Women & Bicycles 2017

Broken Spoke, in collaboration with the Adventure Syndicate, are proud to announce the return of…

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SATURDAY 4TH & sunday 5th march

EAST OXFORD COMMUNITY CENTRE, Oxford, OX4 1DD

Building on the success of last year, we are back with a TWO-DAY FESTIVAL to celebrate the many wonderful ways in which women and bicycles are changing the world! This will be the largest event of its kind the UK has ever seen.

With a glittering cast of speakers, including cycling celebrities and up-and-coming heroes, practical workshops to help women overcome the many and various barriers that might be keeping them from getting on their bikes, guided rides for all levels, delicious food, a chance to try out clothing and accessories especially designed for women, and meet new friends and riding buddies.

This years themes include: family cycling, fitting bodies to bikes, going on crazy adventures and making space for women in cycling. A highlight of the weekend will be Saturday’s keynote lecture by endurance junkie Rickie Cotter, an “utterly gobsmackingly infectiously hilarious” speaker whose races and adventures have taken her all over the world.

Whether you’re a seasoned cycling pro or nervous novice there’s something for you. So come and celebrate the power and potential of Women & Bicycles!

Weekend & day tickets are available now

Weekend early bird tickets £35.00 *SOLD OUT*

Weekend regular tickets £45.00 *SOLD OUT*

Saturday tickets £25.00 *SOLD OUT*

Sunday tickets £25.00 *SOLD OUT*

Workshare tickets FREE (see below for details) *SOLD OUT*

Something special’s happening in the world of women’s cycling. I’ve been to a few of these gatherings, and the atmosphere is electric – people are really excited to be in the same room together, and to see what a powerful and vibrant scene they’re part of. This event will be the biggest and best yet – we have some incredible people on board.”

Emily Chappell, director of the Adventure Syndicate

Keep up to date with all the latest on Facebook, Twitter and our newsletter

WHAT'S ON

Check out the full programme here! It includes delights like:

WORKSHOPS:

  • Yoga & body care for cyclists
  • Preparing for a long distance ride
  • Fix a flat
  • Cafe ‘over-share’ – a space to ask the experts…anything!

PANEL DISCUSSIONS:

  • Making space for women in cycling
  • Going places by bike
  • Family cycling
  • Making the North Coast 500 happen

GUIDED RIDES:

  • Road rides for all levels with local female-friendly cycling clubs the Cowley Road Condors and Isis Cyclists
  • Off road riding with Lee Craigie
  • Feminist history cycle tour
  • Cycle training sessions for first-timers and ‘not-for-a-long-timers’

Plus delicious lunches, brunches, dinners, cakes and coffees; a lovely social on Saturday night

GUEST SPEAKERS

We are ridiculously excited about the women we’re bringing together for this years festival. Whether you have heard of them or not, each has contributed something unique to the bike scene and has something important to say about it. Check out the full cast of female dynamos here, the line up includes:

WHY WOMEN & BICYCLES?

Women & Bicycles is open to everyone but we think it’s important for this festival to be organised, run, and about people who identify as women. The festival aims to create a space where we can all learn, teach, socialise, get greasy hands (if we want to), eat tasty food, hang out, laugh, help each other, high five, ask for help, make friends.

We believe that it is important to actively create spaces for women to do this, as it encourages women and trans folk to participate in the wider cycling community. Often growing up, women aren’t visible in many cycling spaces, and aren’t given access to knowledge about bikes, fixing things, getting their hands dirty, and the physical endurance of cycling. When most people working in the cycling industry are men there is a kind of hierarchy of knowledge, where the men fix the bikes, arrange the events, and then take part in the events. This primacy of cis-men in bike spaces can often discourage women and trans folk from participating because they think that its not ‘for them’. This is a shame because riding and fixing bikes are massively freeing activities, we want to share the profound impact that participating in them has had on our lives with other women and trans people.

Women & Bicycles aims to showcase the variety of wonderful things that women can do – and are doing – in the cycling world, and inspire other women and trans folk to get involved. We invite everyone to be a part of making this change.

I'M NOT A 'CYCLIST', IS THIS FOR ME?

