Where are the Women Riders?

[nuthatch]

This is a great commentary on women cyclists being represented in publications and by advertisers - it certainly ties in with the TE magazine concept!!

Where are the Women Riders?

[jeannierides]

Good morning!
I read with interest the commentary on the link you posted. So true! I haven't been cycling all that long, but have noticed the blatant lack of interest in women as cyclists. It is very difficult to find a good selection of women's cycling clothes in the stores, while every brand is available for men. There was recently a bike race in my town & both genders were represented well. There are some really good women's cycling teams that race all over the world ~ wouldn't it be nice to see them on OLN?!

[Jo-n-NY]

I found all the articles in Bike Traffic interesting. I never heard of it before, but put it in my favorites. Thank you for sending it our way. From what I see as a complete over look Chicago seems to be biker friendly where NY more so Long Island is absolutely NOT. Although I commute to work by train I am only two miles from the station. I can't ride my bike because there is no place to lock it. Now thinking further, none of the little shopping areas around have bike racks any more and I guess in renovations all poles are replaced by big fat pillars that a chain or cable could never get around. I think it is time to start digging up names of politicians in the area to start thinking of some changes that should be made.

Sorry to get off topic here but my brain is raceing big time.

Again, thanks for the link. It will help in my crusade here once I get the nerve up to make the first step in writing a letter to someone.

~ JoAnn

[Pax]

Excellent read Nuthatch, thanks!

I found TE while was trying to find a cycling magazine for my SO that featured women. I PM'd Trek420 on another site since she had mentioned cycling and she directed me here (thankyouthankyouthankyou). In the magazines I could find next to nothing about us and then I come in here and it's a wealth of information!! It would still be great though to see real women portrayed in the ads (here's me holding my breath ).

[anaphase]

It's funny, too, the part about the differences between boys and girls bikes. As I recall, my first bikes were the same, or at least simiar to boys bikes. They had a banana seat, and maybe the "top tubes" were different, but they were light blue or red. Not frilly and uber girly.

And my most vivid memories of riding as a kid were:
a) racing each other from block to block
b) riding for hours, then up to the playground to play baseball
c) building ramps out of plywood and paint cans, then jumping off them in the street.

It's a wonder no one died, but it was fun.

I wonder if this is just selective memory, or if the marketing of bikes to girls has changed since the 70s. I mean, I remember purple and pink bikes, but mainly it was color difference.

[Honeywell23]

It's very sad that women are totally downplayed in the cycling world. There are some incredible women out there who have lots of talent and could ride circles around many of the men. At least we can complain about it together on here

[Jo-n-NY]

Talking about women riders..this just came to mind. Many times if not all a female rider by the name of Kristen Armstrong is mentioned with a pic. Although she is no relation to Lance Armstrong I tried doing a search on her out of curiosty and to find out more about her. Has anyone ever heard of her and know where I can find information. I wasn't able to come up with anything.

Maybe she is an obvious well known cyclist and she just got by people like me.

~ JoAnn

[SadieKate]

Many times if not all a female rider by the name of Kristen Armstrong is mentioned with a pic. Although she is no relation to Lance Armstrong I tried doing a search on her out of curiosty and to find out more about her. Has anyone ever heard of her and know where I can find information. I wasn't able to come up with anything.

Maybe she is an obvious well known cyclist and she just got by people like me.

~ JoAnn

Scroll down through this thread on the Cascade Classic. I scored a poster signed by her (even though it was supposed to go to sponsors only!)

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showt...light=t-mobile

[Trek420]

Queen sez "I PM'd Trek420 on another site since she had mentioned cycling and she directed me here (thankyouthankyouthankyou)."

de nada Queen. So it's true, we do recruit!

Can't say enough about TE, a very special place in cyberspace.

When we were on Diablo, bikerz, Mr. Jobob and I at the station and the "summit team" speeding up the hill. A rider stopped there kept saying how inspiring it was to see us, whole buncha women (and their men-folk) on the mountain. He's trying to get his wife to ride and enjoy that again. (biker wife if you're lurking "hi!"). He said she used to be into athletics, not now.

We talked about our ways back into cycling and shared what got us back in and how important this board was in that. I ride with a club but TE is so helpful.

[SadieKate]

A very postive report: one of the health care networks or health plans or somebody (Intermountain Health Care, St. Mark's?) has a big billboard campaign up on the freeway network. One of the billboards has a photo of a female mtbiker riding a fairly aggressive downhill. The caption says something about "when she needs us, we'll be there." The images for the whole campaign are of people in outdoor activities. I was blown away that they'd actually have a woman in the mtbike shot and that she was pictured riding something other than a flat dirt road.

Maybe one of our SLC members can tell us the name of the organization. They deserve some kudos.

[Dianyla]

Wow, and in Utah no less.

[Lynne]

Yeah, I completely agree with the stereotyping issue. I'm also frustrated that we're told to just be pretty. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love getting cute bike outfits. But the truth is, I sweat my butt off out there every time I ride. I ride hard and I'm just as competetive as the guys, but in a different not such an A-hole kind of way. I don't have to cut another woman down when I compete with her, you know? But dang it, I'm not just out there to get to the local soda stand or with my lovely husband and two point five kids. I'm not standing next to my bike, either. No, I don't want to get muddy and bloody. But I know there are a lot of women out there who do, and I respect that and wish it was portrayed more than it is. It seems that we are assumed to be "butch" and "man haters" if we are aggressive or muddy and bloody, you know? Anyway....great article and I'd like to see more of that and more posters with women doing what we do, all by our little lonesomes!

[nuthatch]

I found all the articles in Bike Traffic interesting.

~ JoAnn

JoAnn, why don't you think about contacting the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation (http://www.chibikefed.org/) who put out Bike Traffic? They might have contacts for you in the NYC area to help promote bicycle-friendly legislation, etc. It's an uphill battle but there are so many more of us out there now than there used to be and we vote!!!