I've been riding singletrack since the 80s. The positive effects noted in this article exist for both men and women. I have many women friends who absolutely shred on trails. For me, mountain biking has always been a combination of lung-busting work and dealing with fear. The get better at mountain biking, you need to put yourself into uncomfortable situations: re-ride that section that you crashed on, hit that climb again faster, take the more direct line on that descent. Even for me now in my mid-40s, progression on my mountain bike is exhilarating. Mountain biking is no joke: it's truly hard and you can really get hurt. It builds character.
3
Mountain biking has helped spur community revitalization in Crosby, MN and the sport is continuing to see increased participation from women and people of color. Learn more at www.cuyuna.com and stay with us at www.koseligcuyuna.com
I got into mtb racing at the age of 59 and for the next 6 years competed in about 35 races a year in Ohio, April to November. I was almost always the oldest usually finishing last or close to it with the average age of racers probably late 20s to early 30s with a smattering of guys and gals in their 40s and 50s, but lots of "kids" in their teens and few even younger. I never met a nicer crowd of people that those mtb racers, and the youngsters were amazingly courteous and mature beyond their years.
A lot of the events I attended had a "kids" race for the littlest ones and others had divisions with prizes for teenagers. There were men and women divisions, but they usually raced together. Entry fees were modest and prizes usually just cycling gear. I'd recommend mtb racing to boys and girls of any every age.
I'd like to highlight something this article doesn't emphasize: the great opportunity that the NICA high school racing program gives to parents. While it's true parents are often left at the trailhead, a great number of us volunteer as coaches, which means riding with our kid anywhere from 1 to 4 days a week. I have found no better way to get to know my daughter and build rapport with her ... and anyone with a teenager can appreciate what a blessing this is. (If anybody is curious about what the mountain biking parent/coach experience is like, google "the things they carried biking albertnet.")
4
As co-founder of the Dirt Divas Girls Mountain Bike camps in Vermont, I so appreciate this article. My childhood friend and co-founder Nadine Budbill and I felt the empowerment— the strength and freedom— when we started mountain biking in our early twenties (circa 2000). Such a welcome antidote to the confidence fallout of our middle and high school years. We wanted to share that feeling, even before we had all of the language and research to support our endeavor. Over the years our participants reflected all of the resilience, grit and joy in the article and stories shared. Let's keep raising our daughters to be whole people, not just pretty faces.
8
It's wonderful to see this movement happening in real time and the effects it is having on woman and girls throughout the country. The headline of this article particularly caught my attention because there is a group in the southern half of the US called GRITS (their website can be found here: https://www.gritsouth.com/). Girls Racing In The South is another incredible group of woman who have come together and are passionate about empowering woman and girls through cycling. As GRITS says, "Dirt Don't Hurt". Shred on.
1
In Queens NY we have wonderful mountain biking opportunities at the Cunningham park mountain biking trail.
Also Trips for Kids runs many programs for youngsters
Glad to see this article
Diane
1
Such a great article. My wife and I have ridden mountain bikes regularly for 29+years. Our daughter started riding with us when she was 5 years old. I can’t begin to describe the benefits this sport has given our family. Our daughter is now a college graduate, working in her chosen profession and has incredible amounts of grit and tenacity. Did mountain biking assure her success, no but it went along way to helping her develop life skills that she will carry the rest of her life.
4
This seven decades competitor in both human and internal combustion engines powered sports thinks Ms Peacock ... and every bicycle rider, for that matter ... needs a full face, preferably MIPS equipped ... Multi-directional Impact Protection System ... helmet, not the frou-frou fashion forward headgear she wears in the photo.
All the confidence in the world won't mend a violent head injury or even a disfigured face. Those multicolor, swoopy, vented, 1970's style bike helmets do conjure, appropriately, granola bars and trail mix though headgear technology has gone far beyond the skimpy protection they offer.
Sez this competitor who lost a nephew to a mountain bike accident in which the age twenty fella was wearing an inadequate helmet.
2
Hark, hark! The Ides of March;
Cycling shorts finally starts!
Shred those trails.
1
yes sports that are traditionally for men are grea for women! former rugger here. the mud the blood the beer is on my rugby shirt right now, now sleep shirt because college is over.
do an article on rugby ladies next!
2
These are many of the exact reasons we founded the Arizona Trail Association's Gear Girls program 2 years ago. We have been nothing short of astonished at the rate at which the young women in our program improve their confidence and competence moving quickly back into co-ed adventure setting to become leaders. I have no doubt we will see these young women as the leaders of many industries in the future thanks to the formative experiences that they have had on the bike in our program. Check it out for yourselves! https://aztrail.org/youth/gear-girls/
3
This seven decade competitor in human and internal combustion powered sports thinks Ms Peacock ... and every bicycle rider, for that matter ... needs a full face, preferably MIPS ... Multi-directional Impact Protection System ... helmet. All the confidence in the world won't mend a violent head injury or even a disfigured face. Those multicolor, swoopy, vented, 1970's style bike helmets do conjure, appropriately, granola bars and trail mix though headgear technology has gone far beyond the skimpy protection they offer.
1
My sister was a pioneer in Women’s Mountain Biking back in the 90s. She did the Stillwell Woods Mountain Bike Trail in Syosset, NY religiously and my brother would ride along with her. My brother told funny stories of my sister bypassing men in bikes worth thousands of dollars more than hers and the various slightly injured riders they’d see along the trail. She never really injured herself and just kept at it.
2
I enjoyed riding trails in my twenties. I certainly hope there is a program for my daughter when she gets older.