Yes, absolutely! We especially want women who don’t think of themselves as ‘cyclists’ or who have never had the opportunity to try cycling to come along see what the fuss is all about (and hopefully gain some skills, strategies and motivation to get out and ride).

WHO ARE THE ADVENTURE SYNDICATE?

They may sound like a team of secret assassins and they are actually just as kick-arse – mind you with a lot less violence. The Adventure Syndicate is a collective of extraordinary cyclists who happen to be women and who aim to challenge what others think they are capable of.

Between them are champions, record-holders, award-winners, athletes, adventurers and explorers. They are also speakers, authors, teachers and learners – passionate about sharing their adventures with other people and inspiring them to set out on their own. But inspiration is only the first step. What sets the Adventure Syndicate apart is a commitment to encourage and enable women – and everyone else – to identify their ambitions, overcome the obstacles that stand in their way, and make the most of their talent and potential.

You can see that we are extremely happy to be working with them, right?!

HOW DO I SIGN UP FOR RIDES & WORKSHOPS?

Spaces on some of our rides and workshops are limited, check out the full programme to see which ones require registration. Online registrations are now closed, you can sign up for any remaining spaces at the event.

Important infos about the rides and workshops can be found here.

ABOUT THE VENUE

East Oxford Community Centre will play host to Women & Bicycles, it’s a beautiful building and a hub for the vibrant community of east Oxford.

All rooms in the venue are wheelchair accessible. A lift is available, but please note it is not suitable for larger chairs. Please notify us should you only have a large mobility chair and we can arrange to have a smaller chair available to move to the upper floor. There are 2 disabled parking spaces on the street, but please note these are not exclusively for the community centre.

HOW TO GET THERE

East Oxford Community Centre is a twenty minute walk from Oxford city centre, and many bus services stop nearby on the Cowley Road (city 5 from the railway station). The best way to get there is, of course, by bike.

If you’re coming from the big smoke (London) there are two super regular bus services which take approx 120 minutes: X90 & Oxford Tube (they take up to 3 bikes). There are two train services each takes approx 1 hour: Paddington to Oxford Station (city center) and Maryleborne to Oxford Parkway (25 min bus ride from the city centre, bus number 2) both require advanced booking for bike spaces.

There is very limited car parking available in east Oxford. If you’re driving to Oxford, we recommend parking in one of the park & rides on the outskirts of the city and getting a bus to Cowley Road. Bike parking at the venue is also limited to 6 Sheffield stands so you may want to lock up a few minutes walk away.

WHAT IS WORK-SHARE?

We are offering ten tickets for FREE in exchange for helping us run this event. We’re calling these ‘work-share’ tickets and we want to offer them to people who really want to contribute to making this the most amazing event it can be. We would also like to earmark these tickets for those who would find it difficult to pay the ticket price otherwise. In exchange for half a day of work on either Saturday or Sunday, you will receive a weekend pass. We are going to rely on our work-share volunteers to make sure the event runs smoothly. There is a sample list of work-share jobs below. If you have any questions about this ticket or whether or not this category applies to you, please feel free to contact us.

  • making tea and coffee (Saturday and Sunday)
  • serving lunch and dinner (Saturday lunchtime and dinnertime)
  • clearing and washing dishes (after lunch and dinner on Saturday)
  • helping set-up and décor (early Saturday morning)
  • tear-down (Sunday late afternoon)
  • photography support (Saturday and Sunday day-of)
  • tech support [audio-visual] (Saturday and early Sunday afternoon)
CAN I BRING MY KIDS?

Yes! We are so keen on getting younger cyclists involved that we have themed the Sunday panel around family cycling. For boring legal reasons, we ask for all children under the age of 18 to be accompanied by a guardian. The content of the event is probably more suitable for children 12+ but we have set no age limit. We are not going to be providing substantial support to guardians for childcare or childminding so we ask families with younger children to use their judgment when determining if their child is capable of participating in all or part of the event. There will be a quite space you can retreat to during plenary session if you need it. We are not offering full cycle training support so we ask that if you would like your child to participate in cycling events that they be familiar and comfortable with cycling before the event.

I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS...

What does my ticket cover?

