Naming your bike

mashton:rkn - of course female, it's an old thing, started for ships, I think.

Yes but i always find it a bit odd ;) Acutally thought i'd find out about it - doesn't seem like there is a clear origin but [this article](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/the_economy/138678.stm) has some suggestions, including:

"As long as ships of every size and type require lots of paint to look good they will be referred to as a 'she', at least by me."