports catalogs is the fact that their models all seem to walk the walk, so to speak. They are all gorgeous hot bods, but man, they look like they do in real life what they are shown doing in the catalog.

[zoom-zoom]

Exactly. One of the reasons I love the Athleta and Title 9 Sports catalogs is the fact that their models all seem to walk the walk, so to speak. They are all gorgeous hot bods, but man, they look like they do in real life what they are shown doing in the catalog.

+1! Especially the yoga chicks--how do they hold those poses while making the clothes look good and not covered in sweat?!

[Amira]

I don't have much in the way of tan lines, either--I'm pretty pasty. DH is a melanoma survivor, so we go pretty all-out with the sunblock and protective clothing. He was the coach in Tahoe with white arm sleeves. We still don't seem to be the norm, of course. We still have friends that pride themselves on their tan lines. I personally don't want cancer or wrinkles, so staying pale is a win-win. I like getting carded at almost 40!

Me too. Melanoma 5 years ago. Now I'm super cautious about it. I wish I'd see more people wearing the arm sleeves, although I think that clothing manufacturers are becoming more conscious of this and I definitely talk them up at rest stops (when people ALWAYS ask me if I'm hot in them). I cringe at all the women I see on long rides around here in full sun and wearing teeny little cami's and tanks. It's just so many hours of brutal sun and it can't be good for them, no matter how much sunscreen they might wear.

I wear the arm sleeves even in the hottest weather and I've learned that not only do they help me not get burned, but they actually make me feel less 'beat up' by the sun and keep me cooler. I had to experiment - the Pearl Izumi ones are way to thick and hot for Texas, but I LOVE the Craft ones - super light, but SPF 50 and wetting them as you ride definitely works to keep you feeling cooler in hot weather. I also love the YMX by Yellowman ones (and their wild jerseys). I was wearing one of the YMX ones (from TE) in Tahoe. I always look to see the SPF rating on clothes and even shorts now are getting better about SPF ratings on them. I wish Craft would make a similar sleeve for your legs - I know TE carries a different one made for legs (forgetting the brand now), but they look sorta like support hose. I ordered a pair, though, and will try them with my shorts. I'm not above looking like a total dork if I'm saving my skin.

[Amira]

+1! Especially the yoga chicks--how do they hold those poses while making the clothes look good and not covered in sweat?!

No kidding! Because my yoga experiences were sweat filled and I never mastered some of those crazy hard poses. And when I say I never mastered them, I mean I never even attempted many of them because they were so hard.

[zoom-zoom]

Me too. Melanoma 5 years ago. Now I'm super cautious about it. I wish I'd see more people wearing the arm sleeves, although I think that clothing manufacturers are becoming more conscious of this and I definitely talk them up at rest stops (when people ALWAYS ask me if I'm hot in them). I cringe at all the women I see on long rides around here in full sun and wearing teeny little cami's and tanks. It's just so many hours of brutal sun and it can't be good for them, no matter how much sunscreen they might wear.

I wear the arm sleeves even in the hottest weather and I've learned that not only do they help me not get burned, but they actually make me feel less 'beat up' by the sun and keep me cooler. I had to experiment - the Pearl Izumi ones are way to thick and hot for Texas, but I LOVE the Craft ones - super light, but SPF 50 and wetting them as you ride definitely works to keep you feeling cooler in hot weather. I also love the YMX by Yellowman ones (and their wild jerseys). I was wearing one of the YMX ones (from TE) in Tahoe. I always look to see the SPF rating on clothes and even shorts now are getting better about SPF ratings on them. I wish Craft would make a similar sleeve for your legs - I know TE carries a different one made for legs (forgetting the brand now), but they look sorta like support hose. I ordered a pair, though, and will try them with my shorts. I'm not above looking like a total dork if I'm saving my skin.

If you ever do the DV ride I really recommend sleeves...I wore them last year and people thought I was nuts, but it's so arid out there that you can spray water on your sleeves and the evaporative cooling is amazing!

I will have to check out the Craft ones. We have Moeben sleeves, but I think that company may be no more.

I'm with you on seeing women in strappy tanks while riding. Sun stuff aside, what happens if they crash?! A friend of ours has commented to me while riding that she likes the strappy tops to tan more of her upper body. I looked at her this Spring like she was nuts and said "yeah, I kind of lost all caring about getting tan when Derek had the melanoma spot and a lymph node removed." That people even make these sorts of comments around us is really perplexing. It would be like raving about drinking to a recovering alcoholic or someone who had suffered liver damage from alcohol. People are weird.

[Amira]

If you ever do the DV ride I really recommend sleeves...I wore them last year and people thought I was nuts, but it's so arid out there that you can spray water on your sleeves and the evaporative cooling is amazing!

I will have to check out the Craft ones. We have Moeben sleeves, but I think that company may be no more.

I'm with you on seeing women in strappy tanks while riding. Sun stuff aside, what happens if they crash?! A friend of ours has commented to me while riding that she likes the strappy tops to tan more of her upper body. I looked at her this Spring like she was nuts and said "yeah, I kind of lost all caring about getting tan when Derek had the melanoma spot and a lymph node removed." That people even make these sorts of comments around us is really perplexing. It would be like raving about drinking to a recovering alcoholic or someone who had suffered liver damage from alcohol. People are weird.

I expect at some point I will do DV. I laughed that I was more trained for that, having ridden the entire summer in Texas, than for Tahoe. The starting temps were like a winter ride for me. It's funny, our seasons are really totally flipped. Riding all summer is the B!tch here! Honestly, you'll probably never see me riding without either a sun sleeve or a long sleeve jersey, so no worries about taking them just to DV. You can tell from FB that I'm wearing the sleeves in most of the cycling shots taken since last May, which is when I found them.