1
Mountain biking is my favorite sport in the summer and I've been mountain biking with my gal pals for 30 years. But in Montana some mountain bikers have turned anti-wilderness. We have an opportunity right now with the Forest Service to help give some critical wildlife migration corridors connecting Yellowstone National Park with other ecosystems wilderness protection and mountain biking groups are fighting it tooth and nail. We have lots of great trails to ride that aren't in critical wildlife habitat.
4
@nancy Mountain bikers aren't anti-Wilderness. The problem is, Wilderness folks are anti-mountain bike. They treat us the same as dune buggies.
2
I learned MTB about 30 years ago from a "girl", a competitive athlete. While I was sweating my heart out she laughed saying that it was so nice for once not to compete and just take it easy. The fact of her being female has never registered with me at all as being odd.
I am not on the trails as much as I want anymore, but out here in Boston about 30% of riders are women. We use a lot of shared parks and usually find most people get along just fine. Once you are out a bit from the trail head there are usually not that many people anyway (I always wondered, where are they?).
One issue I see is that mountain biking has become VERY technical. 30 years ago you could ride with a hard tail bike on a nice single track. Today the bikes are decked out to the 10th degree and the routes some people ride are just scary. Perhaps that is where the charm of cross-country biking comes in, it is basically what mountain biking used to be.
3
Although it is good for girls and women, and boys and young men, to build self-confidence, mountain-biking is frequently destructive to natural flora and fauna, and the landscape.
If people of all sexes and ages were to gain appreciation for Nature before taking up the adrenaline-charged sport of mountain biking in natural areas, they just might be more thoughtful and less destructive.
2
@nytreader888
Mt. biking is NOT an adrenaline-charged sport. People are riding their bikes, off the road. That's it.
7
@nytreader888. Simply not true. We mountain bikers ride on trails, not off. Horses, powered off road vehicles and hikers who don't stay on trail are the destructive ones. We mountain bikers also work to maintain our trails so they don't deteriorate.
7
I think you've been watching too many Mtn Dew commercials from the '90s. Mountain bikers are ideal stewards of the land & should be encouraged/assisted in their efforts for trail access/maintenance. Sewing division amongst cyclists/hikers/birdwatchers/etc hurts everyone but the logging companies & those looking to develop lands.
7
I started mountain biking at age 30 and it changed my life. To have started younger, I'm certain, would have had immeasurable impact on my self-esteem, confidence, and the adult I am today. Good thing there are camps for big girls, too - VIDA MTB Series, here's looking at you!
I want to echo the comments that note the critical need for greater inclusivity in the mountain biking world, and the importance of making riding accessible to girls/women/nonbinary riders of all socioeconomic and racial backgrounds, not just white folks.
1
I totally support empowering girls (and women/boys/men) through mountain biking and other sports and outdoor activities.
However, I am concerned about an aspect of mountain biking culture that makes it hard, and sometimes impossible, for hikers to coexist with mountain bikers.
This issue is described by long-time mountain biker Mike Curiak in a May 2018 posting on Adventure-Journal.com: "The Culture of Mountain Biking Has Gone Astray."
Mike observes that "We [mountain bike riders] are...:
"Failing to educate new riders on etiquette.
"Failing to criticize the actions of fellow riders.
"Failing to listen when they [fellow riders] criticize us."
The post adds "Ignorance is ruining the trails: Whether we’re actively doing the damage or standing idly by and letting it happen, we’re all to blame."
Mike concludes "I think most of us have been in denial about this wave of change even as it steamrolls our beloved local trails. It’s time to move on to acceptance—recognizing that the problem is real and not going away—so that we might begin to think about and craft a long-term plan. The biggest focus of such a plan would be on education, and specifically on recognizing that just getting people outdoors is no longer enough—you have to prepare them to behave appropriately and respectfully, toward both the land and each other, once out there."
I hope all the commenters here, and the groups they represent, are actively promoting appropriate and mutually respectful trail behavior.
8
As a former Forest Service employee who managed visitors centers in Colorado and Idaho, both places with amazing trails for biking and hiking, I can tell you that I wholeheartedly agree with your comment. There is an.....attitude that many mountain bikers have that is very selfish towards anyone but mountain bikers. However, I have met a few riders who are good ambassadors to the activity, but they were far and few.
Mountain bikers view themselves as the savior of the trails, they believe they are the only group who maintain trails at trail days and that hikers and every other trail user is lazy and not as committed. This attitude needs to change or we will be having more and more negative encounters between riders and other users, especially as our trails become more and more crowded.
I used to mountain bike but found that the trails were not only crowded with bikes but with people not following the rules of the trail: no yielding, not slowing down around corners (especially on multi-use trails) and lastly, being overall not friendly to fellow riders of different skills levels.
One podcast that interested readers might find enlightening is a podcast called "Outside/In" from New Hampshire Public Radio. The episode titled "Rake and Ride" speaks about mountain biking culture.
6
I always find it a little ironic when hikers/runners give no space when passing cyclists on their way to the trailhead. Then complain about how "unsafe" cyclists are on the trails (oftentimes on trails built by cyclists!). SMH
2
@Mal T While I don't agree fully with your comments, there are definitely MTB riders that don't exhibit the trail stewardship, etiquette, and other qualities that make for a good community. With that said, that really emphasizes the importance of these types of your programs including NICA. There is a heavy emphasis on these issues and we really try to instill these values in the kids and make sure they know their behavior and actions reflect on the entire mountain biking community.
1
After 35 years in NYC, I moved to Northern California -yes, to ride Mtn Bikes! And 30yrs later I'm still at it, as are most of my friends. NorCal high school racing is HUGE here, and the girls on the teams would burst out laughing to find that the NY Times has finally identified this "trend". Girls are no different from boys from what I see. Many of my friends have raised female champions. My GF is in her fifties and was on the podium in most her races. I'm a volunteer at the Marin Museum of Bicycling where we just hosted Kate Courtney (23) who recently won a world championship. She too was a NorCal racer from a nearby town.
