This morning's commute (the 'ugh' edition)

Hmmm I might tie my hair back...

For what it's worth ladies, I got an "ooooohhh nice calves! Aren't you the king" from white van man + his buddies this morning. I'm glad I was turning off. I blew them a kiss. Didn't like it and thought of this thread though appreciate it's not the same.

nm

sometimes it gets to a point where you know it's coming, giving you ample time to prepare a come-back and loosen your grip, to prepare to extend the middle finger....

riding home from RHC, him riding along slowly: "blah blah < some-kinda-come-on > "
me: "get some fucking lights"

Was cycling carefully through Richmond on Saturday night due to overspill from the pubs with loads of people standing on the road drinking. Got smacked hard on the bottom by a groom-to-be whilst moving (albeit slowly). The rest of the stag do party thought it was hilarious. Especially after I shouted at them and gave them the finger. Not much else you can do in that kind of situation.

Thankfully, most of the time I'm oblivious to cat-calling and derogatory comments simply because I don't hear them - which I see as a bonus! Ignorance is bliss.

...end rant.

This thread fills me with sadness as well as a weird sense of togetherness because its clear that all of us face some of harassment on the streets of London. Why are woman on bikes so sexualized? What is it about a woman on a bike that is considered so provocative and open for comments from men? I wasn't much of a rider before I went fixed but now that I cycle almost everywhere, I'm starting to dread pulling up next to a car full of men with the window down at a traffic light because I'm wondering what sleazy comment they're going to utter. Its horrible to feel this way, but there are women doing great things about this issue and one of them is this:

http://www.houseofastbury.co.uk/

I love the 'eyes on the road' leggings, they seem so comfortable and not to mention to the point as well. This brand is created by a bunch of women that love cycling but were annoyed with everything they faced on the road (are they on here?!). We should totally support them :)

Jesus this is depressing. Thanks to the OP. I can absolutely believe every one of these incidents (sadly) but what has me aghast is the frequency. As a bloke my road based incidents of intimidation are exclusively limited to the non sexual (the stuff we all experience). If I also had to lose faith in 50% of the population during most of these interactions as a result of gender I'd be beside myself.

Oh and it's cowardice by the way. The reason these arseholes are notably directing these attacks at women on bikes is because they feel the interaction can only be a short one, the opportunity for recompense minimal, their surroundings are protective and isolate them from others... It's aclear extension of the shit people face on the roads every day. Base instincts and warped personality traits to the fore as everyones interactions are removed from human reality.

Sad.

Why are women on bikes so sexualized?

so much this. i appreciate that not every person does it, and not every woman has to experience the unfortunate everyday corollaries of it, but it absolutely sucks. it's infuriating. i know exactly what you mean when you describe that sinking feeling of the lights going red and slowing down only to realise you're pulling up to a van or car with a male driver/passenger/full carload and an open window...

i mean things like assos's publicity:

don't help, and neither do accounts like fixiegirls which seem to exist purely to fetishise the female form on bikes (which maddens me because it implies that a girl riding fixed, and even moreso brakeless is somehow omfg so hawt and skilled, wow she must want my attention if she's taking and sharing pictures of herself riding HHSB brakless, ima comment on that so she knows i like it). i've got them to take down my picture before which they regrammed without permission as if they were doing me some sort of favour - i'm much more happy when cyclelikeagirl pop up on my dash etc

basically, those whom this doesn't affect argue that all the aforementioned things are unconnected and it's just a bit of harmless fun, or that men have unfair societal expectations (but they're never terribly sexualised, are they?) etc. women (and others) who have to deal with all this stupid shit every day know that it's all contributing factors in how and why society values women less than men.

@xRuwx20 - mon who started house of astbury is on the forum somewhere, we do track together and she also rides cross :) she's badass!

Right. Commence rant.

I have had enough of men on geared bikes overtaking me in dangerous positions, like with pedestrians coming towards us on an access road (the marshes end of Coppermill Lane) or on the rather pave-esque climb of MacKenzie Road, N7, and then not having the legs to get all the way past me and sitting there, slightly ahead and to my right, waiting for me to meekly let them get in front of me slowing me down. Regardless of what’s behind us or otherwise going on with the traffic. Why do they do this? Because I'm a woman? Because I'm riding a fixed gear bike? Because they haz small penis? Because their massively inflated homo erectus egos demand it?

