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You open it, I will come and do the Marketing for you! All we need now is some finance...

sounds like a plan...any philanthropists out there?

I have felt for a long time there is a big need for a ladies only bike shop which specialises in OTP stuff for women as well as custom made. With the right marketing they could make a fortune, especially if they specialised in helping the newbies put all the right kit together. I think far many women want to cycle but find the whole atmosphere in bike shops totally intimidating.

I totally agree, I would LOVE to open a ladies bike shop! I think it would get a lot more women cycling, especially those who don't have the interest/abilty/time to spend hours trawling the internet for information.

I find it really annoying that when a woman asks for a bike that will fit her people often respond with 'get a custom one' which I certainly can't afford. And it seems female specific bikes that aren't custom are limited to road bikes and hybrids, I would love to live in a world where for every male geometry bike they made a female version.

oooh I love papergirl!

so, do you take submissions from people who don't live in Manchester?

Awesomely lady-friendly bike shops? They exist? Where?

Enid, female mechs are desperately needed in shops for us wimmin who are complete newbies/nervous about approaching said shops for advice/information etc. In the 4 shops close to where I live, I can only think of one that has a woman staff member. She's front of house, not a mech though.

I've not had any hostile experiences and I have to say my very local lbs has been good to me since I banged my way into their shop 5 years ago.

Ha, yeah I wish there were more! I've always found Brixton Cycles to be super friendly and helpful, and they've given me a lot of confidence to expect to be treated the same elsewhere.

There definitely needs to be more female mechanics, cos really, riding a bike a woman is very different to being a man on a bike in so many different ways. But like you say they usually end up front of shop. In fact the place commented on my dress said they wanted a mechanic but said I would mainly be a shop girl. Sigh.

That's bike yard east...and next on my hit list!

I'm a bit tempted on a name and shame too, but on the other hand maybe you just met the wrong person? (it's a nice thought at least)

Did you speak to lock 7? I had a headset installed there and the woman taking my moneys was def a mechanic, half her arms were black from oil / grease

Hmm, maybe, although I kind of felt his remarks summed up a lot of people's attitudes. It will be interesting to see if any other women have had similar experiences, as customers or potential employees.

Yeah I went to Lock 7 and they were great! It's run by two lovely ladies and they reckon they can take me on for some part time work :)

I think you should name and shame!

a bit part of me really wants to, I don't want to let them get away with behaviour like that...but part of me is worried about the ramifications...they are a very 'cool' bike shop.

So ladies, I've recently been trying to find myself some work as a mechanic which has led to me spending an awful lot of time trawling around bike shops and having some rather interesting experiences.

As someone with a feminist background and some awesome male friends, I often forget what 'real' people are like and the attitudes they have. I've had some pretty shitty experiences with bike shops in the past treating me like a complete imbecile, but I thought this time armed with my City and Guilds and a lot more knowledge they might treat me a little better.

Mostly, I've been met with disbelief, being asked if I can lift up bikes or if I really really can do the stuff I say I can. My personal favourite being 'you should wear jeans and t-shirts, we don't want you getting your dress dirty(!)'

But there have been some shops that have been great, and taken me at face value and believed I can do the things I say I can and taken me on for trial days and offered me some odd work.

So what experiences have you ladies had in bike shops? Why do you think the men that work in them are often so hostile? And maybe we could start a list of awesome lady friendly bike shops?

I ride a steel specialized langster and also a Barry Hoban mixte which I rebuilt myself.

If you are looking for smaller frames, I know that IRO do smaller sizes and I'm pretty sure Bob Jackson does too.

I would like there to be women's sub-forum. It would definitely encourage me to post more on this forum and get more involved. Most of the thread I've seen on here that relate to anything to do with lady cycle descend into awful misogynistic 'jokes' within a few replies, making them absolutely pointless. It would be great to be able to have these discussions taken seriously.

Also, I think it would end up being a much more supportive and encouraging place, where women might feel more comfortable asking 'silly' questions.

I'd really like to come on another ladies ride too, but the last one knocked my confidence quite a bit :(

excellent! I've PM'd you.

oh yeah, and er 'dibs'.

hi!

i'm really interested in this bike, it's lovely! i'm 5,8", do you think this would fit me ok? also, will it be able to have a rack attatched to the back?

thanks,

laura

R.I.P

She seemed like such a talented girl.

1. Clefty
   
2. Wicksie
   
3. Konijn
   
4. Long&Winding
   
5. Adaplace
   
6. Habbi
   
7. tricitybendix
   
8. Teapots
   
9. aimka
   
10. miss_socks
    
11. kattiep
    
12. Deluka
    
13. Clara
    
14. PicKle
    
15. V
    
16. Opiumia
    
17. Stix
    
18. ziska
    
19. Annabel
    
20. Polowannabe
    
21. Katie-coo
    
22. !Attack! of the 5' 10" woman (Nhatt)
    
23. kat
    
24. fixedlover
    
25. bikerchic
    
26. twelveframes
    
27. jayloo
    
28. williamshatnerpants
    
29. janejanejane
    
30. nny
    
31. the-same-sky
    
32. Wingedangel
    
33. enid
    
    

another newbie here :) sounds like this will be ace!

hello :)
been lurking a while and thought i'd post now i've finally got myself a decent bike. i picked up the steel langster and i'm probably going to flip it to fixed this weekend :)