Cycling often becomes a lifestyle. I have friends in their 80's that ride 3-5 days a week -long rides. My friend's daughter rode her first race at 8. I live in the town some claim was the geographic genesis of mountain biking.
So go to a bike race. Go for a ride. Attend one of the Speaker Series events at the Marin Museum of Bicycling. It's a fellowship of devotees who respect each other, and share the love of nature, challenge, and a day in the saddle. And when you hear tires gaining on the trail behind you, it will likely be a teenage girl who will soon pass you.
14
This study, involving 5 days of a camp with before and after surveys, does not seem worthy of a citation, much less a whole article. Any modality of physical exercise would have been beneficial to the participants, but less destructive to our wild lands.
One of the authors of the study is the co-founder of Dirt Divas, which certainly seems like a free promotion for the business.
3
Bingo. This story was a successful pr project.
@Sunny Day Mountain bikers, on average, are about as "destructive" as the average hiker on foot. They both cause about the same amount of wear and erosion to trails. And it takes 100 hikers, or 100 mountain bikers, to equal the impact of one horse. That's what the only data-based study I've seen demonstrates. The notion that mountain bikers "destroy" is a canard.
4
Out here in New Mexico, where the land is fragile and tire marks can leave its destruction for many months and maybe years, I don't see mountain bikers as part of any problems having "nature pay the price of sport". Most riders, maybe all, stick to their trails that were built or stay on existing dirt roads. They don't go galivanting across the country like ATVers, dirtbike riders, trucks, jeeps. So you comment strikes me as curious. Once in a while, when there's mud, you might see where someone went off the trail a little bit. But often I'll return to see where other people blocked that excursion with sticks, branches, and rocks to discourage use of that impromptu discretion. I'm very proud of our fellow SouthWest MTBers.
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@NMStan
On the other hand, mountain bikers have removed barriers, built jumps, widened trails endlessly, gone around corners too fast such that they destroy native plants. and endanger hikers...not to mention equestrians.
Nice article and feel good story about something positive. We can use more of this. Yes---you could write other articles about different sports that strengthen children, build confidence, etc. Yes---mountain bike riders might get injured. Yes---they probably run over a few insects now and again and break blades of grass. Folks--its just a story about kids having fun and why that's good. I am just amazed at the number of people who can take something positive and react by expressing complaints, hand-wringing about risks, and otherwise finding another excuse to grind their axe. Read the story and smile---something good is happening. Some of you need to read more happy stories (or go ride outside to ride a bike more often and remember what it was like to be 12).
13
Having seen my own daughter blossom as a mountain-bike rider, I thought this article was great. I was a mountain biker early-on in the San Francisco bay area, where it all began, and was privalaged to meet Jacquie Phelan and her WOMBATS (Woman's Mountain-Bike and Tea Society). They used to crank up a mountain (blowing past the likes of me), and have a tea party and fashion show at the top.
14
San Francisco has mountains? Hills maybe.....try Crested Butte Colorado.. THE Birthplace of the sport. However I will give you credit....it was the cali kids who lugged their beach cruzers to the Rockies...and...well...the rest is history.
I've been involved in Scouting for over 30 years, the last 20 in Venturing, the 13-20 coed division. Mountain biking is just one confidence builder that girls participate in. Wall climbing, whitewater rafting, rapelling, backpacking, spelunking, skiing, ATVs, wilderness expeditions, international trips and leadership opportunities at the local, regional and national levels abound. Young women are totally up to the challenge, and alw ays have been.
3
This is just the coolest dang trend! I grew up back when girls were "girly". Then spent many years living in Crested Butte CO where one of the mottoes is: "CB, where men are men and their girlfriends kick their butts." You go, girls!
7
Through the nonprofit "Trips for Kids", I've seen immeasurable benefits to children through biking. Not only does it empower children, it opens up doors to allow them to see the benefits of a bike as a mode of transportation.
2
Any sport can do this, with less risk of injury.
4
@ck Actually mountain biking is a relatively safe sport. I'm assistant coach of a high school team. Our insurance is less expensive than a lot of other sports, and that is due to the facts (of which you are unaware).
The most dangerous of all sports, statistically, in terms of life-altering or -ending injuries, is cheerleading. Cheerleading is more dangerous than motorcycle racing. Look it up.
11
Mountain Biking is like no other sport or outdoor activity I have engaged in. I could write at length of health benefits and joys it has brought me. But above all is the MTB community. I have found it to be very welcoming to people of all ability levels, and there are many different ways to enjoy the sport.
It makes me happy to see people (in this case young women) get exposed to the sport..
Unfortunately, the industry (and community) has historically done a terrible job of projecting itself as a welcoming place for women. It was not long ago that women were often objectified in MTB advertising. And even today, it is the most testosterone-driven parts of the sport that ends up on magazine covers and advertisements.
Which is a shame, because I think the reality on the trail is that the community actually IS quite welcoming and supportive of women. Yes, there will be some dude mansplaining how your gears work... sorry, we are working on that.
I am hopeful that getting more women involved in the sport will change how it gets presented to the public.
I also love this story for selfish reasons: The sport needs more women involved to grow. I was involved in launching a mountain bike club in VA, and it was the involvement of women that really connected us to the wider community.
Of course, we need more of ALL sorts of people. While it is good that MTB is not ALL white men, the rest are mostly white women. But that is another discussion.
11
@JB I started mountain biking in my mid-40s and the incredibly positive community aspect of the sport is something I noticed right away. It's something inherent in the sport - we are in the woods, some distance away from cars, sometimes without cell service. It brings everyone together and triggers our positive basic instincts.