I do not care. I only wish to live. Cycle training, every damn last one of them.

Rant over. I feel much better now, thank you.

I'm very sorry to says but you're aboustely right, it is indeed our ego and most definitely the fact you're a woman.

I recall having similar train of though a couple of years ago, for some reason when a man overtook me, I think "fair play, he look pretty on form and work hard to get this fast".

But when a women overtook me, subconsciously I think "a girl overtook me? I'm that slow? I can't have that!", mainly because I was raise being taught that women are inherently weaker than the men, and if they overtook you, it mean you're not even fit enough to breathe, even if it's Laura Trott!

I no longer have that subconscious though anymore, and I have a better riding relationship with my girlfriend (which I never realised it was an issues in the past), I acknowledged she's better at me in certain discipline, I can barely keep up with her on descent and as a resulted crashed badly!

So yes, it's our ego that got the best of us thinking that train of thought, I can only apologise for that and hope that there'll be less in the future.

Thanks for this Ed - this insight makes me feel better. I think what was enraging me most was that I was feeling like I should have just let them go instead of being seen as displaying aggressive and challenging behaviour by "racing". I was worrying about my reaction being wrong. I suspect this is my subconscious doing what it's been raised to do too.

had a few male friends ask me recently how they can help or expressing how bad they feel about this, because they didn't know. i wish i knew how to answer them! support is a great place to start.

@tracerbullet - rant away!

I acknowledged she's better at me in certain discipline

Does she fit your tyres for you Ed?

http://www.xojane.com/issues/feminism-men-practical-steps posting for number 6.

So I wore leggings and a black crop top yesterday for a quick spin around Vicky park. I got stares. Some men turned around to look. But what I noticed was, fellow fixed gear hipsters/roadies did not pass any comment. They looked- sometimes it made me uncomfortable but I got smug about it and decided its cause I look so flippin badass, right? However, the same thing happened as I said previously, pulling up at traffic lights or waiting at a junction resulted in guys yelling something illegible at me. I don't think its flattering, I'm not floored by this and I do not give a shit about what they think. If you really want to flatter me, why not tell me I'm really fast and fit and have great bike handling skills? Also, its great that cyclists dont actually pass any comment (apart from dassing me but ok) but I think its because they respect the sport and understand where I'm coming from? I dont know.

Hi XRuSxeX

1. Men looked because you are/were a 'fit-looking' woman on a bike.
   
2. Bike-handling skills don't come into it. Unfortunately.
   
   

Winter is on it's way. The men will go back to sleep.

@cafewanda cant wait.

In the top 10 on the BBC website at the mo: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-south-yorkshire-33878417

In 1979, I was riding along Lee Bridge Rd. As I rode over the railway bridge, I heard a shout and turned, automatically, to see a van alongside me, slowing down. The passenger, his body strangely contorted in what I hope has since caused him recurrent back pain, was waving his penis at me through the open window. I remember being bemused and somewhat revolted at the time, although, strangely, not as intimidated as I have been by other stuff I've experienced over the past forty plus years. I have had my backside slapped several times, lost count of the lucky saddle type comments, probably had hundreds, maybe even thousands, of shouted comments over the years about the size and shape of various bits of my body and what the shouter would like to do with it, or me to do with it and them. On the occasions when I have answered back, either I have been met by aggression and vile insults, or, the old excuse, come on darling it's just a compliment and the implication that I should be grateful for the attention. During the early 80's, at the E&C, I was physically attacked when I told a couple of guys shouting obscenities at me out of their car to get lost. They pulled up, jumped out and, in a rather surreal way, began beating me over the head with a rolled up umbrella. (That was weird, as well as very frightening).
And, even though I am not that far off sixty, it still happens. Riding to work yesterday, yet another lucky saddle type comment. It really makes me furious and sad at the same time that in the forty plus years I have been riding on London's streets, so little has changed. And that there are people out there still saying it's not harassment, take it as a compliment, when it's so obvious it's nothing of the kind.

"And, even though I am not that far off sixty.."

You lie!!! Really?

https://thelonelycyclist.wordpress.com/2015/08/16/skinny-cyclist-not-likely/

:(
that's fucking awful

Depressing. Somebody in the comments is saying she also gets abuse from men when she's out running because she's thin. Women, eh? Strutting about in public spaces with their varied body shapes. Who do they think they are?

:-(

Ugh, this is so upsetting. I hate people.