Originally Posted by sunstorm

BarracksSi - I honestly don't know why the competent women aren't leading. I'm very new to the group (this is the first time I have ever shown up) so I didn't ask around to find out who the most competent riders were, then walk up and ask them. What was interesting listening to the male ride leaders talking about the females in the group; learned one woman completed chemo then did a century on the same day, that another was hit by a car the day before an endurance event and still placed in competition, another had lost 100pounds biking, and that another one 'burns the roads up' on every ride and can out ride any of the lead guys. These guys were speaking with obvious admiration for these women, so I don't know why they aren't leading. These are women that, unless I get to the point of owning an actual road bike and really riding at 20mph+ I will likely never actually know.

Penny4 - This all women's group has been meeting every week for 9 years. In 9 years, I'm pretty confident that some of these women have the experience to be leaders. Some of the women had been biking for over 2 decades, and one of the leaders was a man who had only started biking two years ago at the age of 70. I don't dislike the guys...don't get me wrong. It just seems really strange to me, as a woman, that in an all female ride, every leader was a guy, even when there are women there that the leaders say are better than they are. Part of the reason I was aware of it was that the guys were in the LBS's jerseys to lead the ride, they were obviously in charge and making all the decisions, and I showed up to an women's only ride expecting...well...all women. It just, to me, came across as very patriarchial. maybe I'm wrong. And I'm not blaming the guys, just think that perhaps it isn't just promoting biking among the rank and file of the female population...but about promoting leadership among competent female bikers at local, regional, national and international levels.