Example: Most mountain bikers say hello to everyone and stop and offer help to anyone who is stopped and might need it. It feels like a big brother/sisterhood. It's wonderful. Mountain bikers generally can't be stuck inside their own heads (like many other trail users) and need to be fully aware of and focused on their surroundings, so this brings that our as well.
I also ride on the road and its striking how different that is. There is less sense of community among roadies in general. It is dramatically more dangerous than mountain biking. Mountain biking can give you scrapes and bruises and maybe a broken bone or two, but that's about it. We don't have 4,000-pound speeding metal objects piloted by people talking on their phones to contend with.
6
Nature should not pay the price for human sport. Woodland trails are for appreciation of nature, not for rampaging through.
Mountain bike racing should only be conducted on man-made courses.
8
@Ron Low
It should definitely be restrained to designated spaces, because it is so difficult to preserve wild or just simply wooded or natural areas. It depends so much on the mentality of the users.
1
@Ron Low - You might consider visiting a well-run multi-use trail system, like the kind we have in my neck of the woods. The trails are harmoniously shared by mountain bikers, hikers, trail runners, and a logging company that sustainably harvests the trees. The trails are assiduously maintained for drainage and erosion control; there is absolutely no litter; criminal elements are displaced; and a community has a resource around which to organize and contribute.
Cycling is also a major part of our local economy, as is outdoor, trail-based recreation more generally.
Your second statement is an odd one. We, the trail users of all kinds, did in fact build the trails. Our recreation happens on "man-made" courses, as you put it. We have a deeply committed relationship to the land where we ride, and we put a lot of time and energy into minimizing the "price" to which you refer. It's a price worth paying, given the many benefits. More concretely: mountain biking has been around for decades, and the science on trail impacts consistently shows that we aren't causing any more damage than the nature-appreciating folks on foot or on horses.
As to the actual article, you're missing the point. Girls and women, who are often underrepresented and/or made to feel unwelcome in outdoor-sports culture, are finding themselves challenged and empowered in the best possible way through mountain biking. Given the obesity epidemic and the many social constraints on girlhood, this is a major win.
14
@Ron Low mountain bikers are appreciating nature... not all mountain biking is racing...
9
A great sport when practiced responsibly, and unfortunately that isn't always the case. Increasingly untracked wilderness is being cut into ever smaller pieces as it is criss crossed with new mountain bike trails. Wildlife pays the price with ever decreasing habitat, and now many mountain bikers are pushing to be allowed into designated Wilderness areas.
Just as dirt bikes and ATVs and oil rigs have a place in our multi use public lands, so too do mountain bikes. Responsibly. Trails created without NEPA studies should be closed until they can be shown not to harm fragile ecosystems and fauna. Oil rigs drill and go away, mountain bikes are forever.
11
@somsai - You say that mountain bikers are "criss crossing" into wilderness in your second sentence and that mountain bikers are not allowed in Wilderness in your third. Which is it?
As we both know, mountain biking is not allowed in designated Wilderness areas--often due to legally hazy language that tries to establish an equivalence between "mechanized" and "motorized" machines. Big difference, in point of fact.
There are two forms of encroachment at work: (1) bikers illegally poaching trails and/or building new ones without any sort of oversight and approval--and I agree with you that this needs to stop; and (2) the weakly argued (but lavishly funded) enlargement of Wilderness zones so as to push certain recreational users out of established--and perfectly sustainable--trails.
You seem to be concerned, as am I, about environmental well-being. That's why your final statement is a bit puzzling. Oil rigs might themselves eventually "go away", but obviously the effects of their end-products' emissions are sticking around to our detriment. Other than a one-time manufacturing process, bicycles do not have these environmental impacts, and their use takes cars, and their pollution, off the streets.
Also, as I pointed out above, mountain bike trails get closed all the time, so how are mountain bikes "forever"?
5
@Scottb
I have never seen a mountain bike trail closed.
In many places, natural areas are getting cut into ever smaller pieces as they are assaulted with an increasing network of new mountain bike trails.
Check our El Grupp (boys and girls, road and mountain biking) in Tucson: https://www.elgrupocycling.org. They do great work.
3
Cycling is a wonderful sport for kids to pickup - both road and mountain biking. As a child growing up in San Jose, CA in the 80s biking my allowed me to explore and gave me freedom away from home life that is seldom available to children now. I think biking is a wonderful activity for boys and girls. However, the organized type of sport that the author writes about has a significant monetary barrier for all but a small percentage of families. Downhill mountain biking requires not only an expensive bike - the cheapest of which will still run close to $1,000, but the added required accessories such as helmet, clipless pedals and shoes, padded cycling clothes, just to name a few run into the hundreds for each item. In essence it's a great idea but akin to saying equestrian riding is a great way to boost girl's confidence – it might be true but would only be remotely possible for only a tiny percentage of kids who might need it.
6
@Sam - Points well-taken, but for folks who are reading this article and some of the comments, and who might be interested in introducing their children to this fine sport, many development programs of this type offer demo bikes and loaners free of charge. Ditto for helmets and other basic riding gear.
I wish the article had touched on the issue of monetary barriers to participation. That said, there is a robust market in used bikes and gear on Craigslist and in other public forums. If you live near a town or city with a substantial cycling culture you can almost always find good deals. Also, if you show up at any beginner-friendly "no-drop" group ride (where nobody is left behind), you will likely find that more experienced riders are happy to share their knowledge and recommendations with you.
2
@Sam and others, please follow the National Interscholastic Cycling Association link in the article. Scholarships and sponsor discounts are available for those who can't afford bikes/entry fees. As a former team coach (before I moved), we did everything we could to give the kids the opportunity to learn to ride. Our NICA NJ events are on courses that do not require equipment beyond a bike and helmet.
