Why do I see fewer women cycling than men?

[nuliajuk]

I don't have a lot of advice on the why's of women and cycling. I only can say that I myself have worried about the practical vs. recreational aspect (time spent on a hobby vs. something more practical), the risks to my physical self, the costs of the equipment, and the fashion or lack thereof. Maintenance of bikes is intimidating to me too. I haven't learned it yet and I feel at a disadvantage for it. That's a hell of a lot to get over and I don't even have a child!...

Interesting that you should mention fashion. I remember sitting in the infield of the velodrome between races years ago and mentioning to another female rider that I'd wandered into a high-end dress shop on my lunch hour and seen an $800 dress. I remarked that you could buy a pretty decent bike for $800 (this was in the 80s) and she laughed and told me I had my priorities straight. Many women who balk at paying more than $200 on a bike don't hesitate to spend that and much more on shoes and clothes that will be out of fashion within a year.
Find a maintenance class if possible - they are out there. When I bought my first "serious" bike as a teen in the late 70s, the bike shop I got it from offered a free maintenance class to anyone buying a new machine. Being young and dumb, I didn't know that it was supposed to be intimidating, so I took to it with enthusiasm and did my own overhauls for years. I'm eternally grateful to that shop (now long gone) for having offered that class, because even though now I don't do my own repairs much any more, I know enough about bikes to at least have an idea what's wrong before taking it to a shop. (Actually, modern bikes require a whole lot less maintenance than older ones, what with the sealed cartridge bearings everywhere.)

[PamNY]

Maintenance of bikes is intimidating to me too. I haven't learned it yet and I feel at a disadvantage for it.

Basic maintenance is easy to learn. I'd suggest a class. There's a lot of information, including how-to videos, available online.

This forum is a great source of information on maintenance, and will rejoice with you over very simple accomplishments. I once posted about adjusting my brake, which involved two turns with a screwdriver.

[zoom-zoom]

The other night DH and I went mountain biking at a nearby Boy Scout camp that lets hikers and cyclists use their land on the off season. They have some really nice, challenging trails of about 20+ total miles.

I was the ONLY woman out there. I know Limewave rides there, too. But I have a tough time finding other noobie women to ride with. I don't get a lot of opportunities to ride with DH (childcare is an issue) and I refuse to ride alone. I'm VERY much a novice and VERY crash-prone. I have nightmares of becoming incapacitated and leaving my child with a seriously injured or dead mother. So that keeps me from progressing at mountain biking. My DH, on the other hand, just returned from a week in Moab and Fruita. He has no qualms about riding alone.

I don't have quite the same level of apprehension riding my road bike alone, but I still don't enjoy it nearly as much as riding with others and I do worry about being miles from home, on rural roads, and having a major mechanical or encountering creeps. I know it causes me to swap a lot of rides for runs or cut my rides shorter than I might otherwise. I also contend with boredom on solo rides. After about 90 minutes I can't stand myself anymore.

[Maye]

I have nightmares of becoming incapacitated and leaving my child with a seriously injured or dead mother.

This is exactly how I feel and one of the reasons why I'm so cautious and afraid of highly trafficked roads or riding alone.

[shootingstar]

Well one thing I still haven't gotten into which is having the opposite effect of drawing in more women: is the cycling chic trend of cycling with dress/heeled shoes, dresses and skirts, suits. I think this latter flexibility now in some big North American cities is drawing more women to cycling as simply part of ordinary life. Because it is.

I don't think I'll get into that much at all simply because I do have a nice collection of some jerseys and cycling jackets to wear. Will preserve my business dress clothing longer by not cycling and sweating up/dirtying them up as much.

As for the fear of being alone: As long as I can cycle at a certain speed (and it doesn't have to be fast) without stopping too much at the wrong time (that's unsafe for me), then I'm fine. And that's feeling safe 95% of the time, in terms of my safety as a female cyclist. I have commuted daily through quieter or isolated ravine park system to get to work, but most of that route were wide, paved paths.

I have lived in "rougher" or perceived as "rougher" areas of big cities. Which translates as: lower income, non-white neighbourhoods. Yes, there were shoot-outs that made the press, which I found out later. But it only takes a few bad folks to make it bad for everyone else.

In VAncouver, we live in a nice area, yet just 5 blocks away there was a shooting at a major hotel. Is that going to stop locals from hanging around? No, if you know the area: there's tons of people walking around shopping, hanging out in the cafes, etc.

So for certain, I consider cycling in the city, actually waaaaay safer for me as a woman than walking or jogging. For certain at night, I don't choose to cycle in unlit areas with narrow paths, etc. nor busy aerterial roads with tons of cars and no shoulder if I can.

