THE ANSWERS: WHAT WE’VE LEARNT

More women are now riding than ever, helped into the sport by the growth in female-only events, provision and availability of better kit and bikes, and simply seeing more women out riding. Social media has now made them more visible too, as well as highlighting awesome women not just racing but out having fun on their bikes or getting out on achievable adventures, doing things that everyone can aspire to.

Hotspots like the Tweed Valley and the Forest of

Dean are leading the way, with large communities of female riders. These in turn attract more women to get involved as they see how welcoming the sport can be at its best. The younger riders are the most positive here, suggesting things really have changed in terms of equality and opportunity for young women.

It’s important to recognise and celebrate these successes, but it’s not all good news – longtermers talk of how many things haven’t changed and that everyday sexism while out riding and in the industry still exists. There’s not really any excuse for this to be happening in the 21st century.

Brands can do more to help, showcasing successful women so younger girls have relatable role models and see that opportunities really do exist for them – especially in ‘men’s jobs’ like mechanics or guides.

If you can see it, you can be it.

Women need equal pay, proper maternity pay and leave and flexible working options to attract more women to higher-level roles. There needs to be a greater representation of women in the mountain bike media too – on the ground, we’re seeing more women riding across all disciplines and facets of the sport, now is the time to portray this.

There’s a place for women-only events, but it’s also important this doesn’t become the only way for women to ride and we create segregation, so a focus on showing both male and female riders together in the media is also essential.

All the women who had positive experiences had great support networks, so regardless of gender we all need to encourage others into the sport. We need to recognise the relative strengths and weaknesses of both men and women and learn from each other, rather than looking at them as ways to make judgements.

Of course these are just the opinions of a few, but they represent the feelings shared by many women involved in the sport. In an ideal world somewhere down the line we won’t have to talk about gender equality in mountain biking because it will be the norm. We will all just be a community of passionate cyclists and that’s all that will matter. We’re not there yet, but we’ve come a long way, and the rapid growth of the women’s bike community in the UK is exciting to see.