3
@Sam
Honestly, that's a gross exaggeration of the costs involved in riding. With little effort, you can find great deals on new equipment, and used equipment is a great way to go. I buy a lot of lightly-used stuff for well less than half of retail.
1
As a former competitive road and mountain cyclist who got to know some incredibly tough women, I couldn't agree more. Competitive cycling is a uniquely grueling and dangerous sport that imparts valuable life lessons in resilience, determination and self-confidence. But cycling is also very expensive and equipment intensive. A more accessible alternative where I see young women making headway in a tough, traditionally male-dominated sport is—wait for it—skateboarding, which will be an Olympic sport in 2020. Learning those tricks takes countless hours of practice, and all that falling definitely teaches perseverance! (People tend to sneer at skateboarders, but I love the way they interact with the urban environment—it is the most “architectural” of all the sports—and I’d rather see kids running around with skinned knees and the occasional broken bone than sitting in front of a computer screen all day getting soft.
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@Aaron
Skateboarders have been a creative bunch, taking hold of their habitat and turning it into their environmental challenge.
2
@Aaron - Also interesting is how skateboarding and cycling--especially BMX and mountain biking (also both Olympic sports), often cross-pollinate. The creative use of the built environment is important to BMX street riders as well as to skaters. As somebody who grew up obsessively doing both activities, I couldn't be more grateful for those formative childhood experiences. Resilience, determination, and self-confidence are certainly all things I earned through those efforts.
2
Definitely one of the most formative and important experiences in my early life was riding my bike throughout the rolling farm fields and neighboring communities around my home in southern Wisconsin. My parents were each dealing with marital issues stemming from substance abuse. My bike saved my sanity. I could disappear for hours, work out my angst, and build confidence by venturing miles away beginning at age 13. After long summer days of rides and adventure, I returned to school each fall fitter and stronger. Now, in my mid-40s, I still ride. And I'm on no prescription meds. Huzzah.
12
Mountain biking is just mountain biking. If it builds grit then it builds grit for mountain biking. Period.
3
@Bhj Do you know this from experience or are you just making assumptions that the skills and lessons don't translate?
4
@Bhj - Circular statements aren't really very effective as arguments.
The article is precisely about the beneficial developmental effects of mountain biking *outside* of the activity itself. That's why the study cited was looking at whether the confidence and resilience gained was still in evidence after the challenging rides. It was.
3
@Bhj I find many life-lessons in mountain biking for all genders. Focus on where you want to go, not what you're trying to avoid. If you find yourself in a rough spot, keep your momentum going and ride through it and regain control when it gets easier. I can learn something every day and if you're willing to learn you can improve. Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go. And Lil' Wayne's "They can't stop me! Even if they've stopped me!" Etc, etc. Period.
5
Bicycling, whether riding around the driveway, to and from school, or participating in an organized program, is an incredible tool to level the playing fields of race, gender, and ability! I have overseen programs during and after school, in which students of all abilities and backgrounds, learn to ride together. Adapted Physical Education is physical education which has been adapted or modified, so that it is as appropriate for the person with a disability as it is for a person without a disability. “Special Olympics Project UNIFY® provides opportunities for young people of all abilities to be leaders in their schools and communities by promoting equality and acceptance. These leadership activities help students with and without intellectual disabilities find their voices by teaching them to become change agents striving for respect and inclusion.” Bicycling is a natural means to this end. Girls Racing Mountain Bikes, Cyclocross, BMX or their best friend around the playground does encourage strength and build confidence! Check out Trips for Kids, NICA, or Specialized Foundation's Riding for Focus program. Inclusive sports provide youth with and without intellectual disabilities the opportunity to train and play together as teammates. They develop exceptional athletic skills while forming friendships, fostering respect for each other, and becoming leaders in and out of school.
5
...and I forgot to add the Little Bellas program by Sabra Davison!
4
I'm a hardcore mountain biker currently camping in AZ to ride. Yesterday I had the pleasure of a gnarly group ride with several excellent female riders. The group is actively engaged in intraducing youngsters to the sport. My son was heavily into team sports from elementary school through high school but he too has discovered that mountain biking is the antedote to the overhyped team sports that spit out kids from doing what the coach wants to becoming an out of shape couch potato which the only exercise being finding the TV remote or game controller.
What mountain biking requires is access to nature. Some places are building trails at an astonishing rate , think Sedona, which keeps getting better and better. The coasts are doing it a bit. The payout will be happier and healthier citizens.
The vast sums of money spent in places like Sacramento to accommodate a few guys bouncing a ball in front of a huge crowd is totally useless in comparison.
8
I've mountain biked since 1989 (before clipless pedals and suspension),been a NICA coach in the PA league for the last 3 years, and have volunteered countless hours with Philadelphia trail advocacy groups. I also run a middle school program thanks to the Specialized Foundation and have witnessed first hand the positive affects of cycling on students' academic, health and social well-being.
Cycling is unique in that unlike running or other traditional sports, any body can do it for the time and intensity requisite to affect change.
I've read so many misinformed and disappointing comments on this thread. It amazes me that people will find fault with the idea of girls supporting each other in a challenging activity that takes them outdoors, gives them confidence, and encourages positive social interaction.
I wish that I'd had mountain biking in high school and am so proud of the girls I've coached who have gained confidence and skills.