[Crankin]

If you are "focusing" on getting hurt and leaving your kids with a "handicapped" or dead mother, than some cognitive behavior therapy might help. You shouldn't let this incapacitate you. Yes, be aware of the risks, learn to ride assertively and safely, and realize, yes you could get hurt, but don't let it stop you from enjoying something you like. Anxiety where you picture a bad thing happening is not something you need to live with.
Mountain biking is kind of in another category because crashing is just part of it. I only stopped because of my osteoporosis... I didn't mind crashing, as it's part of the experience, but I couldn't risk it. I didn't attempt things beyond my ability and when I actually spent some time practicing, I did improve. I went alone a couple of times, on my way home from work. I got lost, but I survived.
I do a lot of things I swore I would never do, and I am pretty proud of it. I come from a family of neurotic worriers, who are afraid of everything. It's no way to live your life.

[Reesha]

I'm like Oak - I grew up riding on the road. I started cycle touring with my parents when I was about 10 or 11 I think - I was in middle school. I was riding all over by myself in city traffic by the time I was 14. I didn't even have a driver's license until I was 25. I don't have kids.

None of the worries other people have expressed have ever really affected me, I guess. I suppose a lot of it has to do with how I was raised. My parents were always quite active and I was allowed, perhaps even pushed to do things that other girls never were. Other kids thought I was weird, but I don't think that ever really bothered me. It certainly didn't change my behavior - nor has the fact that now other adults often think I'm weird bother me or change my behavior.

This is pretty much me in a nutshell. I rode my bike everywhere as a kid for transportation... didn't get my license til my 20s and by then was fully adapted to road riding. Now I'm nearly 30, no kids yet... just a full time teaching job, domesticated DBF (who is afraid to ride on the roads go figure!), a dog, a cat, and some chickens. I'm not afraid to let my lawn go if it means I can have more time on the bike

[Reesha]

Interesting that you should mention fashion. I remember sitting in the infield of the velodrome between races years ago and mentioning to another female rider that I'd wandered into a high-end dress shop on my lunch hour and seen an $800 dress. I remarked that you could buy a pretty decent bike for $800 (this was in the 80s) and she laughed and told me I had my priorities straight. Many women who balk at paying more than $200 on a bike don't hesitate to spend that and much more on shoes and clothes that will be out of fashion within a year.
Find a maintenance class if possible - they are out there. When I bought my first "serious" bike as a teen in the late 70s, the bike shop I got it from offered a free maintenance class to anyone buying a new machine. Being young and dumb, I didn't know that it was supposed to be intimidating, so I took to it with enthusiasm and did my own overhauls for years. I'm eternally grateful to that shop (now long gone) for having offered that class, because even though now I don't do my own repairs much any more, I know enough about bikes to at least have an idea what's wrong before taking it to a shop. (Actually, modern bikes require a whole lot less maintenance than older ones, what with the sealed cartridge bearings everywhere.)

I was with a friend at Tiffany's when she was preparing to get engaged and we were trying on rings and I couldn't stop thinking about how I'd spent more on each of my bikes than most of the rings we were trying on. It really cracked me up. I'm not sure I'd put that much money on my finger, but I'd put it between my legs!

[zoom-zoom]

If you are "focusing" on getting hurt and leaving your kids with a "handicapped" or dead mother, than some cognitive behavior therapy might help. You shouldn't let this incapacitate you. Yes, be aware of the risks, learn to ride assertively and safely, and realize, yes you could get hurt, but don't let it stop you from enjoying something you like. Anxiety where you picture a bad thing happening is not something you need to live with.
Mountain biking is kind of in another category because crashing is just part of it. I only stopped because of my osteoporosis... I didn't mind crashing, as it's part of the experience, but I couldn't risk it. I didn't attempt things beyond my ability and when I actually spent some time practicing, I did improve. I went alone a couple of times, on my way home from work. I got lost, but I survived.
I do a lot of things I swore I would never do, and I am pretty proud of it. I come from a family of neurotic worriers, who are afraid of everything. It's no way to live your life.

I still ride and enjoy it, just not alone. If something happens to me I don't want it to be potentially hours before I am found. Cell service is spotty (at best) out there, too. I wouldn't run trails alone, for the same reason. I badly sprained my left ankle during a trail relay 2 years ago. I was able to continue "running" on it and other runners were able to notify people at the next exchange point, but had I outright broken it and been alone it could have been hours before I was able to find help way up in BFE.