Your ticket gives you access to the event for the whole weekend, or for the day if you get a Saturday or Sunday ticket, including entry to the Saturday evening social (you have to buy your own drinks though). It also covers food. On Saturday we will serve lunch, dinner and plenty of tea and cake, on Sunday we will serve a hearty brunch (after the bike rides) and afternoon tea (before we go our separate ways).

Will you be taking photos?

We will be taking photos at the event. We will always ask your permission before taking a photo of you alone or in small groups. If you don’t want to be in wider shots, please let us know and we’ll try to keep you out of the frame. Photographs may be used as future promotional material by the Broken Spoke and the Adventure Syndicate in our work to engage women in cycling.

Can I take photos?

Yes, if you ask people’s permission before photographing them and make it clear what you intend to use the photographs for.

Are concession tickets available?

‘Work-share’ tickets are available for free in exchange for your help as a volunteer at the festival. For more information, please send us a message.

If I am unable to make the event can I get a refund on my entry fee?

Yes, but only if we are able to re-sell your ticket. Click here to send us a message for details.

If I am unable to attend all of the event can I share my ticket?

Tickets apply to the named attendee only, you can transfer your ticket to someone else if you can no longer come at all but you must let us know the name of the new attendee in advance.

Are all financial transactions secure?

We use Eventbrite’s secure system for all transactions.

Do you cater for food allergies and food intolerances?

All food will be vegetarian. If you have any other dietary requirements, let us know and we’ll try to accommodate you, click here to send us a message.

Am I able to take my own food and drink to the event?

We’d rather you didn’t as we will be catering for the number for of people who buy tickets but we understand that some folks prefer to self-cater and we won’t hold it against ya 😉

Will there be alcohol at the event?

There will be a bar open during the Saturday night social, please bring cash if you fancy joining us for a bevvy. Please do not bring your own alcohol because the venue’s rules prohibit it. Outside of the social there will be alcohol on site.

Can I come along for part of each day?

Yes, but you’ll need a full weekend ticket, or a full day ticket for each day you want to attend.

What do I need to bring along with me for either the Saturday or Sunday sessions?

You need a working bike and suitable clothing if you want to go on the Sunday rides. Bring comfortable/ stretchy clothing if you want to take part in the yoga sessions (mats will be provided).

Are there bikes available to ride for the Sunday morning bike rides?

No, we unfortunately don’t have bikes to rent or borrow. But you can get in touch with our friends over at Cycle.land who run an ‘AirBnB for Bikes’. You can rent a local person’s bike online. If you’re coming from out of town, you might want to book one in advance. Otherwise, you can usually bring a bike on the buses from London or on various train services (note that First Great Western now require you to book your bike on).

Tell me more about the Sunday bike rides.

All rides will be guided by experienced cyclists and will vary in length and pace from gentle and short to long(ish) and hard(ish), you will get a chance to hear about the rides and decide which is right for you on Saturday. Rides will depart from the East Oxford Community Centre. Mechanics and first aiders will be on hand to help with mishaps but please check your bike is in working order before the weekend. You should wear clothing that you’re comfortable cycling in. This doesn’t have to be specialised cycling kit (but if you’ve got it then wear it). It’s a good idea to bring things which will keep you warm and dry (i.e. waterproofs and layers), water, a spare tube and some food. We will have brunch when we get back but make sure you eat something before you go.

What happens if I arrive late to the event?

If you turn up late make sure you register at the front door, and come and join the fun!

How are the proceeds from the ticket sales distributed?

We aim to put all of the proceeds into putting on the event (i.e. we want to break even). In the unlikely event of a surplus, we will put the additional funds towards covering the massive amount of time donated by the women of Broken Spoke and the Adventure Syndicate in order to help continue both organisations’ work to promote cycling for women.

How is the attendee data used?

We will use the data to analyse the impact of the event i.e. has it had the transformative impact we hope it will? We may also use it to promote future events and access funding.

If I am not able to commit to attending the event now, how can I be kept up to date with what you’re up to?

Sign up to the Broken Spoke’s newsletter and the Adventure Syndicate’s newsletter to be kept up-to-date with news about the event and much more!

I STILL HAVE A QUESTION!
Send us a message:

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