For a glimpse into what GRiT is all about, check out the video from our girls' mountain bike camps. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=T7zQ8kiYagY&disable_polymer=true
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Hi, Asst Coach NICA-affiliated school team here. We have over 30 student athletes on our team, middle school through high school. Not only is mtn bike riding great for females, it is also great for males who maybe haven't found their sport yet or for whom the mainstream sports don't work, for whatever reason. Another wonderful eye opener for me has been the incredible mtn biking community from all over our state that get together every other weekend during the season. Just incredibly supportive of the student athletes like nothing I have ever seen with other sports. This last season at every meet there were over 900 riders (about 2:1 male:female), many schools across the state represented. And NICA does stess trail ethics and giving back to the public lands in the form of trail stewardship/maintenance activities. This is part of the educational mission. And yes, the bikers far outnumber hikers/horseriders/motorcyclists at the trail maintenance gatherings. It's just part of the expected behavior from this community. It is regrettable that some bikers have earned disdain from hikers due to their riding; that is not most riders though. Some hikers have long had negative attitudes about bikers, and their feelings wont change. But most hikers and bikers get along and accommodate each other just fine. (My observations from over 20 years riding and hiking the great trails in our area; you own them too.) It's a great sport and helps people get together and get active.
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@WO
Great input!
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In Sacramento we also have Cycling Development and the NORCAL High School Mountain Bike League, with many volunteers who lead rides to encourage girls to ride bikes, and who conduct clinics on bike maintenance, safety and bike handling skills. And coaches certified by the National Interscholastic Cycling Association (NICA).
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I love to MTB. I moved to NC partly because of the sport. I am so pleased to read that it is gaining steam with the youth, particularly with girls! This is a sport that I see riders from ages 5-70 engage in. Wow!
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The fact that one commenter has described the downsides and dangers of mountain biking for decades does not mean his criticisms and observations are wrong.
Yes, of course, there have been mountain biking deaths and injuries--so have there been in other sports.
The big question is whether the incidence of mountain biking deaths and injuries is higher or lower than in other outdoor sports--can anyone out there can cite solid research (scientific studies, not anecdotal accounts) about this?
This brings to mind the current flap over concussions in pre-college and college football; parents need to ask themselves what level of risk they are willing for their children to take, and whether there are less dangerous sports to encourage for children of any gender.
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@Mal T For recreational purposes, I feel much safer on the trail than I do on Austin roads these days. (Racing, of course, is a different beast but it's hard for me to imagine it is less safe than road racing.)
@Astra I used to have a road bike decades ago but gave it up when traffic (and drivers) became so dangerous that biking became high-risk recretation and sport.
I don't think you need a race. Individual endurance sports are underrated. You can build confidence by simply competing with your own goal. Hiking/backpacking are the first things that comes to mind. You can easily find a few thousand feet of elevation without traveling to the Rocky Mountains. Blackhead Mountain in the Catskills comes to mind.
On a hot day, there are times when you feel like you'll never reach the ridge line. It just goes on and on. You put one foot in the front of the other and try to focus on your breathing. Then, suddenly, you're there. You have a beautiful little ridge line to walk for the rest of the day. All day. Your only practical option is walk the full thing and catch a ride on the other side. Otherwise, you're backtracking. Better get moving. You don't want to come down the ridge in the dark.
We might talk about things like road biking or running or even rock climbing. Although, rock climbing isn't strictly speaking a solo sport. You'll usually want at least one partner if only to belay/spot. That said, I spent plenty of time climbing trees by myself. If you're more of speed junky, skiing works well too. You can lap the mountain all day. Skiing alone, you get more runs in and you choose your own difficulty to suit your mood. Speed skating is another good option if you live in the flats. You don't need compete to enjoy it.
I'm sure there are other examples. Point being: Not everything has to be a team sport. The issue is gender neutral as well.
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Do not get me wrong, I'm all for ways to build confidence and resilience and strength, in girls and boys. But mountain biking, as with other sports, comes with the risk of concussions, ligament tears, fractures. Is the cost of empowerment a traumatic brain injury or a plate and screws in the foot? I should add, that I am a mountain biker, enjoy the challenges and the escape and the exhilaration, but not sure if is a means to a deep, abiding sense of self-confidence in all facets of life but for the sport itself.
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@rpmars Only if you send your child on a trail that is clearly above their skill level. There are trails for all riders. A little common sense goes a long way.
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@rpmars
Every sport in existence comes with a risk of injury. Driving in your car comes with an even higher risk. Honestly, what is your point?
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Introducing children to mountain biking is CRIMINAL. Mountain biking, besides being expensive and very environmentally destructive, is extremely dangerous. Recently a 12-year-old girl DIED during her very first mountain biking lesson! Another became quadriplegic at 13! Serious accidents and even deaths are commonplace. Truth be told, mountain bikers want to introduce kids to mountain biking because (1) they want more people to help them lobby to open our precious natural areas to mountain biking and (2) children are too naive to understand and object to this activity. For 600+ examples of serious accidents and deaths caused by mountain biking, see http://mjvande.info/mtb_dangerous.htm.
Bicycles should not be allowed in any natural area. They are inanimate objects and have no rights. There is also no right to mountain bike. That was settled in federal court in 1996: http://mjvande.info/mtb10.htm . It's dishonest of mountain bikers to say that they don't have access to trails closed to bikes. They have EXACTLY the same access as everyone else -- ON FOOT! Why isn't that good enough for mountain bikers? They are all capable of walking....
A favorite myth of mountain bikers is that mountain biking is no more harmful to wildlife, people, and the environment than hiking, and that science supports that view. Of course, it's not true.
For more information: http://mjvande.info/mtbfaq.htm .
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@Mike Vandeman
For those unfamiliar with Mr. Vandeman, he has been arguing for decades against mountain biking. I remember him posting endlessly to mt biking internet forums in the 90's. Take what he says with a grain of salt.
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@Mike Vandeman
Jeez Mike. Get off their cloud. MTB is more safe than road biking. No cars. As far as natural areas, MTB helps to preserve those areas much like hunting does. There are always critics, but in this case you really have a negative attitude with something that's very special to many people.
