ICYMI: March Mostly Clothing

March was full of clothing-related stuff, or so it seemed to me, but we did squeeze in some bike advocacy, to protest proposed cuts to the bike/walk programs. I haven’t really gone to anything like this before and was proud of The Mechanic and I for literally standing up for what we believe in, as we stood in support of all three speakers supporting our cause. The Mechanic took some great video of my reflective pants but I haven’t had time to edit that to share. Soon.

It had been a long time since our bikes were out on the town together! A little advocacy brought them out.

In other news, here is what else happened in March:

– Reid Miller is a woman I met at the National Forum on Women & Bicycling, someone who also is interested in changing the apparel market for women’s bike clothes. She is currently conducting a survey of measurements, to create more realistic sizes of women’s clothing. Although you might not necessarily look at the numbers, I urge you to take her survey and add your measurements to mine. Share this survey far and wide – the more women-who-bike that take this survey, the better representation there will be!

– Speaking of bike clothing, did you see this Bike League Tweet about Fiks:Reflective? What do you think about this quote? “Safety sells to mothers and then sits in the bottom of a drawer.” I agree with making reflective safety gear cool and hip and desirable, and enjoy their tee shirts and wheel stripes. I’d get the wheel stripes before I’d wear the tee shirts, but I love what they are trying to do.

– Another Kickstarter bike product caught my eye, thanks to a feature on the VeloJoy website: the Lux Bicycle Pedal. This is a strap designed with fashion in mind; in fact, the quilting on it was inspired by Chanel. Can’t go wrong there! I love this Kickstarter product because I love my Power Grips but they are getting worn out, and when/if I get Fauntleroy repainted, he’ll need something fancier. My birthday isn’t that far away – maybe I can talk The Mechanic into Kickstarting me a pair!

Lux Bicycle Pedal (image from website)

– I did some biking around on Capital Bikeshare bikes. Seriously, I love these bikes. They are pretty much everywhere, easy to use (especially if you have an annual membership. If you want one, get it before May 1, when the membership goes up to $85 a year. Still a bargain though!), seem indestructible (although I know they are not), and best of all – you don’t have to do any maintenance on them! Although that seems like a work pitch, I really love those CaBi bikes. And speaking of work, here’s a blog post I wrote for the work blog about my commute. Does the photo look familiar?!

On a CaBi bike near Northside Social in Clarendon

– During our REI outting, we studied the new Ghost bikes. I pretty much love these bikes because they are German, a variant on my favorite color combination, and matte. Technical details, who cares?!? A woman’s bike that isn’t pink! Or perhaps women’s mountain bikes don’t have the pink-affliction that other genres do; I haven’t looked at enough. The Mechanic is familiar with these bikes, and we were excited to see them in person. So was Edgar. He likes them because he matches.

Now it’s April, and a busy month awaits. So too does Springtime weather, at least, we all hope it does! I’m looking forward to wearing skirts and dresses again. I can’t wait to try out my new Bikie Girl Bloomers, but I may also consider restocking my selection of Jockey Skimmies Slipshorts. Jockey has come out with a few variations, and the wicking ones are on my list for summer. Skirts are cool but wicking Slipshorts has got to be cooler!

Perfect for preserving modesty! (image from website)

And looking ahead – if you are in Arlington (VA, not TX!), there are two women-specific events coming up that I encourage you to check out. One is next week, the BikeArlington Zen Around the City Yoga & Biking for Women event on Tuesday, April 7th. The one they hosted two years ago was a huge success, so make sure to check out this one! And I noticed that the Revolution Cycles shop in Clarendon had a sign out for a Ladies’ Night on April 15th. I’ll probably go to this, and see which non-biking friend I can drag with me. RSVP soon and see you there!