[Anelia]

If you are "focusing" on getting hurt and leaving your kids with a "handicapped" or dead mother, than some cognitive behavior therapy might help. You shouldn't let this incapacitate you. Yes, be aware of the risks, learn to ride assertively and safely, and realize, yes you could get hurt, but don't let it stop you from enjoying something you like. Anxiety where you picture a bad thing happening is not something you need to live with.
Mountain biking is kind of in another category because crashing is just part of it. I only stopped because of my osteoporosis... I didn't mind crashing, as it's part of the experience, but I couldn't risk it. I didn't attempt things beyond my ability and when I actually spent some time practicing, I did improve. I went alone a couple of times, on my way home from work. I got lost, but I survived.
I do a lot of things I swore I would never do, and I am pretty proud of it. I come from a family of neurotic worriers, who are afraid of everything. It's no way to live your life.

I agree with Crankin, we shouldn't focus on bad things.
zoom-zoom, have you checked Vitamin B in your blood? Many women suffer Vit B deficiency and that can lead to anxiety and fear. I would suggest that you do blood examination. I have VitB anaemia and since I supplement, I am way better. It might not be the case with you but still an idea...

[nuliajuk]

Well one thing I still haven't gotten into which is having the opposite effect of drawing in more women: is the cycling chic trend of cycling with dress/heeled shoes, dresses and skirts, suits. I think this latter flexibility now in some big North American cities is drawing more women to cycling as simply part of ordinary life. Because it is.
...

As for the fear of being alone: As long as I can cycle at a certain speed (and it doesn't have to be fast) without stopping too much at the wrong time (that's unsafe for me), then I'm fine. And that's feeling safe 95% of the time, in terms of my safety as a female cyclist. I have commuted daily through quieter or isolated ravine park system to get to work, but most of that route were wide, paved paths...

I have lived in "rougher" or perceived as "rougher" areas of big cities. Which translates as: lower income, non-white neighbourhoods. Yes, there were shoot-outs that made the press, which I found out later. But it only takes a few bad folks to make it bad for everyone else...

So for certain, I consider cycling in the city, actually waaaaay safer for me as a woman than walking or jogging. For certain at night, I don't choose to cycle in unlit areas with narrow paths, etc. nor busy aerterial roads with tons of cars and no shoulder if I can.

I don't think the "cycle chic" thing will have much of an impact. From what I've seen of the bloggers, many of them seem to feel compelled to ridicule people who ride for sport, and are unlikely to join the rest of us for a road ride. Yes, it's great that they ride to work, but let's face it, riding in regular clothes only works for shorter distances over flat roads. I can do it where I work now (4k ride to work, no hills), there is no way I could have done it when I lived in Calgary, 9k from work with several short but very steep hills in the way. I was sweating no matter how slowly I rode.
I agree that riding feels safer than walking or jogging at night. And the "rough neighborhood" thing. I grew up in such a neighborhood, so perhaps that's why it doesn't bother me to occasionally ride through one on the way to the only 50 meter pool in town. The majority of people living in low income neighborhoods just want to live their lives and have no interest in someone riding through on a bike.

[Suze]

Thanks everybody! This was a terrific discussion and great input. I posted a (wildly general) summary of your responses on my site, and will continue from time to time referring to them. If anyone wants to comment there, add to it or modify, please do! In case the site doesn't show up with my icon, it is Suze, Cycling at [URL="http://susancycling.blogspot.com/2012/05/cycling-landscape-of-home-women-riding.html"] Oh, and hope that is within discussion board etiquette to mention, if not please tell me!

By the way, I'm having a lot of fun investigating these discussion forums.

[Maye]

Thanks everybody! This was a terrific discussion and great input. I posted a (wildly general) summary of your responses on my site, and will continue from time to time referring to them. If anyone wants to comment there, add to it or modify, please do! In case the site doesn't show up with my icon, it is Suze, Cycling at [URL="http://susancycling.blogspot.com/2012/05/cycling-landscape-of-home-women-riding.html"] Oh, and hope that is within discussion board etiquette to mention, if not please tell me!

By the way, I'm having a lot of fun investigating these discussion forums.

Suze,
Great blog post!! Thanks!

[limewave]

I think part of the fear of riding alone is instilled in us as young children. It was no big deal for my brother to go exploring in the woods, but my mom was worried about me doing that! There were so many dangers for a young girl alone! Sheesh.

DH said he used to not worry about me riding alone until he started watching those magazine shows on Friday/Saturday night. He made the comment how there's hardly ever an episode about a man going missing, but there's weeks and weeks worth of episodes of women disappearing while running or hiking. He freaks out about me going alone now

Zoom-Zoom, I'm not a fan of riding alone on the trails by us. But I've been on them enough that I know quite a few short cuts if I were to get in trouble. I can take you out sometime and show you some of them. I also wear an emergency whistle on my camelbak and carry an emergency blanket. It may be over the top, but after watching 127 hours, I've started carrying a good knife too. I don't want to have to do something like that with a cheap piece of crap.

[Crankin]

We call those the "murder shows."