I really enjoyed coming for the ride (haha!) with this post and learning a little bit more about you through it. This one feels more intimate to me. Maybe it’s because I have some strong feelings and memories around bike riding too - relating to growing up a girl in a sexist world, being a sister who had to share a bike, and the daughter of immigrant parents who did NOT teach us how to ride (the neighbor kids did that) nor bought the bike we had to share (my mom’s friend did that)- on the (suspicious) pretense that “bike riding is not for girls.” Your story gets me curious about other people’s experiences with bikes and what they mean for them. I hope your renewed relationship with your bike leads not to more ambulance rides, only to joy.
Alma! Thank you. Oh I feel for you and your multi-layered bike story — I'd love to hear where you are now with cycling. RE bikes and sexism, there was a still a fair amount in bike racing world when I was involved (though making progress at the same time --its changed a lot since) but in general bikes have been good for the women's movement (the 19th century cycling boom in the US helped women's liberation greatly).
I really enjoyed coming for the ride (haha!) with this post and learning a little bit more about you through it. This one feels more intimate to me. Maybe it’s because I have some strong feelings and memories around bike riding too - relating to growing up a girl in a sexist world, being a sister who had to share a bike, and the daughter of immigrant parents who did NOT teach us how to ride (the neighbor kids did that) nor bought the bike we had to share (my mom’s friend did that)- on the (suspicious) pretense that “bike riding is not for girls.” Your story gets me curious about other people’s experiences with bikes and what they mean for them. I hope your renewed relationship with your bike leads not to more ambulance rides, only to joy.
Alma! Thank you. Oh I feel for you and your multi-layered bike story — I'd love to hear where you are now with cycling. RE bikes and sexism, there was a still a fair amount in bike racing world when I was involved (though making progress at the same time --its changed a lot since) but in general bikes have been good for the women's movement (the 19th century cycling boom in the US helped women's liberation greatly).