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Yawn. @Mike Vandeman You driving your car to the trailhead causes more environmental damage than my biking there. getting in your car each morning is criminal.
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NICA is awesome and amazing. For girls who want mud and challenge within cheering distance of grandma and grandpa who come to support her, consider cyclocross. Competed in parks all across the country, there's PLENTY of mud, PLENTY of challenge. Baltimore Youth Cycling, the team my son is on, had one girl finish her race at Cyclocross National Championships in Louisville this past December with one shoe one. You want mud? You want snow? You want grit? Go see a cyclocross race! The racing season starts in late August.
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While I don't have daughters, I grew up with strong women, my mother, my wife, my mother-in-law and as a rule, I think they are wonderful, a major asset to society.
My wife is an executive, and speaks truth to power every day, she trained in karate, but she knits (brilliantly), does needlepoint, and is a sucker for anything on four paws.
Courage and determination and mental toughness aren't gender-based, they are both inherent and taught by example.
I hope this isn't corny but I loved the little girl's tee-shirt that read: "I'm not a princess, I'm a KHALEESI!"
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It’s all fun until she crashes. An ex-wife of mine has an impressive and creepy scar where her collar bone was replaced by a steel rod after a mountain bike disaster.
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I've been mountain biking for a very long time and I have way more "creepy scars" from other things. If proper care is taken, lessons given, riders are able to evaluate the risks associated with trails. Sure, we crash, but that old getting back up on the horse thing is pretty important.
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@D Priest
I just came back from bringing one of our cats the to vet. The young vet who took care of him has scars up and down her arms and hands, from scratches and bites, far more than I have from my days working in the trades, and I have a bunch. She even got tattoos to cover some of the worst and ugliest.
So should she stop being a vet because of some creepy scars? I don't think so, and she certainly doesn't!
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@Lacy So you have been mountain biking for a very long time. Do really believe that kids have the smarts and experience that you do to evaluate the risks associated with trails?
Very good article, but.... I know roughly 50 women who mountain bike, and race. If you add in road racing, triathlon, running, XC skiing, etc., it’s probably more like 150. This is a very appropriate article for people who live in Manhattan between Battery Park and 86th Street, but in the rest of the universe (also known as “the real world”) it’s not news.
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"“Girls, at large, experience so much hesitancy and a normative drop in confidence over the middle school and high school years,” said Andrea Bastiani Archibald, a developmental psychologist and the chief girl and family engagement officer for Girl Scouts of the USA. The organization has worked to counter the cratering of confidence that can occur during the teen years in part by sending girls out into the woods to do things like mountain biking. In the period where most girls are experiencing a confidence drop, “our girls actually experience a confidence boost,” says Dr. Bastiani Archibald."
How about we boost confidence in girls by having the boys and men not drag them down, not belittle them and objectify them, not demean them, not drool over and yet frown at their developing bodies, and just generally not treating them like second-class citizens? My memory of middle school is all too fresh. My "cratering" self-confidence wasn't my fault, and forcing me to ride a bike through the mud wouldn't have helped. Tell my male teachers to stop staring at my breasts and I'd have felt lots better.
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I see so many excited and happy younger girls who lose their confidence as they become preteens with so much emphasis on appearance and beauty. I hope biking or other outdoor activities with a challenge will help.
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As a 65-year-old lifetime rider, both on and off-road, I love hearing stories about how the bicycle has formed and transformed someone's life. I am an absolute sucker for a story about a formerly 400 lb. person who changed their life when they started riding. Same goes for drug addicts, convicts, etc.
Kids on bikes is probably my biggest weakness. A bike can open up a whole new world for a kid, helping develop independence, responsibility, grit, and persistence. And hey, it's fun!
And yes, I realize that a bike won't benefit every kid, as every kid is different and kids are motivated in different ways. I do see bikes as one tool among many to help develop a child into a well-rounded adult.
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@Dan Murphy Mountain biking saved my son from the living hell of high school years, period. Yes, it's dangerous, but so isn't the drunken pre-frat boy football squad jocks and the dope head lifestyle. He didn't fit in with that group as much as he didn't fit in with the geeks. Luckily he was saved by finding a small cohort who loved mountain biking and spent their weekends and after school time trail building and riding. Then he got me into it in my 50's and I haven't looked back. The entry barrier for equipment is rather high, but a 10 minute drive and $5 parking pass puts us at some of the best trails around. If we had a daughter, I'd hope she would be into the sport just as much.
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I wish that Shilton’s story about empowering girls through mountain biking had included the wonderful work being done by Heather Russell in western Colorado with her non-profit, Sacred Cycle. This may be the healthiest way for sexual abuse victims to recover, psychologically and physically.
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Sadly, it's gotten to a point that the simple act of riding a bike has become a gender issue and is "empowering for girls" and helps with "beauty standards."
Let's just say that exercise and activities can build confidence in all children- female and male.
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@Gofry - Nobody, including the author of the argument, is in disagreement with your second point. But can you really not see that women and girls have been underrepresented and/or made to feel uncomfortable in certain sporting cultures? Reaching out to those aspiring athletes and helping to address the gender imbalance seems to me a worthy undertaking.
The "simple act of riding a bike" might be more complicated than you think.
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Excellent piece in something the cycling community has known for a while. Now: let’s get a diversity girls from low-resource communities on bikes, too.
I learned mountain biking at 50 after years of road riding. On the road or on the trail, I often prefer riding w women. More fun, more encouragement, less of the subtle and not-so-subtle one-upping. (I also ride with many men who are great company, too. They’re hard to find.)
I also appreciate the women and girls who are fiercely competitive. I just can’t keep up with them. And even they, generally, are much more inclusive and open.
