Living in the ‘information age’ means we have access to a vast amount of information on so many topics. If we want to know anything about any subject we all head straight for Google and usually find out the answer within seconds. However, there’s nothing like a book to really properly explore a topic and I’ve found two great books about women’s cycling that you might find useful. The first one I actually read in Kindle format on my newly acquired Ipad in January this year but the second one is a fully fledged printed book that I picked up
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How do I get my wife/partner to ride with me?
Me on my first Gong ride in 2008. I was really nervous but really loved it. I’ve been asked this question by quite a few of the men who I ride with. They, like me, love cycling so much that they want to share its many benefits with those closest to them. So here’s a few tips that might help. Please excuse the stereotyping and generalising. Be patient and understanding Women generally approach activities like cycling differently than men. It starts early in life and patterns are set. If you cast your mind back to your childhood you’ll recall that
Read moreDressing for cool weather for women cyclists
I’m very lucky that I live in a place with a temperate climate which affords me warm summers and cool (not really cold) winters. In researching for this blog post I read about dressing for sub-zero temperatures which thankfully I’ve never experienced on my bike so I won’t be covering that here. I thought it would be useful to share with you how I cope with my cool winters and the autumn and spring temperatures in between. Firstly, it’s important to still look good and colour coordinated. Just because it’s cold doesn’t mean you need to lose all sense of
Read moreBike commuting tips for women
Former Premier of NSW Kristina Keneally regularly commuted on her bike Now I have to confess up front that I don’t commute to work so I’m not an expert on the subject but I know many other cyclists, both men and women who do and I thought it would be valuable to put a few tips together. However I do think that commuting to work by bike is an option that many women should consider. Women tend to approach cycling differently to men (please excuse the stereotyping) and that includes bike commuting. A lot of men treat commuting like a
Read moreOur Victorian-era sisters suffered for their love of cycling
Women’s cycling wear was a little restrictive in days past A little known fact about me is that I have three university degrees (and am currently undertaking my fourth). One of them is a MA in history which I completed many years ago at Sydney Uni just for fun. History, and in particular social history has always fascinated me. I came across a wonderful description of women who took up cycling in the Victorian era and the challenges that their attire brought. “What shall we wear?” is a query rising from every channel of woman’s life: for upon each occasion
Read moreCornering tips for road bike riders (especially women)
Greenedge-AIS rider Judith Arndt showing us how it’s done in the Women’s Cup in SA in January It’s been a while since I’ve written an article about tips and while I’m certainly not an expert in riding skills I’ve learnt a lot in the past three and a half years that I feel I’m qualified to share. My own first lessons on fundamentals like cornering came from my very patient partner Phillip. This was followed by lots of tips from more experienced riders on the LACC bunch rides around Sydney Olympic Park. Some of them were a little patronising but
Read moreSKCC women – poster girls for women’s participation in club cycling
Since I started writing this blog last year I’ve had no less than four women that I’ve interviewed or spoken with who have mentioned St Kilda Cycling Club (SKCC) as the club to join in Melbourne if you’re a women. So I thought I should find out a little more for myself by speaking to one of the key people behind SKCC women’s program, Gaelene Snelling. When I spoke to Gaelene a couple of weeks ago she proudly reported that of the current 600 SKCC members, 165 of these are women who are signed up on a mixture of racing
Read moreCycling is the new golf in more ways than one
You’ve probably heard this catchcry before – Cycling is the new golf. Previously I’d thought of it in terms of middle-aged men who previously played golf every Sunday morning hanging up their clubs and taking up Sunday morning group rides. One of the big advantages of this is that cycling is generally less time consuming than golf so the husband/father can spend more time with their family. A couple of weeks go I met a guy who’s taken this concept one step further and added a business dimension. He believes cycling is the new golf because the group he’s founded
Read moreOne for the women – Ashfield Cycles free women’s clinic night
My favourite bike company Specialized is quite appropriately focusing on women during the month of March and encouraging their retailers like Ashfield Cycles to get involved. On Tuesday, 20 March from 6.30 pm John and the team at Ashfield Cycles will host a ‘Women’s Clinic Night’ where women can come along to learn tips on how to maintain your bike, change a tyre and skills for the road or trail. You’ll also have the opportunity to meet other women who are interested in cycling. You can also enter a great competition being run by Specialized to win a women’s road
Read moreBike review – Eddy Merckx EFX-3 women’s specific road bike
Merckx EFX-3 I was thrilled when David Cook of Clarence Street Cyclery asked me if I’d like to ride the new Eddy Merckx women’s specific road bike and write a review for my blog. It’s my very first bike review so don’t be expecting any technical talk or voice of experience. For benchmarking purposes my own current road bike is a 2011 Specialized Amira Expert which has a full carbon frame and the gearing is full Ultegra. I really love my bike but I also jumped at the opportunity to ride a different bike for a week and certainly didn’t
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