“Does sexism exist in the bicycling world?”
–Elly Blue sharing her thoughts with CycleAndStyle.com about the ways women are treated in the bicycling world.

Click on the PLAY button to hear the podcast interview with Elly Blue- Managing editor of Bike Portland.

Elly Blue (Photo by Jim Parsons)

Does sexism exist in the bicycling world? Well, what do you think? If you are a woman, how are you treated by the stereotypical guys in a bike shop? Is the bike industry meeting your needs? And now two more questions for “To Whom It May Concern:” why are there still so many professional-level bike races where the top women’s finisher gets just a tenth of her male counterpart as her winnings? Finally, how many women are in the top executive levels in any of the major bike companies? (Okay, Terry Precision is off the hook here!)

Elly Blue is the managing editor of Bike Portland, an online magazine that focuses on bicycling and transportation. She took on the issue of sexism when she wrote an editorial she titled, “My Year as a Woman in the City of Bikes. We had the chance to chat about it a week later and she said,” The response was huge. At first the responses were thoughtful and positive and people shared their own experiences.  But then, “Some said, ‘wait a minute, I don’t think sexism is an issue’ and ‘Why don’t you women just suck it up?’ There was a really interesting back-and-forth. It was fascinating to watch.”

And so this woman walks into a bike shop and….

Elly found out that when she brought up how women were treated in bike shops, she received unexpected responses from some men. She had to agree that some employees are just “equal opportunity condescending macho dudes” who can intimidate men as well as women when they go into a bike shop and obviously are in need of some sensitivity training. Elly said some need to be reminded “not to assume that when a woman walks in the shop, she is not going to know what she wants and her boyfriend is the one they need to talk to and find out her needs.” But on the other hand, she says, “I’ve had bike shop employees tell me that they have had a couple walk in the shop and the man will be speaking for the woman while she is just standing there.”

Photo by Jim Parsons

Bike Industry: You’ve come a long way, Baby! (But, you’re not there yet!)

For many years, the bike industry seemed to think all they had to do to make things for women was to “just shrink it and pink it.”  The bikes for women were smaller versions of men’s bikes, only entry-level quality, and yes, painted in a feminine palette. (Admission here: okay, I do like pink.) But they are starting to get it; Elly and I agree that the bike industry has come a long way; they are producing higher quality bicycles and other items specifically designed for women. But some just don’t get it. “It’s got a long way to go,” she says. “Women want to be treated like regular people. We don’t want it assumed that we all want the same things…the idea that all women are the same and want the same things—that’s a little demeaning.” She was specifically referring to the idea that some have it in their minds that “all women want are pretty bikes that aren’t intimidating to ride and want to be talked down to because they don’t want to be bothered with intimidating things.”

What would she like to see? “More products that are high quality, serious products that are made to fit smaller sizes…and more cycling gear for women in the racing side.” She’d also like the bike shops and bike industry to be more thoughtful in considering the needs of young mothers who use a bicycle as their main form of transportation.

“Amsterdamizing” the Community-

Here in the US, men’s cycling trips outnumber women 2:1. In the Netherlands, 55% of the riders are women; in Germany, women make up 49% of the riders. How can communities in the USA make it less lop-sided?

In a study published last October in the Scientific American, the questions was asked, how can environmentally conscious city planners boost urban cycling? The answer: figure out what women want. Women are a great measure of bike-ability, because if they don’t feel safe, they won’t go on that route. Elly says that when Portland’s transportation department plans bike infrastructure, they consider whether women and families with children will feel safe riding on that bike route. “The thing we always say here is that you need to feel as comfortable at age 8 or 80 as you do as a 20-year old hotshot riding down all of our bikeways.” That ought to do it.

For the complete story, listen to the podcast of my conversation with Elly Blue                        .