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This family lives next door to us and I can attest to Annika being both a competitive athlete and petite(and a musician, dancer and top student AND cat sitter extraordinaire!).
Just getting up our hill to our homes is a challenge and Annika does it all the time. I use an ebike😜!
Love the theme of the piece about grabbing back the self confidence for girls. We are critical to the planet,animals and peace.
Keep on riding ALL!
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Any sport, not just mountain biking, is empowering for girls and women.
By the way, any experienced hiker knows to stay as far away as possible from the trails used by mountain bikers, many of whom, to put it nicely, lack basic courtesy training.
Then there are those torn-up and eroded trails that have been pummeled by mountain bikes--unsightly and no fun to hike.
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@Mal T
Different activities work for different kids, be it cycling or playing the clarinet. Whatever works. The topic of this article is about bikes.
Is there the occasional discourteous rider? In this imperfect world, of course there is. As a hiker, I've seen some pretty obnoxious hikers, too, and I'll call them out.
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@Mal T your misinformed hit post holds no credibility but nice try. My daughter is a Teen Trail Corp Captain who personally put in 30 hours of trail stewardship this past year. Our interscholastic mountain bike team collectively did 400+ hours of trail stewardship. Most days we were working on making trails better and reducing erosion their are no hikers or horse riders to be found. That's okay. Mountain bikers don't try and formulate fake hostility among trail users; we just do out job making better trail systems. Your thinking I'd archaic and thank god there is a whole new generation of trail users, including g awesome teenage female rippers, that don't seek to divide as you just did. Hope to see you out enjoying the trails, but better yet, instead of hit posts why not take the mountain bikers lead and be a steward of public land and help improve your local trail system.
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@Dan Murphy I've never been run off a hiking trail by another hiker or group of hikers but I have been run off many hiking trails by lone or group mountain bikers. I would be interested in seeing links to training materials for mountain bikers related to rules of the road and courtesy to others, especially hikers.
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You can achieve the same result running cross country or riding horses. Glad some girls enjoy off road riding, but I've seen alot of erosion occur because of riders who feel they should be able to go wherever they want. Same for trails that are supposed to be "shared" by hikers and bikers. Unless the bikers learn how to share/courtesy early on, hikers are at risk. They're usually expected to get out of the way.
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@garnet Studies show that horses cause more trail erosion than mountain bikes. Mountain bikes are more comparable to hiking in terms of trail wear and tear. Also there are many active volunteer mountain bike trail maintenance groups across the country.
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A used mountain bike is maybe $50 here in Boise, one of the country’s epicenters of mountain biking. How much is horse riding? My husband is an avid mountain biker and has been for 30 years. He is the most successful, grittiest, most forward-looking person I know. Highly highly recommend this sport for girls. Well written article and once again grateful to the Times for reporting on something focused outside of NY.
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@garnet Please, this is a tired old argument that bikes create more erosion than horses. Deep hoove prints and piles of excrement are worse for trails than mountain bikes. The article is about empowering girls.
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We are so excited to see more articles like this that share how cycling empowers girls. Our national organization, Trips for Kids, has been using a bicycle as a tool for success for the past 30 years though-out our network of chapters.
We are proud to see the number of girls riding in our programs and wrenching in our Earn-a-Bike Workshops increasing each year. Our organization is honored to be part of a community that seeks to break down gender barriers with many of our chapters also being led by women. Ride on young ladies! The future is yours.
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Bicycles are a powerful tool that inherently teach us how to use ourselves, and move forward. Often I feel adults underestimate the need young people have for self determination.
I’ve seen on the trail and on city streets, young people willing and able use this vehicle with responsibility and perseverance.
Our work at the Charlotte Recyclery believes it is important to grow access to bicycles and opportunities to ride. Why? A participant from our Earn-a-Bike says “because when I ride I felt free.”
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I’m 37 and started mountain biking last year. I had always wanted to but growing up in Illinois, not many mountains to ride on. I did play a lot of sports and played “MacGyver” a lot. I think those experiences at a young age made being a woman engineer a lot easier
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At Trips for Kids Marin in San Rafael, CA, we’ve been getting girls on mtn bikes for 30 years, and the joy of their accomplishment when tackling a hill or mastering a riding skill has been consistent throughout the years. As an adult learning technical mtn bike skills over 15 years ago, I got frustrated trying to muscle along with the predominantly male riding peers around me, and loved it when I discovered female-led and female-only riding clinics. My confidence blossomed, my enjoyment of riding increased immensely, and my technique became masterful. TFK Marin introduced a “Learn It, Fix It, Shred It” riding and basic bike mechanics clinic for northern CA Girl Scouts in 2017 and have been producing more confident young female riders from every one!
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I am so excited to be a mentor this year with the Little Bella's. I think it's going to be a great summer
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I love this article and would note that mountain biking is also great for building (or rebuilding) confidence for adult women too!
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I’m a 54yo man and avid mountain biker with a daughter who’s just about to turn 10. She has been involved in little Bella’s for the last three years. The effect that mountain biking has on her self esteem is profound. The little Bella’s organization is absolutely tops at what they do. The women involved in this sport at the top levels are absolutely the best female role models that I’ve seen for little girls to look up to. People like Rachel Atherton, Micayla Gatto, Tahnee Seagrave, Kate Courtney, and many many more are all excellent examples of self empowered women leading incredible lives doing positive things. I really can’t say enough good things about the sport of mountain biking. The only drawback to some people is the risk of orthopedic injury. (Yeah if you ride long enough hard enough you’re gonna get hurt) My daughter has a picture on her wall of herself with a bloody face that she got after faceplanting on the trail. She’s so proud of that picture because she rode herself out of the woods that day. True beauty, true grit.
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