Assoc. Bicycle & Pedestrian Profess.-cycling survey on women & girls

[shootingstar]

The survey gives you opportunity to answer also as an experienced cyclist and factors that keep you cycling, plus also suggestions for improving certain areas of cycling infrastructure.

Maybe it's better to consider first in your community/region, on the whole, does there tend to be alot more men cycling or it's evenly balanced..just based on regular cycling around the city?

If it's sexist, say so in the survey. And suggest how to improve the language of survey/thrust of the survey.

There are also a whole group of women not here, not in our cycling groups, who fear cycling for looking "clumsy", feeling incompetent, dirty/too sweaty, etc.

and over and over, I get so many comments to me in person over the years, that people don't feel safe on the roads. Some of it is justified since they live out in the suburbs near busy roads, no cycling infrastructure nearby, etc.I already sent this survey to several other women who aren't cyclists but would like to bike more but there several barriers. They found the survey interesting. It provoked some discussion on bike routes/lack of and jokes about 'helmet hair'.

I do think there is a huge group of women who 'want to look good' when exercising/cycling which of course, makes no sense. Worry about their appearance....more than alot of men. I'm only tiny sympathetic to such women..particularily those who want to lose weight but aren't willing to realize that this takes diet and regular physical exercise. Blame it on all the media images of gorgeous looking models in athletic wear who don't look dirty/overly dirty/a mess when they are posing as runners, cyclists, etc. Gosh those Winter Olympic women athletes..most of them looked GOOD, beautiful. Another intimidation factor...one more image to "look good" while exercising. Geez.

"Pedestrian professional"...fancy word, eh? It could be a transporatation planner, urban planner, cycling advocate, etc. I have a friend who is a provincial govn't transportation policy analyst. Part of her work role covers active transportation..which means transportation planning which includes cycling, walking and integration with public transit.

TE forum is probably the only international cycling group of women that cuts across all types of cycling, all age groups and across several different countries. (Anyone want to challenge this assertion? )

Your opinion counts. Complain' on an Internet forum and not approaching your local transportation authorities/cycling advocacy group, will not change things.

So consider doing the survey, say it's sexist for certain questions, if you really think so...and summarize your level of cycling at the end. There's opportunity in the form.