Yes, definitely check out the Craft ones - TE carries them as well. I have the white, black and fuscia ones. Super light. The white does get dingy after a lot of wear, but so what. I also have two pairs of the YMX ones - the red/black ones shown with one of the new fall jerseys (TE chose to pair them with a jersey this time, but you can get them separately at YMX) and the black/white 'cloud' ones. I'm kicking myself now for not getting the red/green ones that go with the Henna Sport jersey, like my sister did. Um, I may have gotten a little bit carried away with buying cycling clothes this year.

[girlontheroad]

Selene Yeager at Bicycling Magazine did a post on this exact issue with the same perspective. She got flack for the picture she posted in it but took responsibility for it pointing out that it was from the interbike website and showed what she was talking about. She makes the further point that this is not a good way to attract women consumers who make up 42% of the market.
http://bicycling.com/blogs/fitchick/...-to-interbike/

[SheFly]

So, my understanding is that these "babes" are locals who do the same thing for any convention in Vegas that will hire them - it's not just Interbike. And I'm not entirely sure it's actually the bike companies that are hiring them... It may be the company that puts on Interbike that does that.

Don't get me wrong - I don't like it either. And I've been to Interbike twice and seen this with my own eyes.

SheFly

[Amira]

Selene Yeager at Bicycling Magazine did a post on this exact issue with the same perspective. She got flack for the picture she posted in it but took responsibility for it pointing out that it was from the interbike website and showed what she was talking about. She makes the further point that this is not a good way to attract women consumers who make up 42% of the market.
http://bicycling.com/blogs/fitchick/...-to-interbike/

Thanks for the link. I agree with every word she wrote. I also agree with SheFly that it's a much more widespread practice (sigh, I'm sure the camera companies, when they have their big show in Vegas, are also using a lot of T&A to show off their stuff, same is true in the ski/snowboard industry and even the SHOT show - which is all about the shooting sports industry) and that the bike companies may not be the ones doing the actual hiring, but until the bike companies hear from the 42% of the market, in force, that we don't like it and that we do put our money where our mouth is, it isn't going to change.

[zoom-zoom]

Selene Yeager at Bicycling Magazine did a post on this exact issue with the same perspective. She got flack for the picture she posted in it but took responsibility for it pointing out that it was from the interbike website and showed what she was talking about. She makes the further point that this is not a good way to attract women consumers who make up 42% of the market.
http://bicycling.com/blogs/fitchick/...-to-interbike/

Yup, I referenced that article in my OP. I don't think it's even a good way to attract most men. By using booth babes it sort of paints men as a bunch of base, slobbering animals. Men should be every bit as insulted as most of us gals are. Skin should be reserved for AVN Awards week in Vegas. If I'm going to drool over anything at a bike show it should be bikes and gear and clothes and other things related to the quality of my rides.

[girlontheroad]

Ah sorry. Must have missed the link. Yes the bikes should be attraction enough.

[Bethany1]

I'll get blasted for this, but sex sells. It's as simple as that. Every company/convention uses it to some degree and it's not going away. Guys are visually oriented for better or for worse and companies know that. Now the guy representing the pope in this shot for some odd reason leaves much to be desired and leaves me feeling grossed out. If that's how Cannondale is representing themselves, their PR department screwed up.

Where the companies need to appeal to women is through their reps attitudes toward women. Be friendly. Be comfortable and be willing/know your stuff. Nothing wrong with a little ego stroking, just don't come across as pathetic. If I walk up to a booth and feel talked down to or made to feel stupid, I'm walking away. If the only things at your booth are made for the male audience, you have nothing I want. If you cater towards the elite professionals, someone like me knows I don't belong at your booth.

The thing that companies need to realize is that there are a huge range of cyclists out there from the top professionals to recreational riders and provide for that. Catering to one group leaves you earning money only for that percentage of the population. If that's all you care about, that's fine. My money goes to the companies that cater to my needs. I'm not brand specific or loyal to one company. If you have what I need or want, you have my attention, my money and I'll be at your booth.

In real life, most guys know what makes a real woman athlete and it's not about booth babes, it's about us.

[goldfinch]

My sister has a friend that has a booth at DEFCON, the long running computer hacker/security convention. For some years he hired "promotional models." He also had friends work the booth for part of the time, including my middle-aged sister. What his friends had in common is a lot of knowledge about the products sold. They did far better than the models at getting people to stop by the booth and buy his products. He dropped the eye candy

Sex doesn't necessarily sell. If they claim it does I want to see the data. Maybe the booth babes attract some guys to come by and chat them up, but do they really help sales or is it an assumption that they do?

[Kiwi Stoker]

I don't think sex selling and cyclists really fit well. I mean guys that ride bikes are normally a bit tech-heady. They want to know about the technology, the design, the weight savings, did it help so-and-so to win this race. They actually find the bikes "sexy" in themselves- like the curves, colour, shape etc. I tried to get our photography more "sexy" as such by getting the photographer to try different angles and not just side on- boring shots. I wanted close ups of the carbon lay-up, the aero curves as well as the technical data and testing to be shown. That's what a person is buying with a bike.

However things weere a bit different for race and street BMX- these guys are skater boy, strret creed stuff. They wanted colour, design and people doing tricks and stunts. I think most guys here are not really into booth babes either. They admire skill and ability top most and are anti-establishment. Racing BMX also doesn't have anything to do with skin showing- it's all body armor and full race helmets there.

I suspect the brands that are using "sex sells" are either out of touch with their target audience or trying to take the easy- shock value route.